How insulation helps in hot climate?

This question has an easy-to-understand answer as long as you know how heat affects a building and how insulation can help to keep the interiors of a home cooler during the summer season.

Understand Why Buildings Need Insulation in Hotter Seasons

Usually, insulation materials are used to trap heat within the building. However, during summers, insulation materials perform the role of preventing heat from the outside to enter the building. Summer insulation also means preventing the loss of cooler air within the interiors.

Overheating Due to Sunlight

Solar radiation is a powerful source of heat energy. During summers, solar radiation is the greatest source of heat energy. Heat enters buildings through the windows, ventilation chambers, and other openings. Heat flows/moves through three primary mechanisms—direct contact or conduction, heat transfer from fluids or convection, and through electromagnetic waves or radiative heat transfer. Heat travels to the interiors through the sun-facing walls. This increases the external and internal temperature of buildings.

Hot Season Insulation Options

To reduce the effect of unwanted heating, you choose across a wide spectrum of coatings and paints. You can color the roof with light colors and use adequate shadings to reduce the impact of sunlight. More protection from the sun means reduced chances of the heat traveling inside. Veranda roofs need dedication insulation in hotter landscapes. Here, the outdoor living space is major contributor of radiant heat gain.

Light-colored roofing helps to reflect away a substantial part of the sunlight. Other insulation options commonly used to prevent overheating of a building includes shading of windows. Even simple insulation choices, like foil insulation, can provide effective protection against solar radiation. However, this might not be sufficient in very hot conditions. None of these measures can ensure comprehensive protection against solar energy unless air-gaps in the building are not treated with proper insulation.

Air-conditioning systems can fail if the walls allow heat from the outside to find a way into the interiors. This only increases the cooling load, raising your energy bills. Air leaks within the wall might allow some of the humidity to enter the home. This too is additional load for the air conditioner, i.e. to wry out the unwanted moisture. Here, you can consider spray insulation or innovative insulation options from Owen’s Corning Energy Complete System.

The use of foam ensures that every little cranny in and around the walls is properly filled. The idea is to create an effective air barrier. Spray foams fill cavities in the walls, ensuring you get better insulation.

Concluding Thoughts

Along with insulation, use simple solutions to reduce the sunlight from heating up the house. This includes roofs with bigger overhangs. Yes, the insulation marketplace is slightly prejudiced for the homes in colder climates. However, the trend is undergoing a drastic change. Insulation solution providers are fast realizing the need to provide solutions to homeowners facing hotter climatic conditions. We are witnessing a surge in insulation solutions for households hammered by sunlight and humidity.