Your attic can have a significant impact on your home's comfort during the hot and humid months. It tends to stay very hot and humid when outdoor temperatures are high. If you neglect this attic heat and humidity, they will downgrade your home's comfort. A radiant barrier can help you solve this problem.
The barrier is a flexible membrane or panel consisting of a shiny material, often aluminum, which is applied to a substrate material such as plastic film, kraft paper, plywood, or cardboard. It can be combined with many other insulation materials to act as their facing.
The radiant energy from the sun makes your roof hot. Some of this heat flows to the underside of your roof by conduction. The roofing material then radiates the heat gained to cooler surfaces in your attic such as the attic floor and air ducts. This causes the heat and humidity levels in your attic to increase. As their levels soar, your cooling system is made to work harder to keep your home comfortable, leading to higher cooling costs. A radiant barrier reduces the amount of heat transferred from your roof's underside to the attic surfaces. It reflects heat away from your attic, helping it stay cool. Lower attic heat and humidity levels result in improved home comfort. Radiant barriers are most effective when their reflective surface faces an air space. You should also install the barrier in a way that minimizes accumulation of dust on its reflective surface. As you can see, you'll get the most out of your radiant barrier if you install it properly. That's why it's best to call in a certified installer. If you'd like to learn more about radiant barriers, please contact us at Russell's Heating & Cooling. We've been proudly serving the Hampton Roads area of Southeast Virginia since 1977. Our goal is to help educate our customers in Chesapeake, Virginia and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about radiant barriers and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Guide or call us at 757-750-1831. Credit/Copyright Attribution: “Kincse_j/pixabay”