Insulation, Mineral Wool, Radiant Barrier, Reflect

The Many Different Types Of Insulation Including Mineral Wool And Others

If you happen to be building your home, you are going to have to make some serious decisions when it comes to the materials you end up using in your home. One of the biggest decisions you will make is what type of insulation you use for the walls, ceilings, basements and more. You are going to have many options and some builders find that a combination of different insulations to handle different areas of the house works well. However, it is very possible that at one point or another you are going to have to decide on Mineral Wool Insulation or fiberglass insulation.  Owens Corning is one of the industry leaders in insulation for your home or business.

When making the comparison between Mineral Wool Insulation and fiberglass insulation, you are going to find that the two are often lumped in together. That is because they both share similar features. They come in both loose fill and blanket insulation forms and they are perfect for oddly shaped areas and hard to reach spaces. However, there are a few things that separate wool insulation from the fiberglass option.  Perhaps the biggest difference comes down to price. Since fiberglass insulation is much more popular, the price of wool insulation will generally be a little higher.

Price alone, however, is not all that separates Mineral Wool Insulation and fiberglass insulation. Wool insulation exceeds fiberglass insulation in that it does not lose its insulation properties if it happens to get wet. With fiberglass insulation, when it gets wet, it is for all intent and purpose, useless. In addition, wool insulation is extremely fire resistant. While fiberglass insulation is also fire resistant, wool insulation rates better. Lastly, there is a question of safety. In the past, it was thought that breathing in fiberglass from fiberglass insulation meant that you had breathed in a carcinogen. The American Lung Association has since deemed fiberglass insulation as safe. However, manufactures still display warnings that inhaling fiberglass dust from insulation can cause skin, eyes, and throat irrational and prolonged exposure can result in lung cancer. Mineral wool does not have that stipulation, nor does cellular glass insulation, reflective foil insulation or radiant barrier insulation.

Whether you decide to use Mineral Wool Insulation or fiberglass insulation for your home, or perhaps you decide to use a combination, you will be getting a proven form of insulation. However, if you want to side step the safety issues of fiberglass insulation, you want to improve your insulations fire resistant ratings, and you want it to continue insulating in the even it happens to get wet, then wool insulation is the right option for you.