Roof insulation in Calgary provides valuable energy efficiency benefits. Insulating your roof is a great way to lower your energy bills and improve your home’s comfort. In Calgary’s extreme climate, insulation keeps buildings warm in long, cold winters and cool in hot summers.
When it comes to choosing a Calgary roofing contractor, quality matters. Superior Roofing is known for their reliable insulation advice and superb customer service. This holistic method is an extension of our artful adherence to integrity and craftsmanship.
Whether you’re a residential homeowner or a commercial business owner, knowing the role insulation plays is important. Investing in good insulation is a win-win and paves the way for a greener, more affordable lifestyle.
Armed with our roofing knowledge, you can better decide what your roof needs. Rely on Superior Roofing for professional advice.
Why Roof Insulation Matters
Additionally, good insulation can save energy. It keeps homes cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter, improving comfort all year round. Envision the next Calgary winter in a home that protects and keeps that warmth in. It creates a retreat from the harsh outside temperatures.
Roof insulation helps to trap warm air within the building. This decreases the reliance on heat sources. During the hot summer months, insulation prevents outside heat from penetrating your building. This helps maintain comfortable indoor temperatures and decreases the use of air conditioning.
This equilibrium provides comfort in every season without the need to constantly adjust thermostats. For many families, energy costs make up the biggest slice of their household budget. Climate change is particularly acute in Calgary, where long winters and increasingly hot summers pose serious threats.
Insulation virtually halves these costs by lowering the energy needed for both heating and cooling. Once well insulated, your flat roof is no longer a major contributor to heat loss in the winter months. It also stops lots of summer heat from making its way inside.
This efficiency means smaller utility bills. With oil and natural gas prices rising, especially as we move into the winter months, investing in warm, high-quality insulation makes more sense than ever before. With a well insulated roof, you can offset these expenses, as you will need to spend less on both heating and cooling.
Calgary’s weather is well-known for its drastic changes. Having high-quality insulation is a first line defense against these brutal temperatures. Insulation does not only provide temperature regulation, it also resists moisture infiltration, which is a typical flat roof problem.
By taking care of insulation needs in the warmer, drier months, you’ll save money on future maintenance and repair costs. By insulating properly, you can reduce your heat loss by up to 30%. This reduction underscores its critical importance in maintaining your home’s comfort and energy efficiency.
In the long run, premium insulation is a smart investment. It keeps your home secure and efficient in every season.
Benefits of Roof Insulation in Calgary
If you live in Calgary, roof insulation is key to keeping your utility bills in check. By improving energy efficiency, it can make a significant dent in driving down costs. You would potentially be saving more than 30% on energy bills, which makes a big difference over the years.
The insulation not only saves energy, it almost completely eliminates heat loss in winter. During the hot summer months, it further reduces heat gain, which adds to the system’s overall efficiency. That way, you reduce the amount of energy needed to keep your home warm in the winter and cool in the summer.
As a side benefit, roof insulation provides terrific defense against Calgary’s extreme, unpredictable climate. It provides an effective barrier from snow, ice, and excessive heat. This allows those extreme elements to destroy your roof and home structure.
This extra protection prevents your roofing materials from being damaged by wind and rain. In turn, it increases their longevity and reduces the burden of constant repair. Insulation helps prevent the creation of ice dams, which can be especially damaging during Calgary’s harsh winters.
Perhaps the most underrated advantage of roof insulation is the effect on thermal comfort within your home. It also provides a temperature balance across your home, keeping all of your living areas at a reliably comfortable temperature.
During the summer, insulation battles against oppressive outside heat and also holds in warmth in the colder months. In turn, this helps to keep your home warm in the winter and cool in the summer. This kind of consistency greatly enhances your quality of life.
Not only does it improve comfort throughout your home, it reduces stress on your heating and cooling systems and reduces your overall energy use. In addition to utility savings, well-insulated homes tend to have a higher real estate market valuation.
It is part of a broader pattern in Calgary, where extremes have become the norm. A home with effective roof insulation can be an attractive selling point. This tells future buyers that the property will probably have higher utility savings.
It also indicates that the property is more resilient to environmental extremes. When you add insulation to your roof, you’re saving money and energy while enjoying a more comfortable home. Additionally, it might just improve its resale value too!
Types of Roof Insulation
If you’re looking at roof insulation in Calgary, you’ll want to research the various types and their respective advantages. Here’s a closer look at spray foam, fiberglass, and cellulose. Then we’ll see how they stack up against each other.
| Insulation Type | R-Value Per Inch | Cost | Eco-Friendliness | Suitability |
| Spray Foam | 6.0 – 7.0 | High | Moderate | Flat/Sloped |
| Fiberglass | 2.9 – 4.3 | Low | Low | Flat/Sloped |
| Cellulose | 3.7 – 3.8 | Moderate | High | Flat |
Spray foam insulation has the highest R-value of all insulation, ranging from 6.0 to 7.0. This top rating also makes it one of the most effective at reducing heat loss. It also performs great on sloped and pitched roofs.
Their upfront cost may be more, but the savings in energy bills over time make the cost worth it. Its eco-friendliness is just fair since it has lots of synthetics.
Fiberglass insulation, one of the most common home insulations in Calgary, is produced from melted, spun fiberglass material. It provides more affordable insulation, about 5-10% lower cost than cellulose.
Its R-value is from 2.9 to 4.3 per inch, offering superior thermal protection. Suitable for flat roofs, fiberglass is less dusty during installation than cellulose. This makes it an attractive option for contractors to use in occupied spaces.
Cellulose insulation, mostly produced from recycled newspapers, offers a greener choice. It has an R-value of 3.7 to 3.8 per inch and is best suited for use in attic spaces.
It is a bit more costly than fiberglass, but its environmental advantages make it a popular choice. Its composition also makes it highly desirable for use on flat roofing systems.
Choosing the Right Insulation
When it comes to insulating your home in Calgary, there are a few key considerations to keep in mind. First, it’s important to assess your home’s specific insulation needs. The age and type of your home, as well as the condition of any existing insulation, play a crucial role.
Older homes might lack adequate insulation. Newer homes may have different requirements. For instance, attic insulation in Alberta should have an R-value between 30 and 60 to effectively combat heat loss. Exterior walls can be responsible for up to 20% of heat loss and also require careful evaluation.
R-value is the most important measure of insulation performance. In Calgary’s climate, selecting the right insulation with the right R-value helps keep your home cool in the summer and warm in the winter. The current National Building Code of Alberta requires a minimum R22 for above ground framed walls.
This new requirement also underscores the importance of good insulation. Whether or not these three materials are the right choice for your home ultimately depends on where you live. Look at the suggested R-values for the zone you live in.
Materials costs increase the R-value by only one unit with blown fiberglass, cellulose, or mineral wool is $0.04 to $0.06 per square foot. This combination makes it a savvy and fiscally responsible investment!
Perhaps the most important factors are your budget, how you plan to install the system, and your long-term energy savings. Natural wool is a highly sustainable option. However, it is often 3-5 times more expensive than other materials.
Blown fiberglass and cellulose provide a more cost-effective solution. Getting a professional company to install attic insulation is a wise choice. They also promise a better, more efficient fit, saving energy year after year.
Home insulation provides one of the highest returns on investment for resale value. It’s one of the few investments that can produce returns of 100% or higher!
Working with insulation experts can help you find the right solutions based on what’s best for your home. They also provide background and best practices on materials and methods suited to Calgary’s unique climate.
This knowledge is key to keeping your home cozy when it’s cold out and refreshing when it’s hot.
What to Expect During Installation
Roof insulation in Calgary often starts with an initial assessment. This typically takes around a day or two. This step involves evaluating the current insulation condition and identifying areas that need improvement.
Once the assessment is complete, the removal of old insulation, if needed, generally follows. This part of the process may take another day. Professionals use techniques like large vacuum hoses or manually placing batts through the attic hatch to clear out existing materials. Proper preparation ensures the area is ready for new insulation.
It also addresses any vapour barrier issues with 2lb closed cell polyurethane spray foam or 6-mil poly. The installation process also differs based on the type of insulation.
Cellulose and fiberglass blown-in insulation, known as batt insulation, is easy and popular in Calgary since it is economical. Professionals shoot for an R50 thickness, which means they’ll get it up to 14 to 18 inches tall. This fast process is done by blowing loose fill material into the attic space.
Spray foam insulation is the best option when it comes to vapor barriers. It fills all the voids and provides an integrated thermal envelope. Both approaches improve energy efficiency and ensure that you spend less on heating your home.
This is all the more critical as oil and natural gas prices shoot up during winter. Safety is our top priority during the installation process too. Our skilled specialists work quickly and effectively to safeguard your home and family.
They also keep materials well-ventilated and wear personal protective equipment to manipulate materials safely. Take care of your insulation requirements during the milder months.
Taking a proactive approach now will avoid emergency wintertime fixes and will maximize your home’s energy efficiency, comfort, and savings over time.
