LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. These standards help identify sustainable buildings, which makes building green homes easier. There are a variety of LEED categories where insulation makes a big difference.
Insulation’s job is to keep cool air inside and warm air out and vice versa during those few weeks you’ll be using the heat in Florida. It’s critical in these areas:
- Minimum Energy Performance: This refers to the minimum level of energy efficiency that the home will achieve. It helps reduce both environmental impacts and economic ones (in other words: reduce energy costs for the homeowner) that are associated with excessive energy use. High quality insulation helps meet this goal.
- Optimize Energy Performance: You may think of insulation as an afterthought. How could such a simple material reduce energy costs? Yet choosing a spray foam insulation such as Icynene can account for as much as 11% of your energy savings. That’s a substantial reduction in potential monthly energy costs.
- Recycled Content: Icynene is up to 3.4% recycled content. This contributes greatly to the amount of building material that must be made from recycled material in order to meet LEED specifications. It can contribute as much as 20% in some cases.
- Minimum Indoor Air Quality Performance: Unlike many insulation materials, Icynene has greater ability to reduce not just air leakage, but the movement of moisture as well. This helps keep a space drier, which prevents mold and mildew growth. Reducing moisture movement also contributes to insulation efficiency, since heat travels more efficiently through moisture than through air alone.
- Indoor Chemical and Pollutant Source Control: As insulation, Icynene even helps compartmentalize hazardous gases and chemicals. This can help give your family more time to escape in the event of some emergencies.
Synergy Homes uses Icynene spray foam, which benefits each of these LEED categories. “By using Icynene spray foam insulation in attic spaces, we deliver a far more superior product than the competition,” says Michael Sferes, Vice President of Sales and Marketing. When building green homes, every decision matters; using the best materials guarantees the best results.
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