Improving the Energy Performance of Roofs

In Australia, energy efficiency continues to be a major objective in our national policies, and finding ways to reduce wasted energy is very much a concern of an insulation manufacturer.  Just reducing the amount of energy lost through building roofs creates a tremendous savings in energy dollars as well as reduces the amount of CO2 pushed back into the atmosphere during the generation of electricity. Much wasted thermal energy can be eliminated by coordinating insulation installation with in conjunction with HVAC installations.

At Austral Insulation, we view your roof more as an insulation system than as a single component of your Brisbane home.  This system consists of the roof insulation, the heating and cooling ventilation, the physical roof structure.  The heating and cooling energy lost directly through roofs and indirectly through ducts and mechanical equipment in roof spaces offers large potential for improving the energy performance buildings. Our job is to make sure that the insulation portion minimizes wasted energy while at the same time complementing the system as a whole.

Often the installation of insulation is viewed as a separate task, unrelated to the installing vents or when installing equipment in the roof area of commercial buildings.  Studies have shown that placement of ducts and HVAC equipment in unconditioned attics can lead to as much as 30% loss of the heating and cooling generated in the course of a day.  Often, the HVAC installed, but proper moisture control and insulation is not done at the same time.  Leaky ducts are a cause for thermal waste as well as can introduce airbourne contaminants thereby reducing the air quality indoors.

Austral Insulation works with industry experts, federal energy agencies and local partners to identify ways to improve the awareness of problems segmenting structural and equipment installations outside of insulation planning and installation.  If you have more questions on best practices moisture control and insulation installation, we invite you give us a call at 07 3249 1888 to arrange for an appointment to discuss your project.