Insulation Institute Blog

Posts By: Stacy Fitzgerald-Redd

COVID-19 Vaccination Plans in Every State

According to Construction Dive, a study of 730,000 COVID-19 tests found that construction workers had the highest positivity rate for asymptomatic cases of any occupation. Therefore, to reduce widespread illness and keep pace with the high demand for residential construction, it’s essential to get workers vaccinated. Multistate, a full-service state and local government relations company, has published a comprehensive dashboard of the COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan for all 50 states.

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COVID-19 Vaccination Plans in Every State

New Guide: Fiberglass and IAQ

Homebuyers are increasingly concerned about the safety of the products that are used in their homes. When it comes to insulation, there’s a lot of information out there, but it can be hard to separate fact from fiction. Insulation Institute has just released a new guide, Fiberglass Insulation A Guide to Better Indoor Air Quality, which details the significant benefits of using fiberglass insulation, whether you’re a builder, installer, or homeowner.

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New Guide: Fiberglass and IAQ

An Insulating Challenge: Scissor Trusses and Sloped Ceilings

Architect Terry Smith of TDSA Architecture in Washington state recently contacted NAIMA with a question about how to properly insulate various types of roof trusses – both conventional and scissor type. Terry rightly pointed out that insulation is intended to be most effective when uniformly applied or layered to cover the full extent of the space being insulated. But there are instances, such as narrow areas near the top plate of scissor trusses and sloped ceilings, where that is not possible.

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An Insulating Challenge: Scissor Trusses and Sloped Ceilings

HERS Ratings Soared in 2020

Despite the pandemic, demand for HERS-rated homes increased 24 percent in 2020 versus 2019, according to Residential Energy Services (RESNET). In 2020, 299,755 homes received a HERS Index Score, breaking the record for the number of rated homes in a year. The previous record from 2019 was 241,664 rated homes.

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HERS Ratings Soared in 2020

Our Top 10 Blog Posts of 2020

At the Insulation Institute, we aim to deliver the most useful educational content on energy efficiency and best builder practices for our readers. Here are the topics that proved to be the most highly ranked among our loyal readers this year. If you missed any of these, let’s hope the slower pace as we wind down 2020 will offer you a chance to review our reader favorites.

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Our Top 10 Blog Posts of 2020

EE Jobs Offer Best Bet for Recovery

A new report from E4The Future says energy efficiency (EE) – the largest U.S. energy sector — can repower America’s economy as we work to overcome the pandemic’s economic effects. The annual report highlights the significant job losses due to COVID-19. Overall, employment is down nearly 14 percent in 2020 versus 2019, a loss of 321,900 jobs.

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EE Jobs Offer Best Bet for Recovery

Insulation Contributes $36B in Payrolls to the Economy

A newly released study of the insulation industry’s economic contributions to the U.S. economy in 2019 details more than 564,000 jobs generated and $36 billion in payrolls that supported families and communities around the country. Those jobs in the manufacturing, distribution, and installation of insulation will be a critical component of the nation’s continued economic recovery in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the study’s sponsor, the American Chemistry Council (ACC).

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Insulation Contributes $36B in Payrolls to the Economy

FEMA Says Homes at Risk Due to Outdated Codes

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has released a long-awaited study detailing archaic building codes’ impact on communities. The report concludes that 65 percent of counties and municipalities in the United States have not adopted modern building codes. These communities incur an additional $1.6 billion a year in property damage due to flooding, strong winds, and earthquakes – costs that could be averted altogether if building codes were up-to-date.

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FEMA Says Homes at Risk Due to Outdated Codes

Baffles Done Right

In any roof system with an attic, ventilation is crucial as it allows airflow to come through the attic and exit out the roof vents, which manage hot air and moisture. Installing baffles between the roof’s rafters and trusses will stop the insulation from blocking the airflow through the attic space. Baffles should be installed in the attic wherever there is an intake vent (soffit vent) to ensure proper airflow in the attic. The devil is in the details of the installation, though. Installation guidance can help ensure that the baffles are correctly installed.

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Baffles Done Right

Meeting Builder, Buyer Needs for IAQ

In last week’s blog post, we reported that architects are seeing changes in home design due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Home Design Trends Survey, there is a greater interest in indoor air quality (IAQ) among custom builders and renovators. That finding piqued our interest in whether semi-custom and production builders are also increasing their focus on indoor air quality and what that could mean for building costs. In this week’s blog post, we talk to Matthew Cooper, Senior Vice President, PEG, LLC, about how the broader homebuilding community is responding to the focus on indoor air quality and why increased emphasis on IAQ doesn’t necessarily mean increased costs.  

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Meeting Builder, Buyer Needs for IAQ