We Got Green: Jay goes with greener cellulose insulation product
December 1, 2007
Going with green with insulation is actually one of the easier choices in a remodel project. There are many alternatives to fiberglass such as UltraTouch Natural Cotton Fiber Insulation, spray foam from BioBased Insulation, or recycled shredded paper from GreenFiber. Below you will find a story written by Ryanne Hodson, and brought to GetWithGreen.com from the team at PodTech. Ryanne tells us about how Jay made his decision to use recycled paper insulation in a garage remodel.
Written by Ryanne Hodson (November 29, 2007)
Recently, Jay’s dad started building on some property he owns in rural Virginia. The first structure built was the garage/workshop. Jay and I were eager for the chance to try out some green building materials as an alternative to the usual stuff. Before traveling over to the east coast for Turkey Day, we did some research along side his pops about what the cheapest, most green insulation material could be used (which could also be purchased at a major box store near by). We found that Recycled Paper Cellulose was the least expensive material you could buy, at 25 cents per sq. foot and it is available through most building material suppliers. The alternatives were The Pink Stuff, fiberglass rolls at about 50 cents per sq. foot. I was wary of using fiberglass because of its notorious itch inducing particles that will irritate not just your skin, but your lungs as well! If the particles ever become loose and get into your ventilation system, this can mean big trouble for your internal organs and cancer fighting immune system. Another recycled and mostly benign insulator are the trendy new denim rolls. These are made from recycled scraps from jean manufacturers. This was my top choice until I did a price check. This stuff goes for $1.00 per sq. foot. Yikes!
The price factor is still top priority when you have to build, those square feet can add up fast. And when you’re trying to convince a retiring baby boomer to go green even though it costs 4 times as much, they’re gonna laugh and buy the usual ‘Pink Stuff’. So we were happy to find an alternative that was cost effective and recycled. The only downside was the actual packaging of the material. It came in plastic bags, which most of you know, drive me crazy and can not be easily recycled or degraded. A would love to see this company really pull through and start packaging the product in, you guessed it, recycled paper! (NOTE: Ryanne we’ve contacted the team at GreenFiber about your suggestion. We’ll let you know if they respond!)
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We would love to come up with a more environmentally friendly bagging solution that will withstand shipping and handling. We welcome suggestions and will investigate burlap. Paper bags haven’t stood up in the past. Dog food bags appear feasible but have plastic between the paper layers. We currently use a # 4 low density polyethylene (LLDPE), which is recyclable. The easiest place to recycle these plastic bags are at your local grocery store.
On your video you ask what would be better to use on the wall than plastic. A nonwoven fabric such as upholstery fabric is typically used on interior walls with the insulation blown in through slits in the fabric. Exterior walls of existing structures can be filled by using a “drill and fill” method installed from the inside or outside of the house. One inch holes are drilled in either the drywall inside or sheathing under the exterior siding. Blowing machines are available at the home improvement store to blow in the insulation.
Thank you for publishing a good article and video. And thank you for using GreenFiber Insulation. Any questions, call us at 800-228-0024 or visit http://www.greenfiber.com.
Cellulose is a good product. I discovered my old home was balloon framed (continuous space from attic to basement), I immediately purchased this and filled our walls with it. It’s a great way to green an existing home. This year, when removing some of those walls for a kitchen remodel, we found that it maintained it’s density and didn’t settle at all during the two and half years. However, when the time came to replace the insulation, we elected to upgrade with the more expensive soy-based foam insulation which I must say is turning out to be a better choice already. Once you get past the initial cost, and look at the long-term benefit of lower utility bills, and the fact that it is a renewable product, it’s very satisfying.