If something vital to our survival is missing, we have always found a way to invent it. We needed a means for speedy travel, so we invented cars. We needed energy to do our daily activities so we set up power plants. And if something is not conducive to our survival, we always find a way to eliminate it or modify it to suit our requirements. People who lived in landlocked places designed swimming pools and artificial lakes. People surrounded by water invented ships. And people who have to contend with extreme temperature conditions have discovered thermal insulation.



What is thermal insulation?

It is a universally accepted truth that if two objects of different temperatures are brought in contact with each other, the warmer object will transfer heat to the colder body until they reach an equilibrium, i.e. they have the same temperature. Therefore in places of extreme temperatures, you will interact with your surroundings to attain an equilibrium. You will either be the origin of heat or the recipient of it. In severely hot places, you will therefore feel hot because you are receiveing heat from your environment. Likewise in severely cold places, you will feeel cold because you are transferring your meager heat to your environment. Without thermal insulation, such heat transfer can have drastic consequences to your well being.

Thermal insulation is the process of controlling the transfer of heat from one entity to another. You may not be aware of the concept but you have been practicing this in your everyday life. When winter comes and temperatures go perilously low, you find the warmest and thickest clothes you can find. You also wear as many articles of clothing as you possibly can. And to prevent freezing temperatures in your sleep, you have installed heaters to continuously supply your home with heat.

But heaters, electric or not, are costly ways of staying warm. That is why it should be used with extreme economy and in combination with an ingenious home design. Your home should in itself retain the maximum amount of heat and impede heat from going out. Relying on your electric heater alone to stay warm is impractical and foolhardy. Just the thought of your heating bills when they come due should be enough encouragement to give serious thought to modifying your home to become more efficient.

Now, you might be telling yourself that the winter will not last forever and your electric bills would be lower when its over. So why care? You forget that the summer will also come and your house will heat up like a furnace. And to counter this, you would crank up your airconditioners to the maximum setting and bask in the glorious cool. But come electricity bill day, and you nearly faint at the figure you are seeing. And yet again, the wisdom of proper home insulation is appreciated.

As for the seasons between summer and winter, do not fool yourself into thinking that you do not need to have insulation. Temperatures are hardly constant even then, and you are either heating your home or cooling it.

The benefits of home thermal insulation.

Insulating your home against the varying temperatures can easily be the one of the wisest investments you can make. Home thermal insulation will give you better control over the temperature inside your house. Your house will thus be geared to retain the best conditions for your comfort. If your home is well and properly insulated, your house will lose heat slower and your heaters need not work as hard to maintain your ideal temperature. Your heater will thus consume less energy and you will reap the benefits through a lower electric bill. Likewise in the summer, if your home is properly insulated, you can turn your airconditioner on without worrying about the upcoming electric bill. Proper insulation will slow down the transfer of heat from outside. Therefore, you retain your desired cooler temperature inside the house without having to crank up your airconditioner to maximum settings.

Simply put, thermal insulation is a powerful efficiency maximizer when properly applied to your home. It will allow you to retain the desired heat or cool for far longer periods of time.