Why do my ducts need to be insulated?

            You may have heard of insulting your home to help keep the internal temperature stable during cold or hot months, but have you ever considered insulating your ducts? If you live in a newer home, your home might have already come with insulated ducts, but if it didn’t, consider the following information.

            Insulating your ducts is important because it’s used to provide better heating and cooling efficiency as well as prevent the duct from freezing during the cold winter months. Though insulation may sound like it’s only about keeping the warmth in, it’s also about keeping warmth out. On average, homes without insulated ducts see a 20% loss in efficiency when using their central heating or cooling. This means that 20% of the heated or cooled air is lost in leaks. This can add to an already high energy bill and if left unattended, this can result in disastrous wear and tear for the ducts as well as being unable to properly maintain the temperature in your home. But that’s only if you have a leak somewhere. If you don’t, you instead face the chance of accumulating condensation on the inside of the cut, which will eventually lead to rust and corrode you duct from the inside out. In either situation, if you’re using uninsulated ducts to transport air, you’ll have to eventually replace them.

            The good news is insulating duct isn’t expensive to purchase and install. By doing this, you skip over all the nasty consequences that may occur after years of use on your uninsulated ducts. Before you start surfing the web for insulated duct, let’s go over your situation.

            Start by considering your duct location. If there is a massive difference between the air that’s in the duct and the air that surrounds the duct, you’ll want to add insulation here. After you’ve mapped out these differences in temperature locations, consider what your duct itself is made of. Most commonly, you’ll see your duct is made of galvanized steel. Sometimes, the interior of these ducts are lined with insulation, typically 1” thick fiberglass. Take a peek inside these duct networks—if you notice they’re already lined, you don’t need to worry about insulting their exterior. If they’re not lined, then you have some choices on how to add insulation.

            If you’re planning on simply wrapping the exterior of the duct, all you need to do is purchase the insulation material. There are two general types of insulation wraps, insulation sleeves and fiberglass blanket wraps. Insulation sleeves come in a pre-measured length and may have one side that’s adhesive. Simply cut the sleeve to the proper length and wrap your duct within it. The other type of insulation wrap is the fiberglass blanket. With these, you literally just wrap it around the duct. If neither of these materials can be found at your local hardware store, try searching for foil-backed bubble wrap. Though this alternative won’t deliver the same type of insulation power and performance as the first two if you buy the cheap brands, this problem can be easily remedied by buying one of the more expensive brands.

            If that doesn’t sound to your liking, visit plumbersstock.com to browse their selection of insulating ducts. You may even choose to replace the entire duct itself with an insulated-interior duct. Whatever you choose, you won’t find it cheaper online anywhere else.