Old Fashioned Fiberglass Chunks of Insulation

Know What's Backside Your Walls

Insulation has come a long way. These days y'all tin stuff your walls with everything from recycled blue jeans to soy-based foam to keep temps comfortable year-circular. But if you lot live in an older dwelling house with insulation installed before yous moved in, understanding what pads your walls is essential to keeping your family safety—particularly if your spring to-exercise listing includes cleaning the attic or renovating it. Hither's what you lot need to know about three mutual old-business firm insulations.

Vermiculite

What it is: A lightweight, shiny mineral that resembles mica flakes.

How it works: Vermiculite absorbs h2o and is fire resistant, giving information technology myriad uses, from fluffing up garden soil to soundproofing floors. The mineral was popular during much of the 20th century as insulation, cheers in function to its easy application: It could merely exist poured by the bagful between ceiling joists.

Vermiculite: Possible Hazards

Vermiculite isn't inherently harmful; yous can however buy it at garden stores. Just 70 pct of the vermiculite sold from 1919 through 1990 came from a mine in Libby, Montana, which shared the space with a deposit of asbestos. If your dwelling house was built before 1990 and has vermiculite insulation, you lot should assume it's contaminated with asbestos, which co-ordinate to the EPA puts you at risk for lung diseases, including asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma.

If you take information technology: Don't mess with it. In that location's less chance in just living with the textile than in trying to remove it and perhaps releasing asbestos into the air you breathe. Rethink storing boxes in your attic if accessing them disturbs the vermiculite. And if must-exercise renovations require cutting a hole in the ceiling, phone call a contractor certified to deal with asbestos.

Fiberglass

What it is: Finely spun glass fibers create a lofted material that tin exist rolled as batting; it can too be sprayed into walls as loose fill. It remains one of the nigh pop types of insulation.

How information technology works: Fiberglass works equally a barrier by trapping air inside pockets of fluff; that'due south why it loses its effectiveness when compressed by the weight of boxes or other heavy items.

Fiberglass: Possible Hazards

In 2001, the World Health Organization removed fiberglass insulation from its list of possible carcinogens. However, if you're handling it, you need proper protection, every bit microscopic slivers of glass tin can interruption loose and irritate your skin and throat, says Allen Rathey, president of the Good for you House Institute.

If you have it: Avoid disturbing the material. If you lot have to work with it—to fluff up batting that'due south been flattened, for example—article of clothing gloves, goggles, a grit mask, and a loose-fitting long-sleeve shirt. Make sure to clean upwardly thoroughly afterwards.

Mineral Wool

What it is: Popular before World War II, mineral wool comes in two main forms: rock wool, which is made by spinning molten rock into masses of tiny intertwined fibers similar to cotton candy; and slag wool, which is fabricated from the by-product, or slag, that forms on the surface of molten metal.

How it works: Formed into blankets, batts, or boards, mineral-wool fibers cake both sound and temperature exchange through walls. It can also exist found as loose-fill up insulation.