Insulation Brands
We often get asked questions like "what's the best wall insulation" or whether a certain residential insulation brand is 'better' than another. The insulation price is not necessarily an indicator that one insulation will perform better than another. Broadly speaking the three factors which should determine your choice of brand are:
• Your budget
• Where you live
• How much energy you want to save
The performance of thermal home insulation (which helps keep your house cooler in summer and warmer in winter) is measured in "R-Value." This measures how effective the insulation batts are at restricting the transfer of heat and cold. In general, a thicker insulation batt or insulation blanket, will have a higher R-Value. An R2.0 wall insulation batt will provide a good amount of thermal insulating benefits, and there should be no noticeable difference between any of the insulation brands we sell.
Pink Batts vs Earthwool vs Bradford Gold
Pink Batts, Knauf Earthwool and Bradford Gold are the biggest names in Australian home insulation. Each of these brands offer a huge range of wall, floor and ceiling insulation batts. Knauf Earthwool is the least itchy of the three brands, making it a popular choice among home owners and builders. Bradford Insulation offers the highest rated product on the Australian market with its R7.0 Hi-Performance Gold Ceiling Batts. We recommend all three brands without hesitation. The main thing to consider when buying insulation is which R-Value to install and whether to insulate the internal walls and floors of your home.
R-Values for Homes
The R-value measures the resistance to heat flow, so the higher the R-value the better the thermal performance. In cooler climates such as Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide we recommend buying the highest R-value that you can afford. Ideally you would install R2.5 in the walls and R5.0 or R6.0 in the ceiling. If you are living in Brisbane, Perth or northern New South Wales then we recommend a minimum of R2.0 in the walls and R4.0 in the ceiling. Insulation has a payback period of around 3-5 years, making it a great investment!