How to insulate a house outside and what - materials, recommendations, tips

Thermal insulation foam

Warm the house outside with foam plastic - a rational solution. It is good for everyone: easy, inexpensive, does not require the use of any special technology tools.

Installation steps:

1. First you need to prepare the surface, align it well. The foam is produced in the form of plates, therefore, the smoother the outer part of the wall - the better fit( absence of voids), the less labor-intensive it will be possible to warm the house.
2. The surface should be well cleaned, primed to eliminate any glue or whitewash.
3. The following is the installation of exterior sills( sills).
4. Installation of the starting plate - the base, which will prevent the foam plates from creeping down. Also this element helps to lay the plates smoothly( to observe the line).
5. To insulate the house, laying foam insulation begins from the bottom of the wall, the installation accuracy of the bottom plate is responsible for the evenness of all subsequent rows. Universal adhesive for facade work, silicone sealant, tile adhesive, and other varieties are suitable for fixing tiles. Some masters recommend to fasten the plates with nails for greater reliability( 3 days after installation).However, in this case, it is necessary to take into account the peculiarities of the material from which the walls of the building were erected, whether nails could be used in this case.

As for the timber houses, before insulating a wooden house outside, scrupulously examine the surface for holes and crevices, then seal them with mineral wool, foam or ecowool. Draft and air pockets should not be.

Before proceeding with the description of the characteristics of another heater, it is worthwhile to clarify some nuances regarding foam plastic. To the frequently asked question: can they warm the house outside, the answer will be positive - yes, it is possible.

It is characterized by fairly good thermal insulation parameters, but at the same time there is an opinion that it is short-lived, has a high flammability, is unsafe in terms of ecology.

Consider these factors in more detail:

1. Polyfoam contains polymeric additives that are truly flammable. However, danger can be threatened only when the installation of the plates was carried out incorrectly, the safety requirements and the rules of operation of this particular material were not observed. It is quite successfully applied at different stages of building houses, if all the steps of the insulating “cake” are carried out correctly, then everything will be fine. The temperature of its ignition is 491 degrees, which is almost two times higher than that of wood or paper-containing materials. Thus, in terms of flammability, it is no more dangerous than wooden furniture or the floor.
2. It is difficult to voice an objective opinion about the durability of foam plastic, for the reason that it is relatively young. When choosing, pay attention to its manufacturer, as well as its quality. Most manufacturers guarantee its service life as a heater up to 70 years, taking into account temperature fluctuations from -40 to + 40 ° C.
3. Polyfoam is non-toxic, non-toxic, and biologically neutral. There has never been a single case when a builder or a person who is constantly working with him poisoned or ill. Contact with him does not need to wear respirators or protective gloves. It is characterized by the effect of "breathing" - this allows you to maintain an acceptable level of humidity inside the room.
4. In forums dedicated to construction topics, sometimes there is information that foam insulation does not provide heat gain. This opinion is true, but we should not forget that it perfectly keeps the heat in the house. If you decide to insulate the walls with them, then approximately 30% of the heat, which previously “left” outside, will remain indoors. It is very important, before insulating the walls outside in a private house with foam plastics or foam, to determine its thickness, which is required for your home.

Comparative characteristics of materials for thermal insulation

One often hears the question: what is the difference between foam plastic and foam plastic? These heat-insulating materials are really almost the same: both are lightweight, moisture resistant, resistant to rotting, afraid of solvents, acetone. Both have a "related" origin - a method of foaming polystyrene. In appearance, the difference lies in a different color - in penoplex yellow-orange color. But when the question arises, the better to insulate the walls of the house from the outside with foam or foam plastics, the latter demonstrates higher indicators of density, moisture resistance, airtightness.

If you live in a zone of high humidity, then when choosing insulation for exterior walls, it is better to opt for penoplex. The same mineral wool in such conditions is completely unsuitable for warming walls and foundations.

A short list of the characteristics of Penoplex:

• higher density, respectively, slightly reduced insulating performance;
• higher moisture resistance;
• higher flammability degree;
• is treated with flame retardants, which causes its environmental friendliness.

In turn, the foam:

• lower density( fragile);
• higher heat preservation( due to the looseness of the structure);
• moisture resistance is lower( again, due to looseness);
• low sound insulation performance;
• better manifests itself in conjunction with other more durable building materials.

For the rest, they are almost the same, the choice is yours, than to insulate.

Now let's look at what is better to warm the house outside, foam or mineral wool? Again, the choice is always due to many factors: price, climatic conditions, the material from which the house was built. For example, mineral wool( stone wool, glass wool) is optimal for a wooden house, it is a non-combustible building material. When working with mineral wool, you should wear protective clothing, gloves and a respirator.

If we consider the characteristics of both heaters from manufacturers, we will indicate approximately the same thermal conductivity parameters. In fact, this is not quite the case - the foam at insulation shows the best results. With it can be compared only with thick balsat wool in slabs - one of the varieties of mineral wool. In terms of ease of installation, foam insulation also benefits: the lack of protection when working with the material, low weight, and the absence of dust during processing. Plus, it is cheaper to insulate with foam plastic than it is less expensive.

Mineral wool is better at the joints, cold bridges are virtually eliminated, while foam plastic sins with this. The problem is solved if for individual stages of work to choose sheets with a l-shaped edge. How to insulate the walls of the house outside, if they have an uneven surface? Mineral wool is good because it can be cut into fragments of any shape and size - this is very convenient when weathe uneven walls. For foam insulation surface should be smooth.

Sometimes they are used together, such a technique is called multilayer insulation. In such cases, the foam should be located under the mineral wool. Mineral wool should act as an upper layer.

Aerated concrete house, wooden timber house - insulation

Some modern building materials used for the construction of houses initially have high thermal insulation properties. Often, the manufacturer assures that the house constructed from this material will not need additional insulation. This is not always the case, take, for example, aerated concrete - an excellent environmentally friendly building material with a cellular structure. It really has a high thermal insulation performance, but it also needs warming.

How to insulate a house from a gas concrete outside? Due to the high vapor permeability of the foam or foam should be immediately excluded. In case of violation of the air exchange between the interior and the external environment, condensate is collected on the border of the wall and the insulating material( which is why it is constantly wet).If the aerated concrete gets wet, there will be mold on it, fungi, and putrid processes will begin. In this situation, polyurethane or mineral wool in the form of mats would be appropriate in the role of insulation.

Initially, the surface of the wall is cleaned of debris, then primed. Any irregularities are plastered with a special mixture.

Installation steps:

1. Minvata in mats is fixed to the treated surface with suitable adhesive mixtures, but by no means the dowels.
2. Fiberglass is laid on top( silicate adhesive to help), it acts as a reinforcing layer.
3. To insulate those places where window or door openings are located, the insulation material is mounted with a reinforcing mesh or corners.
4. Then follows a turn of plaster and finishing, for example, painting.

The presence of high-quality waterproofing is extremely important for the walls of aerated concrete, since the porous structure actively absorbs moisture. When warming such a house, dowels, screws should be excluded, since any slips or cracks can lead to a disastrous result for the entire structure. It is allowed to use suitable adhesive mixtures or chemical anchors.

Now we will consider how to insulate a house from a 150 × 150 bar outside. In theory, it would also be possible to use foam or foam, but there is one “but” - they are not suitable for wooden houses due to ventilation requirements. Minvat well passes air and at the same time is thermal insulation. In turn, the foam is a reliable barrier to cold, but does not allow for free air exchange, which is important for houses from a bar. If you warm the wooden walls with them, then after a while a fungus, rot will appear on them, especially since in winter there will be no room to get rid of condensate.

In addition to the mineral wool, you need waterproofing, a construction stapler, self-tapping screws with anchors, and a protective antifungal agent that will need to pre-treat the surface of the walls.

The installation is phased as follows:

• wall preparation;
• laying the first waterproofing layer;
• installation of batten;
• laying mineral wool;
• installation of the second waterproofing layer;
• The final stage is decorative plaster or siding( or other suitable material).

Mineral wool should be placed tightly, without through gaps. At the bottom, near the basement and at the top, under the overhang of the roof, air lines should be left to ensure air circulation and the steam trap( so that condensate does not settle on the vapor barrier).

Warming basement

The better to warm the basement of the house outside? The cap also takes on precipitation, which means that the insulation for it must have reliable waterproof qualities. This part of the house can be warmed with the use of blowing agents, mineral wool, foam. Each of them requires an individual approach, installation features. However, the best and easiest to work with is polystyrene - durable, durable, moisture resistant. By all measures, this material is most beneficial among other heaters.

Before mounting the polystyrene plates, the surface must be treated with a primer. Fastening is performed on top of the waterproofing layer, with polyurethane glue or using bitumen-polymer mastic. It is important that the adhesive mixture does not contain solvents - it destroys the material. The thicker you choose the slab, the better the insulation will be.

Any house, no matter from which it was erected, needs competent warming. The answer to the question of how to insulate a house outside and what will depend on many factors: the starting material of the structure, the atmospheric features of the region, the cost of insulation. In any case, it is better to spend money once on high-quality insulation outside than to give heat to the street for years, to heat the house around the clock.