Residential Radiant Barrier - Super R Diamond - Economy

When applied over attic insulation just lay the Super-R Plus out like a big blanket. It will stay in place by its own weight. Overlap the edges an inch or two. There is no need to tape the edges. If your air conditioning ducts are laying on the insulation, cover over the ducts with the radiant barrier. This will put the ductwork in the protected area. If you have trouble keeping the barrier in place after going over ducts and other obstacles, you can secure it with our aluminum tape or a few staples. Both applications work well in the summer. Applying it on top of the insulation does a better job of keeping the heat in the house in the winter. This is especially important in the colder states. It is also much easier to lay down the barrier than to staple it up.

Yes. The Super-R Plus makes an excellent House Wrap. It does everything that Tyvek does plus blocking heat summer and winter. This is a great opportunity to use radiant barrier on the entire envelope of the house. Most people can only put the barrier in their attic but you can cover all the wall area as well for a little money. This completes the heat barrier on the walls that low-e windows start.

Super-R Plus

Yes, this product can absolutely be used with fire retardant plywood without any adverse effects. This should not void any warranty. First of all, this product has a perfect fire rating itself (a flame spread of zero under the new ASTM test method) so it will not contribute to the spread of a flame, and can actually help reduce it. Second, according to Florida Solar Energy Center, even under a heavy heat load, the radiant barrier only increases the temperature of the roofing material by about 3 to 5 degrees (not enough to have any adverse effects).

Sean, All you need is the Double Bubble Double Foil.

Of course we would like to see the product civered as soon as possible to avoid dirt accumulation on the surface. In situations that cannot be avoided a thirty day exposure would not be extreme. Again we want to avoid weathering and soiling the surface which could affect the reflectivity. It will not cause the material to deteriorate as will other house wrap products.

I don't have any idea about brick and mortar cement. You will, however need two 1,000 sq.ft. rolls of Super-R Plus to use as house wrap. It will provide the same benefits as other wraps but will add a radiant barrier to prevent 97% of the heat gain / loss in summer and winter.

Radiant Barrier films have an R-Zero rating because the 'R' Value test is not the proper procedure to evaluate radiant barrier products. The proper test is the reflectivity / emissivity test which shows the 'Super-R' films to be 97% reflective with a corresponding 3% emissivity. This means that radiant barrier films stop 97% of the heat they encounter with only 3% going through to the other side. In contrast, 'R' Value mass insulation materials only delay or retard the passage of heat from one side to the other with 100% of the heat ultimately being transferred to the other side. That is the definition of 'R' Value, "How long does it take for heat to pass through the material in question? The longer the time, the greater is the corresponding 'R'Value." In contrast, Radiant Barrier films only pass through 3% of the heat which is why they are referred to as 'barriers.' Since the 3% of the heat that is transrerred does so in a short time the resulting 'R' Value is zero. The building codes are written only with 'R' Value requirements. Therefore in new construction we are forced to add some 'R' Value material to the walls and ceilings to pass the letter of the code requirement. In this situation, we recommend that you use the Tempshield Double Bubble / Double Foil between the studs. One layer gives an R-15.4 rating and two layers spaced 3/4" apart gives an R-30.8 for a price similer to fiberglass. The bonus is that there will be no itchy material involved.