One of biggest challenges to meeting government and state standards for reducing energy consumption has to do with increasing the energy efficiency of existing buildings. Once a building has been constructed and in operation, there are less options for increasing its thermal envelope (i.e. the insulation). This is especially true for older historical buildings which may have been built with solid block walls, with no room for traditional insulation. Typically adding insulation to these types of buildings would be a costly process of opening up walls, or adding secondary walls (thus losing square footage) in order to accommodate traditional forms of insulation. Meaning that the time to install and cost in many ways are cost intensive.This is one of the most important applications that Nansulate® thermal insulation coatings can address. Because the insulation technology is delivered in a coating form, it makes it easy to install over walls and ceilings in existing buildings as well as over solid block walls. This makes for a much easier and much more cost effective strategy for increasing energy efficiency of buildings. Additionally, because the coatings are clear, they can be applied over historic buildings, without changing their visual appeal. Utilizing a next generation insulation in coating form also means that no square footage is lost due to insulation, and the coatings offer the additional benefits of mold and moisture resistance.
Nansulate® has been used in multiple retrofit applications because of its effectiveness and low installation cost. Some of the more high profile projects including, buildings on the Pearl Harbor Naval base in Hawaii, a restoration project the the American Red Cross in Louisiana, on buildings at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard, and at the Frost Art Museum at Florida International University.
Some traditional thinkers may doubt the performance of a thin film insulator, but that is because they have not yet experienced the performance of our nanotechnology based coatings. Ours is a patented technology that incorporates a nanocomposite with extremely low thermal conductivity into a low VOC, environmentally friendly water based coating. The testing as well as performance speaks for itself. In the ISO standard test for thermal performance of building assemblies (ISO 8990:1999) Nansulate®, at a typical three coat thickness of 7 mils DFT (dry film thickness), was shown to block 34.8% of thermal transfer through a wall assembly. It has also undergone scrutiny by the country of Mexico's Federal Electric Commission, which qualified the coatings for their energy efficiency credit program, and has undergone testing by multiple corporations who have chosen it for their energy saving and cost saving projects.
Because Nansulate® is uniquely well suited for retrofit energy efficiency applications, it is being featured in the current issue of Retrofit Magazine. Retrofit magazine's goal is to provide facility managers, building owners, contractors and others education about and insight into the burgeoning retrofit marketplace. You can download a copy of the Nansulate® highlight, or view the whole issue at www.retrofitmagazine.com.
As more mandates come into place for reducing energy consumption, and as more homeowners and businesses seek out easy and affordable ways to reduce their energy costs, Nansulate® will continue to be one of their first product choices. It provides solutions that to date no other product out there can match. The technology coupled with its affordability and short payback time (typically 1 year or less) make it an easy choice for consumers, businesses and governments alike.
For more information on the Nansulate® family of insulation and asset protection coating products, visit www.nansulate.com.
