Selecting the best attic insulation for North Las Vegas homes calls for a close look at the property and local weather. North Las Vegas has a hyper-typical desert climate, with blazing summers and cooler, but still quite warm, winters. Therefore, the energy-efficient attic insulation must retain the cool and comfortable climate in the home from the outside heat. The Home Energy Saver software from the U.S. Department of Energy predicts the attic in a typical North Las Vegas home can lose more than half of the energy consumed in the home to the outside if the insulation isn't optimum. Fiberglass insulation, while not perfect, can be installed with pretty good quality control. It may come in batts or rolls, and it can also be blown into the right spaces and somewhat irregular shapes. Blown-in cellulose has the advantage of using recycled materials, which is good, and it also has great energy performance, which is essential. But it can be quite labor-intensive to install nicely, so that's a bit of a drawback; but again, it's a good candidate. Is either one right for you? Either one could be.
In the scorching desert climate of North Las Vegas, you might do well to consider radiant barrier attic insulation. This relatively new technology was developed specifically to address the forenamed problem and is designed to work in the way by which heat travels when the sun shines on your roof: by radiant means. Radiant barrier attic insulation direct-ly reflects the radiant energy (heat) back outside before it has a chance to enter your living space. Radiant barrier in-sulation works best in the attic, but it's just as effective if installed in walls facing unconditioned spaces. Attics are a special case; they are mostly unconditioned but adjacent to conditioned space below. Radiant barrier insulation works best with a minimum of air flow in the ducts that are near the attic.
If you want the insulation in your home to perform at the highest level, you might want to consider spray foam—although it does come with a heftier price tag. Spray foam is all about coverage. When you apply it, it seeks out every nook and cranny, every little irregularity in the surface that it's being applied to. This might be the reason why so many builders say that it's air sealing that makes a house energy efficient. You might also want to consider the mold resistance of spray foam; when the pores of a material are too small for condensation to form, the material is mold resistant. Spray foam has some other non-thermal benefits; it might not be something that you really want to hear, but if I was building a home, I would definitely want to spray foam my walls and ceiling. For attic spaces in North Las Vegas that have an unusual shape and might not conform to traditional insulation methods, spray foam can work miracles. It can be applied in any configuration and will close off all seams, which in an attic space is absolutely crucial because of all the nooks and crannies formed by rafters and roof decking. The foam also provides an excellent vapor barrier, which again is vital in an attic because of all that space between the roof and the living area below. And even though spray foam costs more than other options, the savings on energy bills alone can make it worth every penny.
