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 Mobile ViewINSULATION IDENTIFICATION GUIDE INSULATION INSPECTION & IMPROVEMENT ACOUSTICAL SEALANT CHOICES AIR BYPASS LEAKS AIR LEAK MINIMIZATION AIR LEAK SEALING PROCEDURE ASBESTOS ROOFING / SIDING DUST ASBESTOS FLOORING HAZARD REDUCTION ASBESTOS IDENTIFICATION IN BUILDINGS ASBESTOS LIST of PRODUCTS ASBESTOS MATERIAL REGULATIONS ASBESTOS PHOTO GUIDE to Materials ASBESTOS RISK ASSESSMENT ASBESTOS REMOVAL, Wetting Guidelines Asbestos Under the Microscope ATTIC LEAKS, CONDENSATION & MOLD ATTIC VENTILATION BASEMENT CEILING VAPOR BARRIER BASEMENT HEAT LOSS BASEMENT LEAKS, INSPECT FOR BASEMENT WATERPROOFING BATH & KITCHEN DESIGN GUIDE BATHROOM VENTILATION BLOWER DOORS & AIR INFILTRATION BLOWER FAN CONTINUOUS OPERATION BLOWER FAN OPERATION & TESTING BLOWN-IN INSULATION BOOKSTORE - INTERIORS BRICK LINED WALLS BRICK VENEER WALL INSULATION BRICK VENEER WALL Loose, Bulged BRICK WALL DRAINAGE WEEP HOLES BUCKLED FOUNDATIONS due to INSULATION? BUILDING NOISE DIAGNOSIS & CURE CABINETS & COUNTERTOPS Carbon Nanotube Materials CACTUS FUNGI / MOLD CAR MOLD CONTAMINATION CARPET DUST IDENTIFICATION CARPET MOLD CONTAMINATION CARPET TEST PROCEDURE CARPETING & INDOOR AIR QUALITY CARPETING, SELECTION & INSTALLATION CATHEDRAL CEILING INSULATION CATHEDRAL CEILING VENTILATION CEILING FINISHES INTERIOR CEILINGS, DROP or SUSPENDED PANEL CEILINGS, PLASTER TYPES CEILINGS, PLASTER, LOOSE HAZARDS CEILING TILES - Asbestos-Containing CONDENSATION or SWEATING PIPES, TANKS CRAWL SPACES DEFINITION of Heating & Cooling Terms DECK & PORCH CONSTRUCTION DEW POINT CALCULATION for WALLS DEW POINT TABLE - CONDENSATION POINT GUIDE ENERGY SAVINGS in BUILDINGS Fiberboard Insulation Sheathing Mold FIBERGLASS HAZARDS FIBERGLASS INSULATION FIBERGLASS PARTICLE CONTAMINATION TEST Fiberglass Enviro-Scare FIBERGLASS INSULATION MOLD Fireproofing containing Asbestos FRAMING DETAILS for BETTER INSULATION FRAMING DETAILS for DOUBLE WALL HOUSES FRAMING METAL STUD PERFORMANCE FREEZE-PROOF A BUILDING FROST HEAVES, FOUNDATION, SLAB HEAT LOSS RATE CALCULATIONS HEAT LOSS in BUILDINGS HEAT LOSS DETECTION TOOLS HEAT LOSS INDICATORS HEAT LOSS PREVENTION PRIORITIES HEAT LOSS R U & K VALUE CALCULATION HOUSEWRAP AIR & VAPOR BARRIERS HOUSEWRAP INSTALLATION DETAILS HOUSEWRAP at SILLS, SOLES, TOP PLATES HUMIDITY LEVEL TARGET ICE DAM PREVENTION INDOOR AIR QUALITY & HOUSE TIGHTNESS INSULATION CHOICES Insulation Air & Heat Leaks INSULATION FACT SHEET- DOE INSULATION IDENTIFICATION GUIDE ASBESTOS-FREE INSULATION MATERIALS ASBESTOS IDENTIFICATION IN BUILDINGS Asbestos Pipe Insulation Balsam Wool Batt Insulation BLOWN-IN INSULATION BRICK LINED WALLS BRICK VENEER WALL INSULATION Cellulose loose fill insulation Ceramic Insulation Concrete insulation, light-weight Cotton Insulating Batts FIBERGLASS DUCT, RIGID CONSTRUCTION Fiberglass Insulation Foam Board Insulation Foam Insulation Types - Visual Id Homasote & Other Insulating Board Icynene Foam Spray Insulation Insects & Foam Insulation Mineral Wool - Rock Wool Insulation Paper Duct Insulation Perlite Insulation PHENOLIC FOAM INSULATION POLYISOCYANURATE FOAM INSULATION POLYISOCYANURATE FOAM BELOW SLABS POLYSTYRENE FOAM INSULATION RADIANT BARRIERS REFLECTIVE INSULATION RIGID FOAM USE INDOORS STRESS SKIN INSULATED PANELS STUCCO OVER FOAM INSULATION SUPER HI-R INSULATION SUPERINSULATION RETROFIT Urea Formaldehyde Foam Insulation UFFI URETHANE FOAM Deterioration, Outgassing VERMICULITE INSULATION INSULATION INSPECTION & IMPROVEMENT INSULATION LOCATION - WHERE TO PUT IT INSULATION MOLD INSULATION R-Values & Properties KIT HOMES, Aladdin, Sears, Wards, Others KITCHEN & BATH DESIGN GUIDE KITCHEN VENTILATION LEED GREEN BUILDING CERTIFICATION LEED Building Designation & IAQ LOG HOME ENERGY EFFICIENCY LOG HOME GUIDE MOLD in FOAM INSULATION, RESISTANCE MOISTURE CONTROL in BUILDINGS MSDS Material Safety Data Sheets MVOCs & MOLDY MUSTY ODORS MYCOPHOBIA, STAINS MISTAKEN for MOLD MYCOTOXIN EFFECTS of MOLD EXPOSURE Nanomaterials Hazards NOISE / SOUND DIAGNOSIS & CURE ODORS & SMELLS DIAGNOSIS & CURE ODOR DIAGNOSIS CHECKLIST PAINT FALURE, DIAGNOSIS, CURE, PREVENTION Paper Duct Insulation Containing Asbestos PASCAL CALCULATIONS PASSIVE SOLAR DESIGN METHOD PHOTOVOLTAIC POWER SYSTEMS RADIANT BARRIERS RADIANT HEAT REFLECTIVE INSULATION RIGID FOAM USE INDOORS ROT, FUNGUS, TERMITES ROT, TIMBER FRAME SAFETY HAZARDS & INSPECTIONS SEARS KIT HOUSES SHEATHING, FOIL FACED - VENTS SLAB INSULATION, PASSIVE SOLAR SOUND CONTROL in BUILDINGS STAIN & BIODETERIORATION AGENT CATALOG STAINS on BUILDINGS - QUICK GUIDE STAIN DIAGNOSIS on BUILDING EXTERIORS STAIN DIAGNOSIS on BUILDING INTERIORS STAIN DIAGNOSIS on ROOFS STAIN DIAGNOSIS on STONE STAINS & FINISHES, INTERIOR STAINS on INDOOR SURFACES: PHOTO GUIDE STAIRS, RAILINGS, LANDINGS, RAMPS STONE CLEANING METHODS STRAW BALE CONSTRUCTION STRESS SKIN INSULATED PANELS STUCCO WAll FAILURES DUE TO WEATHER STUCCO WALL METHODS & INSTALLATION STUCCO OVER FOAM INSULATION STUCCO PAINT FAILURES SUMP PUMPS GUIDE SWEATING (CONDENSATION) on PIPES, TANKS THERMAL EXPANSION of MATERIALS THERMAL MASS in BUILDINGS THERMAL TRACKING & HEAT LOSS THERMOSTATS, HEATING / COOLING TRIM, INTERIOR INSTALLATION TRUSS UPLIFT, ROOF TRUSSES, Floor & Roof VAPOR BARRIERS & CONDENSATION in BUILDINGS VENTILATION in buildings VINYL Siding or PLASTIC Window ODORS in buildings VINYL CHLORIDE HEALTH INFO WALL FINISHES INTERIOR WATER BARRIERS, EXTERIOR BUILDING WATER ENTRY in BUILDINGS WIND WASHING INSULATION At EAVES WINDOWS & DOORS WINTERIZE A BUILDING WOOD Burning Heaters Fireplaces Stoves More Information |
Cotton insulating batts: This article illustrates and describes how to identify, inspect, and evaluate cotton insulation materials in buildings. InspectAPedia tolerates no conflicts of interest. We have no relationship with advertisers nor with topics or services discussed at this website.This document assists building buyers, owners or inspectors who need to identify various kinds of insulating materials and who need to evaluate the condition of building insulation by simple visual inspection. We provide photographs and descriptive text of cotton insulation and other insulation products to permit identification of these materials in buildings. © Copyright 2012 InspectAPedia.com, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use page top links to major topics or use links at the left of each page to navigate within topics and documents at this website. Green links show where you are in a document series or at this website. COTTON INSULATING BATTS - Cotton building insulation should not be mistaken for asbestos Cotton building insulation was sold by the Lockport Cotton Batting Company under the product name Lo-K®. Cotton insulation may have been made, sold, and distributed by other manufacturers or distributors of building insulation in the late 1940's, including Bristol Insulation, Cary Insulation, Insulation Industries, Inc., Janesville Cotton Mill, Sears Roebuck, and Gilman Brothers Co. Cotton insulating batts were installed in many homes in the U.S. from about 1935 to 1950, and this material has recently seen a surge in new interest as a "green" building material.
What is the insulating value of cotton batts?Cotton insulation batts sold as Lockport's Lo-K® ranged in thickness from about 1/2" to 20" and its density ranged from 4.19 to 2991 kg· m-3 (about 1/4 pound per cubic foot up to more than 100 pounds/cubic foot(?))The heat transmission of various insulating materials including cotton can be viewed at the NIST website. NIST data shows that cotton insulation had a resistance to heat transfer ranging from 0.025 to 9.1 h· ft2· °F· Btu-1 (depending on the thickness of the product). I'm guessing from the data that this translates into modern "R" values of about 0.5 per inch. Currently marketed cotton insulation costs about 20% more than fiberglass insulation of roughly the same dimensions, and has a lower R value of R 3 to R 4 per inch of cotton insulation compared with an R value of R 5 to R 7 per inch for fiberglass batts. To compare insulating material R-values see our Table of Properties of Insulating Materials Is Cotton Insulation Batting a Green Insulation Building Product?Well sure it is insofar as we're using a natural, grown material rather than an insulation product made from petroleum products (plastics, foams). But "green" is a little tough to pin down. For example, when we evaluate the greeness of cotton insulating batts, the "green" claims we've read did not consider the petroleum product consumption in the production of cotton, the transport of cotton to the insulation producer, nor the effects of use of pesticides and fertilizers. These added complexities confound the environmental claims of lots of products, not just building insulation. The health claim, that cotton produces fewer problem particles than fiberglass sounds reasonable, but a study of the health effects that plagued workers in 20th century cotton mills leaves some questions about this assertion as well, at least for the producers of the product. The fiber release of any insulating product depends a lot on where and how it was installed and on its condition and its exposure to disturbance. Questions & Answers regarding this article. Ask a Question or Search InspectAPediaHTML Comment Box is loading comments...
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