Property Managers and Tenants Benefit from Commercial Heating Insulation

If you’re in the market for a new heating system for your commercial building, or if you’re going through renovations, then now is an excellent time to consider heating insulation for your ductwork.

More buildings than you may think don’t have an insulated HVAC. As a result, they’re missing out on some advantages that come with this extra step.

In this post, we’ll outline four of the most significant benefits of heating insulation in a commercial building.

In particular, we’ll look at two from the property manager’s perspective, and two that make more of an impression on your tenants.

Finally, we’ll talk about how to choose the best type of insulation based on your needs.

Four Benefits of Commercial Heating Insulation

Commercial insulation offers benefits both for tenants and property owners. Four advantages are:

1. Saving On Energy Bills
2. Reducing Noise
3. Controlling Condensation
4. Improving Climate Control

Let’s look closer at each of these.

Saving On Energy Bills

The big reason property managers consider commercial heating insulation is often the bottom line.

And, here it is: Insulating the ductwork in your building helps reduce your energy expenses — especially if you have an older system.

The mechanics here are pretty simple. After all, the idea of insulation is to keep thermal energy from escaping.

In this case, you’re making sure the heat doesn’t leak out of the ductwork before it reaches a vent.

Leakage is common, especially with older ductwork. Even new ducts are never sealed airtight. And, small holes and splits develop over time.

This way, more of the treated air your HVAC system creates will get to where you want it. When it’s not lost along the way, that’s less work for your furnace.

Reducing Noise

For tenants, noise reduction is a huge selling point.

Sure, call centers or retail spaces usually drown out the sound of forced air. But students and teachers in schools and employees in quieter offices are easily distracted or annoyed by the sudden sound of air blasting through the ducts a few times every hour.

With the right insulation, you can offer those tenants a more peaceful, attractive space.

Making your HVAC system less noticeable in an audible sense can be a byproduct of insulation. Or, you can focus on this benefit and make a marked difference.

Controlling Condensation

Excess moisture can mean a headache —- and extra expenses — for a property manager.

Condensation on ductwork or near vents can result in anything from corrosion and damage to mold or Dirty Sock Syndrome: A cheesy smell coming through the vents.

And, since you can’t regularly access all your ductwork, you may not realize you have a problem until those symptoms take hold.

Fortunately, insulation can prevent this from taking hold.

People often call this problem “ductwork sweating” because it looks like beads of sweat are forming all along the system.

Instead, it’s condensation caused by differences in temperature and humidity in and near the vents versus the air around it.

So, the solution is to keep the air in the space away from the ductwork. Wrapping it insulation does just that.

Improving Climate Control

Finally, ductwork improves climate control in your building. That means better comfort for your tenants.

Some of this happens thanks to the other benefits: Less condensation means no weird smells or weak circulation.

And, we talked about how quieter HVAC is appealing for many tenants.
But, the insulation also helps create a more consistent temperature. That means fewer fluctuations where the temperature dips until the thermostat tells the system to course-correct with a blast of air.

This occurs when there’s less leakage along the way. There’s better pressure and more treated air coming out of each vent.

And, overall, the system doesn’t have to work as hard. Since you’re using all that energy efficiently, even an older heater can better keep up with the load requirements.

Choosing the Right Commercial Heating Insulation

You can choose commercial heating insulation based on how it helps with:

• Thermal Control
• Sound Reduction
• Mold and Moisture

Of course, any of the products out there will help with all of these. But, there are specs and ratings to look for if you want to concentrate on any one area.

Thermal Control

To determine how well the insulation will keep the heat inside the ducts, look for the “R” value. The higher that rating, the better it will keep the air where you want it.

Sound Reduction

Look for the Noise Reduction Coefficient or NRC. The higher, the better. They go up to 1.0010.

At 0, you’re getting no sound reduction. A perfect 1.0010 means total sound absorption.

Mold and Moisture

There’s no rating for this. But, if mold or other problems from excess moisture are a concern, then you can look for specific features that can help.

For starters, look for products using only inorganic material. And, choose options that don’t require any time to dry or cure once it’s applied.

You also want to look for products that will absorb less than 1 percent of its weight in humidity or moisture.

Finding the Right Options

If you’re considering commercial insulation for a building in South Jersey, give us a call here at Bovio. Starting with a free consultation, we’ll help you find the right option.

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