Caitlin Funkhouser Photography
Ice on the roof shows clear signs of energy loss vs energy-efficiency. We were fortunate not to have a huge ice storm that some parts of the country are facing. In our area, there was only a light coating of ice that was quickly melting as I drove to work. I could see on the roofs in the neighborhood where the insulation was installed correctly in homes and where there were some major gaps in the thermal envelope. Major gaps meaning loss of energy or HIGH energy bills.
When I got to work the folks at Herr and Company showed a photo they snapped of one of our design projects. They executed a major renovation for Weiler Orthodontics to improve aesthetics, but also to address some comfort issues. As I noted in a blog post from a few years ago, the insulation and heating / cooling system were not adequate to keep the energy bills low and the space comfortable.
Herr and Company brought in Elite Insulation to execute our design for the attic space. Since there was duct work in the attic space it needed to be a conditioned to perform optimally and correct the comfort issues. So the foam experts at Elite got to work and sealed up the roof, spraying the bottom of the sheathing and the fire wall that separated the attic from the neighboring space. The results are clear as the ice had not melted off the roof of the conditioned renovated space. The neighboring spaces are losing a lot of energy (money) through their roofs. This indicates that Dr. Weiler was keeping his warm air inside his space where it belongs. The net result is a more comfortable space with low energy bills.
