Duct Wrap: An Easy Process

Before saying anything about duct wrap, let’s discuss what actually a duct is. In very simple language, ducts are actually a way of ensuring acceptable indoor air quality as well as thermal comfort. In order to pass and remove air, ducts are used in heating, ventilation and air condition. The duct system is known as ductwork. To create a radiant wall around any ductwork, many use reflective foil duct wrap insulation that improves the performance of your heating or cooling system.

When HVAC systems run without effective insulation, the ducts leak valuable radiant energy. Therefore, it is very important to properly insulate your ducts to stop radiant flow of heat. It will also provide longer life to the equipment with lower utility bills. Installation of radiant barrier by using reflective foil insulation created for duct applications is quite an easy process. At first you have to ensure that how you want to run the insulation around the ducts. It will help you to get the proper measurements along with the facility of identifying the difficult areas.

Position a string around the largest common segment of your duct to obtain a measurement for the width of insulation you will require. Usually, the duct wrap reflective insulations are found in sizes measuring between 24-48 inches wide and from lengths as long as 125 feet. In order to complete your project, you have to place an order for an appropriate amount of insulation and reflective foil tap. However, the insulation should be little wide to house the extra spacers.

Using spacers is very useful, as it helps in creating airspace to get higher values up to R-6. Usually, the duct wrap projects need more taps than any other reflective foil insulation projects, as in the areas or spots where problem occur, in order to make a seal around those areas around the insulation, more tap is used. In many cases, these problematic areas are not shaped properly and therefore additional tap is required to join and seal various pieces of insulation.

Finally, we can say that creating a radiant barrier around your ductwork which reflects radiant heat, a major source of energy loss is not a very tough job. In order to get better result, using air spacers to create air space that allow the reflective foil insulation is very beneficial.