Denim and cellulose insulation are the most popular recycled insulation products. They are considered to be eco-friendly since they have the highest recycled content and they give discarded materials a second life. In this video, we’re going to look at how they are made, their main differences as well as their pros and cons.

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Chapters
0:00 Introduction
0:21 How it's made
2:39 Cost comparison
3:25 Dimensional stability
5:26 Ease of installation
7:19 Noise control
7:43 Water test
8:41 Fire test
9:16 Environmentally friendly?
11:26 Conclusion

At the end of their first life, donated jeans are cut down into small pieces, while zippers, buttons and rivets are removed from the mix. These bales are shipped to the Bonded Logic facility that unweaves the denim and turns it into fibers that look like blue cotton candy. It is mixed with other cotton fibers and a non-toxic borate solution which acts as a fire retardant and mold and mildew repellent. After being used and discarded, recycled paper and cardboard boxes are loaded on a conveyor belt. The remaining paper is shredded and treated with boric acid or ammonium sulfate to prevent decay, and repel pests, mold and mildew.

Denim insulation is supposed to achieve an R value of R3.5 per inch; it costs $1.12 per sq ft and has a density of 3lbs/ft3. Cellulose is very similar with an R3.5 per inch, a cost $1.20 per sq ft, and a density of 3 lb/ft3 or 50 kg/m3.

Denim cotton insulation doesn’t cause any itching or irritation. It can easily wrap around pipes, wires and outlets in stud bays. Cellulose batt insulation is installed in the same way as denim but installing blown in is completely different. Dry fiber is fed into a hopper which breaks up clumps of cellulose and blows it through a 2 to 3 inch diameter flexible hose. Damp cellulose is mixed with water and sometimes an adhesive as it’s being sprayed.

Both of these products have good acoustical properties. Denim insulation has an NRC or Noise Reduction Control rating of 1.15 and STC or Sound Transmission control rating of 52. Cellulose insulation has an NRC rating 0.9 of and STC rating of 44. Both of these are better than fiberglass, which has an NRC rating of 0.9 and STC rating of 39.

Denim insulation allowed water to pass right through. It was soaking wet on both sides. Cellulose insulation surprisingly performed much better. It did not allow water to pass through the block and it contained the moisture in the area with direct contact.

Now for the fire test. Denim insulation singed but the fire did not spread. . One would think that cellulose paper insulation would catch fire easily, but it performed just as well as denim. It turned black, but the fire was put out immediately.

Finally, let’s discuss the green and eco-friendly aspect of these two types of insulation. Denim insulation which has 85% recycled content, diverts an estimated 300 tons of material from landfills every month. However, there are a couple of things I don’t agree with. Denim insulation is marketed as a low carbon footprint product that isn’t as energy and resource intensive as mineral wool insulation because you are starting with an existing product. I think that’s unfair, because we should consider the energy footprint of the entire lifecycle of denim, from the cotton plant.
Cellulose, which has 85% recycled content also diverts paper and cardboard from landfills. It is biodegradable, so after it’s useful 20 to 30 year lifespan, it will begin to decompose.
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#insulation #denim #cellulose #watertest #fire #construction #architecture #architect #design #rockwool #fiberglass #sprayfoam

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