Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: building materials, insulating

[Lynn Nadeau (welcome]

Some thoughts on insulating. If the whole system leaks, the insulation 
rating of a given component doesn't matter much. Sure, a wooden door 
doesn't insulate as well as some other kind of door. But an OPEN door is 
off the charts that way. We have highly insulative walls (Rastra Block), 
but also have acres of glass windows, and glass doors, and doors that are 
opened often. 

And of course the R value of your ceiling is vital, as heat rises.

I wouldn't avoid something as satisfying as a wooden front door, and I'd 
even choose one with a window in the top, or a glass sidelight, so people 
can see who's on the other side. 

We hung a polarfleece curtain between our entry hall and the main dining 
room, with excellent results for keeping the main room warmer. But 
nothing's simple and kids love to swoosh through the hanging curtain and 
that leads to crashes. Now if we could find some transparent fleece...


Lynn Nadeau, RoseWind Cohousing
Port Townsend Washington (Victorian seaport, music, art, nature)
http://www.rosewind.org
http://www.ptguide.com
http://www.ptforpeace.info (very active peace movement here- see our 
photo)
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