Reducing energy expenses and preserving a comfortable living space depend on having your home adequately insulated. The balcony is frequently disregarded when it comes to home insulation. But you can improve overall comfort and energy efficiency by insulating your balcony. Mineral wool is one of the best materials for balcony insulation. We will outline common mistakes to avoid along the way and offer a step-by-step guide to mineral wool balcony insulation technology in this article.
Mineral wool insulation is a preferred option because of its efficiency, low cost, and comparatively simple installation procedure. It is the perfect option for balconies because of its superior thermal and acoustic insulation qualities. You can keep your interior temperature cooler in the summer and stop heat loss in the winter by properly insulating your balcony with mineral wool.
It is imperative that all required tools and materials are gathered before beginning the insulation process. This includes a caulking gun, a dust mask, gloves, safety goggles, measuring tape, mineral wool insulation batts, and an appropriate adhesive. To ensure the durability and effectiveness of your balcony insulation, make sure you select high-quality materials.
Before starting the insulation process, it is imperative to conduct a thorough inspection of the balcony. Look for any indications of damage, like gaps, cracks, or leaks of water. Prior to installing the insulation, these problems must be resolved. You can make sure that your insulation is long-lasting and effective by fixing any damage. You can start the insulation process once the balcony is in good shape.
- Pros and cons of minvates
- What problems can arise due to mineral wool
- Than mineral wool is better than other types of thermal insulation
- Which mineral wool to choose for a balcony
- Thickness
- Density
- Materials and tools
- Preparatory work
- Insulation from the outside
- Wall insulation
- Ceiling insulation
- Floor insulation
- Video on the topic
- Errors of insulation of loggia and balcony how to make it yourself? (Part 4) We build for ourselves
- The insulation of the balcony | Step -by -step technology | Errors | Insulate the balcony with your own hands | Probalcon
- Errors of insulation of the balcony and loggia
Pros and cons of minvates
Mineral fiber is the basis for several types of thermal insulation. Stone wool composed of melted metallurgical waste that has been glazed with a light flux is the least expensive. The lighter types of mineral wool are suitable for warming the loggia or balcony. Canvas and flexible mats are used to insulate walls, floors, attic interiors, and roofs of frame homes.
Slag is an even less expensive choice. Because of its high sulfur content, it is less suitable for use as thermal insulation in balcony structures. Use primarily for building structure insulation.
For both indoor and outdoor insulation, basalt cotton wool is utilized. primarily produced as plates because of the harder, thicker fiber. But rolls are available. Durable and fairly heavy material that heavily dusts when laid.
What problems can arise due to mineral wool
Even though thermal insulation has passed sanitary-hygienic control, you should still wear gloves and a respirator when working with it. Another concern is whether mineral wool is produced in an anti-technological manner. An elevated radiation background or an overabundance of heavy metals may be the cause of this. Such material is frequently sold in markets or wholesale bases at half price and is referred to as "marriage" during certification.
Vati won’t have a significant negative impact on the balcony owners’ health. Materials are in a similar state and are safely separated by film and cladding while insulation is installed. However, those who work with such mineral wool may develop respiratory issues, dermatitis, or occupational illnesses.
The fact that stone cotton wool condenses water is another drawback. The insulation will need to be taken apart and replaced with a new one if it has been flooded with rainwater at least once. Mineral wool is nearly impossible to dry at home.
Erroneous calculations of the insulation thickness or improper installation on the balcony may also be the cause of the water within the minvata. In the first scenario, water vapor outside the balcony can be eliminated by moisture passing through the technological gaps. In the second, water vapor will condense inside the cotton wool and the dew point will be inside the insulation.
In either case, the material will begin to sink on the fasteners and the thermal insulation will become heavier. As a result, "bridges of cold" will emerge and the entire insulation layer will freeze if the balcony is not heated.
Than mineral wool is better than other types of thermal insulation
Compared to other forms of thermal insulation, minvata offers the greatest advantages. Mineral wool is the best option out of all the options for insulating the space if it is installed correctly on the balcony’s walls, floor, and ceiling.
The principal benefits of mineral wool are:
- Low price.
- The fiber is made of mineral raw materials, does not emit toxic and toxic compounds.
- Does not burn.
- Not afraid of pathogenic microflora and rodents.
Most significantly, the only mineral insulation materials having both high vapor permeability and low thermal conductivity are stone and mineral wool. This implies that, as is the case with all insulated roofs, water vapors will be drawn out of the balcony room automatically through the thermal insulation structure. As a result, the air humidity will be the same as in homes.
When it comes to building an energy-efficient home, balcony insulation made of mineral wool is a standout option. With the help of this technology, you can properly insulate your balcony and ensure maximum comfort and efficiency. The process is simple to follow. You can drastically cut heat loss and, consequently, energy costs by closely adhering to these instructions. Nonetheless, common mistakes can reduce the insulation’s effectiveness. It is important to recognize these errors and steer clear of them. Mineral wool insulation can transform your balcony into a warm and energy-efficient area all year long with the appropriate installation.
Which mineral wool to choose for a balcony
With the exception of glass wool and slag, any mineral wool can be used as insulation. Roller materials are primarily used for the balcony’s internal thermal insulation. They are simpler, less expensive, and easier to style.
Slabs work better for the loggia and external insulation. It is simpler to mount them on brick or foam block walls (a choice for loggias), or on walls lined with a galvanized profile frame.
Thickness
The primary thermal insulation parameter is chosen based on the claimed usage of the balcony or loggia. The insulation should be between 70 and 100 mm thick if the room is heated during the winter. Rolls and matting up to 50 mm thick can be used for standard balconies and loggias. The thickness of the insulation layer can be cut in half, up to 25 mm, if the balcony room faces the sun.
You must select rolls and mats for the balcony’s thermal insulation that are intended to warm a building’s interior partitions; these are typically 50 or 100 mm thick. However, thinner ones (27–30 mm) are available. Although they are simpler to cut, a wooden rail or galvanized profile frame needs to be mounted for styling.
The measurements now. The standard width is 61 cm, and the length can range from 410 to 500 cm for a panel or 117 cm for plates. Make a decision on where and how to cut the insulation material for pieces and blanks before making a purchase. Generally speaking, there isn’t enough room on the balcony, so it is not advised to spread and cut in the room.
Density
The best choice for the balcony’s interior insulation will be a light plate or a regular-sized mat that measures 61 by 112 cm and is either 27 mm or 50 mm thick. The insulation is available in 10 m 2 (or 6 m 2) packages, but it can also be purchased in 4 m long rolons, which frequently come with step-by-step laying instructions.
Light mineral wool, with a density of 12–15 kg/m^3, is used to insulate the inner surface of the balcony. The optimal thermal conductivity of mineral wool is 0.030 W/(m*K). This will insulate a balcony without any heating.
In the event that the balcony is insulated externally and the cladding is applied internally using thicker 50 mm plates, such as "stroke" or "isolaite," the material’s density will be 20–25 kg/m^3. If plaster insulation needs to be installed, mineral wool slabs with a maximum density of 40 kg/m 3 must be used. In this instance, the minimum thickness of the thermal insulation needs to be 50 mm. The coefficient of thermal conductivity is 0.040 W/(m*K). This is a heated balcony insulation variation.
Materials and tools
Prior to anything else, the balcony’s insulation pattern and the way that mineral wool is attached to the walls and ceiling must be decided. You can install insulation on the exterior; this technique is gaining traction because it allows you to keep the balcony’s interior space open.
In this instance, it will be necessary to:
- Brows 70×30 mm, the board is overlaid 15×300 cm, 15-20 mm thick, you can unsolved.
- Wooden rail 20×25 mm, previously dried and treated with impregnation or olifa.
- A vapor-permeable film-membrane with unilateral conduction of water vapor. It is used to arrange a roof pie on insulated roofs of houses.
- Windproof film or geotextile.
- Mats (slabs) of mineral wool 60×112 cm, 50 mm thick.
Materials for exterior insulation cladding will also be needed. You can use plaster slabs covered in mineral wool or a horizontal plastic lining. Depending on the balcony’s dimensions, condition, and suitability for supporting large plates, a particular option is chosen. Just the weight from installing the insulation outside will be at least 40 kg.
A 1-inch board, a 20×30 mm rail, a vapor barrier membrane, and gender downs are also required for floor insulation. You’ll need finishing materials, like a wooden lining, for the ceiling in addition to insulation and wooden rails. If the house is older, glue and nylon cords will need to be used to repair the insulation.
Preparatory work
Prior to installing balcony insulation, all metal structures (such as the fence and the reinforcement) should be organized and free of old paint and rust. There will need to be a long period of preparation. For external work, metal needs to be primed and enameled in multiple layers.
Remove all of the balcony’s cladding, leaving only the fence’s metal frame and the racks supporting the glazing frame. The fence may occasionally need to be reinforced further with braces as backups to a naval steel reinforcement.
The concrete floor preparation phase comes next. In order to create fraud with tile glue, it also needs to be fully repaired and treated with a deep penetration primer in the areas where there are potholes.
Next, stitch a loading board to the balcony fence. It is fixed horizontally to the fence’s metal frame using numerous screws and clamps. Painting with varnish or an impregnated mixture: start with boards. Painting is not required.
The preparation for the loggia consists only of washing the masonry surface and fastening wooden beams to the ceiling and walls, which will later be covered with mats made of mineral wool.
Insulation from the outside
You must sew rails to support the balcony’s outer cladding after the boards have been jammed onto the fence. To dependable hold the external cladding, you can use 10×40 mm strings or take slats with a large section, if needed.
The slats have a windproof membrane pulled on them. If the balcony fencing is finished externally with plastic siding or lining, a galvanized profile can be used in place of the rails.
A vapor-permeable membrane is pulled onto the packed roped boards on the inside of the balcony. A standard carpenter’s stapler is used to secure it to the tree. Water vapor is only passed through the film in one direction, so it’s critical to attach the film to the boards on the correct side when laying. Water pairs should be able to freely pass through the mineral wool’s thickness.
The crate’s vertical slats must then be filled. They are stitched to the entire height of the fence, from the concrete plate of the balcony to the window frame of the glazing, using a self-tapping screw. There is a 58-cm step between each leverage rail. You must gently squeeze the material between the slats with a small amount of effort in order to lay the plate or mate of mineral wool. Foam is used to blow insulation onto the lower edge.
After installing the insulation, you need to add another layer of vapor-permeable membrane between the bars. In arid climates, geotextiles are an effective alternative. This layer is just required for the balcony in order to keep street dust from getting inside the balcony space.
There are more rails to secure the stretched material. They are crammed onto the crate’s bar. The internal balcony cladding, such as MDF, fiberboard, or horizontal wooden lining, can be fixed on the same rails.
Wall insulation
There are two methods for insulating the capital wall. The first is utilized in cases where the wall is composed of reinforced concrete or for unheated balconies. It makes no sense to warm the capital wall that separates a heated balcony room from the balcony.
Rarely, the apartment’s owners will sew a 25–27 mm-thick foil plate made of mineral wool. The balcony should provide the foil. However, this serves as an additional layer of defense against the summer’s heat rather than insulation. Even with insulation but without foil, the air temperature in the balcony room can reach 35 to 40 degrees Celsius in the summer if it is located on the sunny side of the building.
Additionally, if it’s a brick building. In this instance, a vertical wooden rail measuring 20 by 30 mm is sewed across the whole width of the masonry to form the balcony’s brick wall. The distance between the rails is 50 mm, but not wider than the mineral wool plate’s thickness. You must drill a through hole in the upper portion of the brickwork and install a ventilation valve that leads outside the balcony. Warm water vapors will be able to freely exit the insulation thanks to him, preventing both the cold and precipitation from falling.
After that, a vapor-permeable membrane is installed on the rails, and the counter-stake beams are stuffed until they are horizontal. Slabs of mineral wool are positioned in between the beams and sealed with a second membrane canvas. All that’s left to do is install a decorative cladding made of drywall, MDF, or lining and tighten the fixing rails.
Warming up the loggia is easier. Slabs of basalt wool are usually fixed with fungi and glued to the walls. The technology is the same as that used for private home exterior insulation. Mineral wool insulation can be applied to the loggia from the exterior of the walls. In any event, the insulation slabs will need to be stitched up with siding or decorative lining and sealed with plaster or a windproof film.
Ceiling insulation
The hardest part is actually laying mineral wool on the ceiling. Because the canvas is too supple, rolled materials are inappropriate. It is nearly impossible to glue or fix it without causing the heat-insulating layer to deform. As a result, you must use heavier, denser basalt wool plates.
First, a 20 by 30 mm section of thin rail is sewed onto the ceiling. With a step of 10–15 cm, it is laid transversely from the capital wall to the glazing frame. According to some experts, mineral wool can be placed straight onto the balcony’s concrete ceiling plate. However, the rack crammed into the ceiling often enhances the expulsion of water vapor that enters the insulating layer.
The next step is to mount several boards on the ceiling. The width of the mineral wool plate and the separation between the capital wall and the frame determine how many there are. It usually suffices to fill 3–4-inch boards on the ceiling surface in order to install thermal insulation. Jumpers must be made because the boards are fastened to the ceiling "on the end." If not, the frame’s rigidity won’t be sufficient to maintain thermal insulation.
Minvates plates are mounted on the ceiling in a manner akin to how they are mounted on the walls. Gently compress the material, then gently slide it between the boards and release it. Because of the elasticity of the cotton wool, the plate can be firmly secured to the ceiling.
All that’s left to do is install the vapor barrier membrane and stitch the lining to the ceiling surface.
Floor insulation
The method for warming the ceiling and thermally insulating the floor with mineral wool is the same, but with a few differences. Any mineral wool will work; choosing plates is advised, but you can also use rolled material. After pressing, the slabs go through more processing, which prevents liquid moisture from penetrating the cotton wool or moistening the fiber. Water vapor, however, can easily pass through the layer of insulation.
Boards are laid out on the balcony’s concrete floor without being fastened before installation. A 4-5 centimeter space should be left between each blank. It is imperative to eliminate water vapor. A roof membrane is required to cover the boards.
The next step is to create lags. You can use a 70×30 mm bar or make cuts along the doh board to accomplish this. The lag height ought to be two to three centimeters higher than the mineral wool canvas’s thickness.
Lags can be fixed using two segments from a 150×70 mm beam laid in the balcony’s ends, or they can be assembled in the shape of a box. If a mineral wool canvas is being used for insulation, the entire length of the balcony is rolled out rather than cut. After laying, scissors are used to cut the excess.
Moreover, floorboards are sewn together with geotextiles or membrane placed on top of thermal insulation. The air gap between the insulation and floorboards should stay between 15 and 20 mm high.
Make sure the floorboards are crammed tightly between the lag beams. You must install a ventilation valve-sneak next to the front door if the balcony is heated. This tiny, rectangular opening is used to extract water vapor from beneath the floor. Making sure the lags don’t rot is crucial.
Step-by-Step Instructions | Common Errors |
1. Clean the surface of the balcony thoroughly. | Using incorrect adhesive. |
2. Apply primer to the surface. | Inadequate preparation of the surface. |
3. Measure and cut the mineral wool boards. | Improper installation of the insulation. |
4. Fix the mineral wool boards to the balcony. | Leaving gaps between insulation boards. |
5. Install the reinforcing mesh. | Not sealing joints and corners properly. |
6. Apply adhesive to fix the reinforcing mesh. | Not protecting the insulation from moisture. |
7. Cover the insulation with a finishing layer. | Not using protective equipment during the process. |
An excellent method to increase your home’s comfort and energy efficiency is to insulate your balcony with mineral wool. You can successfully insulate your balcony and reap the benefits for many years by following a few easy steps and avoiding common mistakes.
First and foremost, being well-prepared is essential. Make sure the balcony surface is dry, clean, and clear of debris before beginning the insulation process. Damaged areas should be fixed, and any gaps or cracks should be filled. This guarantees that the mineral wool insulation is applied evenly and smoothly.
Make sure you select the appropriate mineral wool type and thickness for your balcony when it comes to the insulation itself. Take into account elements like your home’s unique requirements, the local building codes, and the climate. In addition to increasing energy efficiency, proper insulation offers moisture and soundproofing.
During installation, closely follow the instructions provided by the manufacturer. Make sure there are no spaces or overlaps by carefully cutting the mineral wool to fit exactly. Make sure the insulation is securely fastened by using the right adhesives or fasteners. Over time, this will assist in preventing any heat loss or moisture accumulation.
Compressing the mineral wool during installation is a common error to avoid. Although compressing mineral wool might seem like a good way to get more insulation into a small space, it actually lessens the insulation’s effectiveness. Rather, make sure the material fits snugly without packing it down, preserving its thermal properties.
In order to keep the surface safe from moisture and damage, it is crucial to properly seal the surface after finishing the insulation. To make sure the insulation lasts a long time, apply a weather-resistant finish or coating. Frequent inspections and maintenance will also aid in spotting problems early and avert expensive repairs later on.
To sum up, installing mineral wool balcony insulation is a cost-effective and useful way to raise your home’s comfort and energy efficiency. You can successfully insulate your balcony and reap the benefits for many years by adhering to the step-by-step instructions and avoiding common mistakes. You can make your living space more comfortable and energy-efficient with careful planning, the right supplies, and skillful installation.