I keep getting flyers and hearing about radiant barrier for attics. Has anyone had this installed, and does it really help with energy bills? About how much does it cost? And how long does it take to recoup the cost in terms of savings on the energy bill?
It sounds like a really good idea, but sometimes good ideas aren't good realities.
The spray on one is worthless.The other will be a bit of an investment but will save you in the long run. ")
C.
We built our house in 2000. The AC units the builder put in were not enough for our home (4000 sq ft). We thought about the radiant barrier. Our highest bill ever was just under $700.
in 2003, we ripped out the poor quality ac units, installed top of the line higher seer units that are workhorses that can cool our house. We had a dramatic difference after installation of the new AC complete system.
In later 2007, my husband placed about $2000 worth of insulation in our attic targeting the spots in the house that did not cool as well as we wanted. We have a lot of flood lights that give off heat as well and he targeted those areas.
Since the installation of more insulation, we have not had an energy bill over $300. Of course, we expect to see higher bills in July and August.
Our next step would be the radiant barrier but we are just not "sold" on it yet. Yes, it sounds like a great idea but we will look more in that direction if our energy bills get out of control. I believe we have made a major difference with what we have done so far.
We keep the ceiling fans on, thermostat is on 78 downstairs and 76 upstairs. I keep the flood lights off most of the time, I do not use my oven (I grill outside or use my toaster oven), we do not open and close the doors a lot (as in running in and out all the time).
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I have heard that they do lower summer ac bills dramatically. They are expensive, but I think most people recoup the cost within a couple of years. I do not have one myself, but I am considering getting one.
Hello A.! I am actually an owner of a roofing company located in McKinney and I sell Radiant Barrier Systems quite often. To determine the price you would need to get an estimate for that- each home is different. In additon are you wanting to get a Radiant Barrier system in your exisitng home, or are you building a new home. There are also several differnt areas of your home that this system can be applied to. I have a stack of 150 strong of testimonials from customers that rave about how much money this system saves on energy bills. YES it really does work! Also NEVER and I mean NEVER go with roofing companies that solicit their information by leaving flyers, etc. 9 times out of 10 these companies are migrating companies that go from town to town scaming people. If you would like a free estimate, and/or more information on Radiant Barrier Polarium systems I would love to talk to you. Send me a message if you are interested. Bottom line I would highly recomend the Radiant Barrier System. ALSO- make sure if you decide to go with this with someone else that they purchase their materials from the person that has the patent on the product- imitation products do not work as well!
A.,
We have radiant barrier in our new house and I have to say I notice that it is considerably cooler than other two story houses I've been in without it. The house is just shy of 5,200 square feet, and it's set at 76 degrees and the house is comfortable.
We officially move in on Saturday and I will let ya'll know what I think of it after living there in these 100+ degree days.
When we built our home in 2002, we had the radiant barrier installed as well as tyvek and upgrading our a/c units to 12 seer to make our home more energy efficient. Honestly, I don't know if it's one inparticular or mainly the combination of the products, but I do know for a fact that we have saved a tremendous amount of money on our electric bill the past 6 years. We have a neighbor on our street who has the exact same house and their bills average $50-$100 higher than ours every month. We have a 2500 sq foot home and our bill averages around $130 a per month.
Guess I am in the minority here, but we did not see a significant difference. We went through EAS and they did the spray-on type. I understand there is another kind, so maybe that works better. Good luck.
A.,
I have also looked into the radiant barrier, and wondered the same thing...is it really worth it? my neighbor had it installed and they have said they notice a huge difference in how their a/c runs. it keeps the air in the ducts from getting hot. we are waiting until this winter to get it, we are betting on the intillation price dropping when they slow donw. good luck.
HI!
We live in an older home (1985). This year we had the barrier installed and our home is so much cooler! And - our bills have not gone up (probably down?). The air does not need to run as often - for us it was a great investment.
Stay Cool,
S.
