@@jamesmusbach1182 I was going to say something similar. I don't care about their pay, but it definitely doesn't mean they are any better at their craft
@@jamesmusbach1182 Union means trained in knowledge and safety.Jobs get done on time with fewer hours and accidents. He also gets paid better and has retirement.
This is the biggest issue with learning about material sciences for the built world. Building science bros of UA-cam don't help, as they're all trying to out-do one another and determining where diminishing returns are established is tough.
@@robertmedina3195 I guess it comes down to price vs efficiency. I can tell you, though, if water ever gets into it - like a pipe leaking inside the wall - soaked fiberglass is a cold mess by the time you finally locate it, especially in winter.
@@Cetok01 if you have a leaking pipe that's buried in any kind of insulation it's going to be a mess regardless of the type of insulation. To me finding a roof leak on an insulated roof is the real nightmare since water trails down the roofline making it hard to find. I used cellulose for my attic floors on top of either closed cell foam board or 2" rigid foam board. Doing it this way I can rip down my ceilings and insulation won't come pouring down on top of me 🙂
@@robertmedina3195 Good solution, decent outcome. I had to deal with what I described and would have preferred the rock wool, which probably could have been easily removed, shaken, dried and replaced. The glass was a mess, acted like a wick and led to more damage inside and to the wall.
I work in the fiberglass insulation industry for a direct competitor to the "pink stuff." My job is quality testing the insulation. A few years back, the entire industry stepped away from the formaldehyde and phenolic resin that used to be standard in the manufacturing process. Almost no one uses that in the fiberglass any more. I hope the rock wool manufacturers have also dropped the resin and formaldehyde as well. Our quality standards require that we make the fiberglass insulation conform more to the standard of the rock wool for rigidity and tensile strength than the "pink stuff" does, but that's just how we compete. Insulation installers like the "pink stuff" because it is soft, but that softness degrades its quality as insulation because it doesn't re-absorb the air as well when the package is opened. That 'recovery" is one of the challenges of making fiberglass insulation; once the package is opened, the glass needs to soak up air between the fibers like a squeezed sponge soaks up water in order for the insulation to perform as intended. Another thing that we, and other manufacturers do is add an environmentally safe water repelling chemical to the glass fibers to make them more resistant to moisture and roof leaks. Every manufacturer has their own process, and your demonstration makes me think that the "pink stuff" uses less of this than we do. Thank you for showing people how both of these types of insulation are made! Information that people need to know to make wise purchases according to their needs when building or remodeling their homes.
I like the sound deadening qualities of rockwool over the practically non existent sound deadening of fiberglass. Installing it between rooms with off set studding provides a very effective sound deadening barrier. Although taking up some real estate, I’ve installed rockwool for occupants of duplexes to reduce sound transmission from the neighbors. This can be involved as insulating the wall does not provide the full effect. The space between floors must also have rockwool installed to continue the sound attenuating envelope. The sound deadening can continue up through the attic. In newer homes, by code there will be a cinder block firewall. Adding rockwool only enhances this barrier. On older homes, if installed correctly, I use metal studs which are going to perform better in the presence of fire than a wooden stud, rockwool, besides offering acoustic dampening can also provide a fire barrier to gain precious time to hold back a fire from the adjacent unit, where once the fire would spread quickly (grandfathered on older homes).
You notice the difference with larger doors. Family farm has double entrance doors and when they tried using fibreglass to save money, because farmers, they removed it within a month. House started sounding like a Fiat rather than an Audi..
As an audio engineer and speaker designer for more than 3 decades, I have measured the sound absorbing properties of fiberglass. They are SIGNIFICANT. Maybe not as good as Rockwool, but compared to the GARBAGE non hollow polyester fiber that replaced fiberglass en masse 40-50 years ago it is night and day with fiberglass a clear and measureable winner. Putting the material inside a speaker box shows significant advantages, and the trick is wrapping it in a small weave material to keep the fibers in place, something very very few manufacturers have ever gotten right.
Dear Belinda, you blew my mind with your review!! I'm so glad I found you! So many videos out there lacking this quality of information. You have done a great job. Thank you so much for explaining things so clearly. This is coming from a 40 year old man who is just learning to renovate his recently purchased old house and simply needed the straight facts to understand insulation materials!! Looking forward to the other videos! You put all the male youtubers to shame! Keep going!!
Belinda, I subscribe to what michael just said and I add : finally a youtuber that has NO background music so that I can understand clearly what you just said. When I hear music over voice I immediately switch channel
Belinda, This is one of the best explanations on the differences between Rockwool and Fiberglass insulation that I've ever seen. The explanation on the acoustic is as excellent as it is correct. The fact that the glass fiber batts absorb water and get soggy should be convincing enough not to use them. Roof leaks are the norm in old houses, not the exception. Incidentally, Natural Wool based insulation batts are even worse. In the 1990's the NSW Australian Government, allowed the free choice of wool, Polyester fiber and glass fiber batt for the Airport Insulation program for houses in the Western Sydney airplane noise corridor. After a few years , all of the wool batts had to be recalled and replaced due to bug infestations. Insects loved the moisture holding capacity and the natural state of the wool material. For long term health safety, I would strongly recommend bagging each of the batts in plastic bags (non bio degradable). That way any fiber break offs cannot get picked up by roof area breeze, and so won't go into air circulation into the home. A tell tale that there are micro fibers from shedding batts is that your nasal passages get inflamed and blocked after a day's exposure in a room lined with batts . The denser the material (the heavier) the greater the ability for the material to attenuate sounds travelling through it and reflecting back into a room from a back wall. If you have a choice of different rated batts for acoustics, choose the heavier batts. Forget choosing "acoustic batts" choose heavier Rock Wool batts. The difference between the acoustic rated batts and thermal batts is that the Acoustic batts are "woven" in a more regular pattern. Save your money - use the thermal rated batts. They are cheaper. This is coming from someone with 40+ years of acoustic experience. On top of the trapped air acting as an acoustic attenuator, the suspended mass in the form of fibers absorbs sound energy in the process of trying to vibrate these suspended-mass micro fibers. It takes energy to vibrate them and this dissipates the acoustic energy travelling through the batt. We have done live acoustic testing with gated pink noise bursts pointed at walls of these materials with the batts in various states of physical compression. As the batts get compressed down - at some point sound simply gets reflected off the batts rather than getting absorbed by them , that was an eye opening experience. I mention this - because there is a lot of folk lore about squashing down batts as much as is possible. Sorry - measurements show you get worse sound absorption in a room because the sound simply gets reflected back into the room. . You can do very simple tests to corroborate this with a mechanical clacker and an RT60 app ( try Android Audio Tool by jjbunn I've compared this app to very expensive professional grade RT60 meters and its every bit as good. It depends on relative measurements so its not limited by the frequency response of the phone's microphone) Well done with the video. So nicely laid out and great video clips of the manufacturing process. People can learn from you. Thank you.
This lady is the G.O.A.T. ive been into alternative building methods for decades, but im also into science, hah, which, it can be tough for us amateur builders to find hard numbers on alternative building methods. I worked in the shipyards for years, and was well aware of the shortcomings, but it is so much easier to use her video on why shipping containers suck as building materials, when friends get hyped about building a shipping container house, its just so much easier, hah. Getting ready to start hyper insulating my 200 year old house, to make it heated with passive solar, and here i am, on this channel, making sure there isnt something important to know about insulation, that i dont know yet, hah. Thanks for taking the time for making these videos, the knowlede transfer per minute is off the chain, hah.
I have worked in construction (residential and commercial) for 25+ years and love the way to deliver no non-sense information! Thank you for your videos 🙂
I have been in construction for many years. I highly recommend mineral wool / Rockwool. I used to special order it from Canada for all my builds. As of 2016 it is readily available in USA due to the opening of the Roxul/Rockwool plant in Mississippi
My dad used to work in construction, around 40 years. Most of it in insulation and some in roofing (i hope those are the right therms, English is not my first language). He swears by rockwool for insulation in our cold region. He used to demonstrate the fire-resistant of it by placing a block of it in front a propane gas flame and a piece of paper behind the wool. Turn it on, and go for a coffee with the client. 20min later the flame is still going and the paper was still spot loss... Just a little anecdote. Thanks for this informative video.
I don't know if you have expertise in this subject as a result of working in the industry, or you just researched it really well, but either way you did a fantastic job. Truly informative and ably presented, thank you.
I love the way you pack high-quality information into a dense format. When encountering a contentious topic, you summarize your opinion with facts quickly.
Utterly fascinating. I had no idea stone wool insulation was even a thing. I didn't even know I was potentially interested in the topic. You give a stellar presentation and deliciously structured comparatives. Thank you!!
Thats why one might delve into topic they are not familiar with to learn about things like this. Personally i will not use fiberglass insulation anymore in anywhere, simply due it being really hard to recycle and how easily it gets ruined. Even top of the rock wool i prefer for massive wood as it will naturally breath, there is plenty around where i live in cold north and mostly cause eventually every roof will leak some. What i have seen in construction industry around here, i would never put fiberglass into the house as just tiny amount of water that gets into insulation will not show it self, or get dried before whole frame needs to be demoslihed and potentially whole house needs to be tore down and rebuilt if owner wont notice the "early" signs of the water damage. After that comes rock wool. Not a fan but this is what i recommend on using where you need to put insulation on. Least with this material you only need to rip open exterior or interior wall, get that damn vapor barrier out, witch is locking all that moisture into insulation and try to dry the area after leak is fixed. On older style log construction: Ou there is a leak, well better fix the roof and thats about it. Logs will suck the water, but also let it dry naturally. I'm living in 101 years old log building that has not been maintained best and roof was and has been leaking from several spots. Biggest one let water straight top of outer wall. There is some rot damage on the top most logs and area was damp for two years.... got the roof fixed properly couple months ago and its been drying on its own. Would like to swap the log on top, but there is enough solid material so its not required and this is rental so i'm not going to go for such large repair my self out of pocket. If this was any other type of building it would be demolished back to the frame at very least. Sadly this construction material is available on near big forested areas and we dont have termites so go figure. Also massive wood does transfer heat witch can be positive or negative. On areas with lots of sunlight, i'm not sure it works that well, specially when there is not much forest anyway. Trick we tend to use is to open all windows at night to let cool air in and to cool the frame from both sides and then close the windows on morning that traps the cool air inside to be enjoyed during summer. Also we have big wood fireplaces that suck up lots of heat during summer from inside while heating in winter. For those who wonder, no you dont put the fireplace into end of the building! You place it in center so it actually warms the house from with in, not let majority of the heat outside, like i have seen in several US houses fire place being at the end of the house.
My old house is insulated with rock wool. I thought it was some obsolete, inferior product. Thanks for making this video with the valuable information. I even subscribed. Now I can see a list if your other vids.
Im not sure how this channel wound up in my feed but im glad it did. Ive been a carpenter for 30 years last 20 in the union. Love the channel and your insight
i love it; i had no ide what i was working with all my whole proffessional life until the nice lady instructed me on youtube; i must have been just dumb lucky; all those decades of construction work and i did not actually know what is difference between glass wool and satone wool; i wish you wear glass wool in your socks for a year, my lady; your face will turn green after a while; andy will not be smiling any more! i promise;!!!
Love the factual content finished with just a slight bit of your personality. You've done a great job explaining and I learned some new things. I'm excited to share your channel with the rest of my team for their own development.
I just clicked on this as whim, and I was blown away how interesting, complete, and well presented the information was. Very well done, Belinda! BTW, where I live in the Bay Area / CA, building inspectors allow / recommend the use of Rockwool to seal top plate penetrations (say for electrical cable) because of it's great fire resistance properties.
@Wroger Wroger What can I say, you're just wrong. Building code and fire ratings are based on testing, not periodic tables. Check out Rockwool's website on this matter, it can withstand temperatures exceeding 1,800f www.rockwool.com/learning/fire-safety/
This went to a level of thoroughness I was not expecting... exceptionally well done and interesting, thank you for putting in the time and effort on this for everyone.
Thanks for the education. I used Rockwool in my #vanlife and love how quite it makes the van, particular when driving on noisy or bad roads. Bumps and rumble have disappeared. Thumbs up for Rockwool's acoustic deadening.
Great video Belinda. We installed the mineral wool in the Open Book Build home on a busy street and the noise reduction is great. It's definitely easier to install than fiberglass with the friction fit and ability to cut with a hand saw or bread knife. And the batts really fill the wall cavity which really helps with the insulation properties. Throw in the fire and moisture resistance and I truly believe it's a much superior product to fiberglass. We were able to use the R23 batts with our 2x6 walls. Keep up the quality videos.
Rockwool is THE way to go. It ‘mounts’ when trimmed carefully as opposed to fiberglas. I also feel it has better absorption in the lower frequencies. I’ve used both extensively and wouldn’t even think of glas again.
I only worked with them a bit (spent a few weeks "as an intern" ;D in construction between real jobs) and even with that short time I can wholeheartedly agree, rockwool is superior. only reason to use Glaswool is a stingy customer that doesn't listen to the benefits of rockwool
@@KeVIn-pm7pu yep, especially if you get one of these pre-designed houses built there's a good chance that company will tell you to get Glas wool because it's cheaper (although the video said a few things how rockwool is more durable and thus technically cheaper than getting new Glaswool once the old one stops doing what it's supposed to, anyways cheaper building cost always look better and how shitty it is for the person getting it build once he moves in doesn't matter to those companies) Btw: seriously, if you ever want your own house built don't get such a pre-designed those companies will fuck you over any way possible (including raising the price above what they promised based on fine print of "what we showed you'd get was extra, the mentioned price was basic")
I have to compliment you on the outstanding and informative video you put together. I have been a home builder for 30 yrs and can honestly say your information is exact and concise. Well done!
This video is what inspired me to use stone wool in the walls of my wife's home office. She does telehealth and needs to keep out background noises. We are both very happy with the choice. Thank you for this excellent presentation.
This was as good as watching that show "How its made"... but most of all you've educated me on something that the staff at the big box stores never cover when i buy insulation for a project. Great Job Ms. Carr!
Hi Belinda, a couple of comments to your informative video: 1) For the heat flow meter test method ASTM C518, the temperature of 75F is actually the 'Mean' exposure temperature based on a hot plate set at 100F and the cold plate set at 50F, and not the actual testing temperature since there is a requirement to apply a thermal gradient to determine the heat flow properties. One can use other mean temperatures, but for many purposes, the mean value of 75F allows for sufficient validation or quality control. 2) You stated that the polyurethane foam requiring over 24 hours to reach steady-state for testing. When freshly applied, the PU foam will undergo exothermic heating as it reacts and cures. Also, some of the blowing gases or byproducts like CO2 will diffuse out of the foam and can change the insulating value, However, one normally does not test a freshly applied foam and most laboratories will follow a protocol of allowing the material test specimens to 'age' under controlled conditions of temperature and humidity prior to testing. Once placed into the testing instrument, the results can generally be obtained with high accuracy/repeatability in well under one hour. - Source: 20+ years of experience in testing PU foam materials (but admittedly not for the building industry). Thank you, and I'm enjoying your channel!
Thanks again for another informative video Amazing how many lay people think Rockwool is a natural wool product and how many retailers don't correct this misnomer. After 30 plus years of trade work crawling through ceilings, the fibreglass and paper insulations are definitely the worst for holding dust, water, mould etc. They both require 300mm unretained or 150mm retained isolation from down lights or other penitrations. Rock wool is 150 mm unreturned and 100mm retained. (Local building codes in my area in conjunction with installation guidelines) In a house with even 20 down lights, this is a massive thermal deficit.
Before watching this video today, I knew next to nothing about the properties and nature of Rockwool compared to glass fiber insulation. I now feel much enlightened - thank you Belinda !
Thank you so much for the info. I feel a lot better about my choice of using Rockwool instead of the pink fiberglass insulation in my current construction project. What a relief 🙌🏼👍🏻
Absolutely the best most comprehensive video on batt insulation and super timely since I'm doing my insulation now. Very glad I went with the rock wool!
Hello, Belinda. I just wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for this beautifully presented explanation of the difference between rock wool and glass wool. I am a senior citizen who is faced with insulating my home on my own. I had no idea how to even begin this project. Now, I know so much more about the differences in the two materials and the relative merits of rock wool. I subscribed today. You impressed me so very much. Thanks for this wonderful resource for us ignorant home-repair newbies.
Awesome video, great in depth explanation! Also confirmed what I was suspecting about those two products. Mineral wool might be more expensive, but is so vastly superior to fiberglass, it is definitely worth the price! Also, just to add, mineral wool is also practically rodent repellent. Mice just hate the stuff, and leave it alone. I have seen fiberglass insulation completely destroyed and rendered useless by mice. Another thing to consider, especially in attics, basements and outbuildings.
I've been building homes for 50 years. People don't seem to understand the way insulation works, specially when coupled with steel. I always said that by the time you make the container livable you havent saved anything and it will rust out in about 15 years. Thank you.
Subscribed because you know how to organize and summarize information and communicate it well. Every time I thought "You didn't define x", that was your next comment. Thank you.
Thank you. Great presentation! I switched to rock wool a few years back. It's easier to work with and I can feel the difference especially on exterior walls. Also much better for sound dampening.
a brilliant Indian woman talking about house building, love it, love you, ignore the haters. You come off very classy, very knowledgable, and humble, love, love you
I watched your video on shopping malls. Now I'm watching about insulation. Architecture and building have always fascinated me. I have not worked in either area, unless you count Lincoln Logs. Your channel is unique and fascinating. I'm learning so much! Thank you
Great video Belinda. You give easy to understand information that even a lay-person, outside of the construction industry, can understand. This comparison was well done, as others have commented here. I will be recommending that people seeking information, regarding construction products and processes, should subscribe to your videos. You do a much better in-depth analysis than I could ever present. Thanks Belinda.
Super well-done, as always! You did a great job of setting out the differences between the two, and why you might want to use each one for different applications. Your videos are great, they have exactly the right amount of detail for us understand the subject,differences between products and methods, and the reasons behind why things are the way they are. You don’t talk down to your viewers at all, but at the same time don’t over-complicate things. I can’t say enough how much I enjoy and appreciate your content! 👍😁
Excellent review. Very informative and thorough. One easily overlooked benefit of the mineral wools is that insects and rodents typically don't like to live in it.
I was blown away at just how good RockWool is for sound insulation - I have two different guitar speakers in a cabinet in the loft with an array of microphones, the cabinet is surrounded by RockWool, this is surrounded by a second cabinet and surrounded again by RockWool. The cabinet is also stood on sorbathane feet. You can't hear anything other than a very dull bass thud and thats quiet. In the studio below its silent, all I hear from the studio monitors is what the microphones produce. Also I get 5mm plywood, put a slab of RockWool on it, no need for frames, and wrap it with faux crushed velvet (which scatters treble better) and they make really good yet cheap and beautiful sound absorbsion for rooms - way, way better than those awful grey foam rubber tiles!
Rockwool is amazing stuff, it’s less itchy than fibreglass and it repels water. I remember dropping a 2” batt into a water trough. It came out soaked and I thought fit for the bin. An hour later it was bone dry. The water just ran out.
idk what you mean “less itchy” that’s the only thing i refuse to touch without long sleeves, even when i do wear long sleeves i can feel it poking through
I have mixed experience with the itchyness. It is in some cases much easier to handle rockwool and in some cases fiberglass. Fiberglass weighs less and does not break from being bent. In other cases the bending becomes an issue.
@@nevanuel1983 They're both pretty itchy to be honest. For my purpose in the application of sound absorption, I prefer glasswool because it's generally odorless and performs the same as rockwool. But if I were using it for insulation buried deep in the walls stonewool is clearly better
what a great review, here in Bonnie Scotland I am always trying to ensure that the products I use are good for insulation and this has really helped me
This is the most incredible explanation regarding the materials used in insulation and how they are composed. Absolutely excellent and a very pleasant surprise. I'm a new subscriber for sure. Thank you!
I was not familiar with rock wool insulation until just recently so when I built my house over 25 years ago I just used glass wool insulation like everyone else. Now that I've done some remodeling and have had to get back into my walls I have found issues that the fiberglass insulation has caused (or contributed to) that I believe the rock wool would not have. These issues are generally moisture related but also have to do with the compressibility and installation. Knowing what I know now, I wish I could go back and do it over again and use rock wool instead.
Hello Belinda - excellent presentation thank you. One thing about Rockwool is the increased density makes it more effective for sound insulation, particularly low frequency sounds.
@@sqike001ton LoL and i didnt flinch when i was in trade school installing fiberglass. Little itch sure, but nothing shower could not fix... Went on repairing fiberglass boat 5 years later... holy shit that was absolute hell of itching and peeling skin as fiber particles rubbed into my skin under the particle half mask. Ended up selling the boat and know now to use full mask and protective disposable full jumper.. essentially Asbestos removal gear when doing fiberglass anything that creates particles. Still dont mind glass insulation install, though knowing the material i would not use it in any valuable building like house, maybe in animal shelter at most.
@@johngriffiths118 nah the worst part was the money for me, I can firm itchiness and pain but at the end of the day no matter what you'll always question "is this a fair wage for all the graft and effort you put in, along with putting up with power hungry manchilds of site managers and contractors" even £120 a day wouldn't be worth it for me, my advice is never become a dryliners/joiners nor site labourer period 😂👏
I remember back in the mid-80’s Rockwool as it was know then only, appeared on the market but it was only available as “ blown-in insulation “ for attics, bat-form was not available yet, they hadn’t figured out the process of binding the fibres. It took until the late 90’s to get some form of bat, but nothing like the industry has today. We conducted a physical test to check the heat pass through rate of the wool and pink-bat insulation comprised of 2 heat lamps , 2 compartments of the same height (8 inches) filled with uncompressed wool and the pink with 2 thermometers poked in (1inch) deep on the tops of each with a timer set at 5 minutes. The end result? the wool had hands down slower heat transfer rate than the pink fibre-glass. We used that actual hands on comparison test to sell the wool product. If you can afford the rock-wool in it’s different densities for sound deadening or insulation that’s the way to go. As a side note, the reason why original fibreglass-bat was pink is the colour pink is what they call a “warm” colour, it’s a psychological selling tactic of the industry, you think your going to be warmer if it’s pink! 😎
@@kkarllwt interesting.wish they didn't use other industry waste and formaldehyde as binding filler material. Lots of building materials use other industry waste as filler.
I’ve used all types in my 25 years in construction Rock wool is my favourite, I’ve also used sheets of styrofoam with tin foil type material on both sides when I didn’t want to gut the interior it worked amazing and at that time I lived in a -50 winter location.
Thankyou so much, Belinda... I've learned more in the last 11 minutes than in 30 years in construction. You don't talk down to people, you present info in a manner anybody can relate to (pretty pictures help - but so do the manufacturing videos), and you present it succinctly. I've ripped out old f-g insulation that has been brittle and where the strands are almost slivers of glass - very unfriendly and hard to handle... newer stuff is much cleaner. Your parting comment about being 'blown away' made me laugh... I myself have often wondered how come someone walking along a beach would think to heat up some of the sand, add some soda ash - and make something transparent.
Am not a builder or engineer, but find your presentation easy to understand and informative. Could you do an analysis of common water filters used in home taps and similar consumer products for filtering water in containers?
Great video. Thank you! Glad the UA-cam algorithm finally sent something refreshingly interesting my way. Thanks again - looks like a lot of effort went down in researching this topic.
What a great video! I insulated my whole garage with mineral wool just on a hunch that it was a better product and this video is nice confirmation that I made the right choice. Very thorough
@John Grzeskowiak the stone wool is water resistant, making it hard for mold to grow. Which if you have a leak you would still have repairs to do, but at least you dont have to replace your insulation.
Thanks for your excellent channel and your approach to The building sciences, which as we know can be very subjective. As a design professional for a major utility company I was given the task to update our insulation spec. Many factors were discussed amongst stake holders. In the end cost wasn't the major factor. Fire, smoke , and performance (across the spectrum) were determining factors. Only two insulation types were finally spec for above ground use - mineral wool (gernetic) and cellulose met our requirements.
@@KaceyGreen It's use as a medium to transmit nutrients and secure the roots in horizontal and vertical grows. The garden centers even sell cups and pots made of rockwool.
@@KaceyGreen I looked them up and it looks like a composite material Like it may be peat and rockwool pressed in to a shape. Others like using a 50/50 mix of perlite and vermiculite for the same purpose.
@@TechGorilla1987 Rockwool is really neat stuff, and it's so weird to me that a bunch of petroleum byproducts can become something like it. I don't think fiberglass would work in the same application because it doesn't hold its structure when it is wet. Rockwool works because it is just ridgid enough to allow water to flow through it, and fine enough to hold both water and air for healthy root growth.
I stumbled upon this and am so grateful for your due diligence in preparation of comparing the differences between stone and glass insulation. I have been searching for the best sound proofing for a new room addition and this is was very educational as well as enlightening in presentation.
This is really well done. I recently did a lot of restoration work on my house where 3/4th of the house was down to the studs. I went with rockwool, and I'm glad I did.
This video is informative and done very professionally. I'm impressed. Thank you! (I always wondered why pink fiberglass is more popular -- I think now it's just cheaper and has better marketing. Most people don't know the difference.)
I bought a 1200 foot square house that needed gutting. Full rewire, insulating, the works. I went with Rockwool for the attic, internal walls, external walls and first floor ceiling. It was pricy but so worth it, the house is toasty in winter and needs less AC in summer, thanks to its excellent thermal properties. The sounded deadening is a great bonus too, as we have wood floors throughout and it helps to keep the noise down in this compact, cape style house.
I saw a rep at homedepot yrs ago about stone wool/rock wool. It was awesome and from that day on. This is the only insulation I use now. Fire resistant, water resistant and sound proof. So easy to cut into shape.
Fibreglass has come out with higher density products comparable to rockwool (R24 has 7 pcs per bag). I’ve installed both for 30 years and find fibreglass much easier to install, especially around plugs, wires and pipes.
That's good information. I MAY have to re-insulate my townhouse. After watching this video, if I do re-insulate then I'm going to spend the extra and use Rockwool.
This is a fantastic presentation with clear, concise and factual information. It’s such a refreshing change to listen and learn from an obviously well educated and credible presenter. Thank you for making my day.
That was the best review/explanation of these two I have ever seen! One question I have is about mice and Rockwool . Will mice use it to make nests or live in it? Good job on this video!
Yes, mice do get into it Rockwool and pull away at it. Our cats keep the mice down, but I do occasionally have to fix small areas of insulation in our crawlspace.
@@kenthhamner2641 *no* insulation will hold its insulation value when wet. that applies to rockwool. the insulation shown in the video (comfortbatt) *does* bend easily. i think you are confusing rockwool comfortbatt with rockwool comfortboard. it does cut, but it dulls knives very quickly.
This video was amazing! Thank you! So much information, well presented and entertaining. You also answered many questions that I have been unable to find information on (I'm an audio engineer and need to use acoustic treatment).
This is really helpful. I was trying to figure out how to sound insulate my home theater, but this video made it clear, rockwool is the correct choice along with double thickness drywall so the rest of the house doesn't hear the movie I want to watch.
Union carpenter here, 20+ years in home renovation. This is one of the best videos I've seen on any topic. Good work
You
Like.. UNION is supposed to mean something.. Other than over paid who really knows.. Nothing
@@jamesmusbach1182 I was going to say something similar. I don't care about their pay, but it definitely doesn't mean they are any better at their craft
@@jamesmusbach1182 Union means trained in knowledge and safety.Jobs get done on time with fewer hours and accidents. He also gets paid better and has retirement.
@@jamesmusbach1182 thanks for commenting Jimbo, I don't think I would have been able to find / report your COVID denying video without the assist.
As an engineer trying to get through marketing rubbish and personal prejudices, you did a great job of explaining the fundamentals of it. Thank you.
Fiber-glass is better than no insulation.
This is the biggest issue with learning about material sciences for the built world. Building science bros of UA-cam don't help, as they're all trying to out-do one another and determining where diminishing returns are established is tough.
As someone who has dealt with installing insulation before, you've suddenly made me a fan of the rock wool, which I've never used before. Thank you.
Only problem is that it's super expensive from what I recall.
@@robertmedina3195 I guess it comes down to price vs efficiency. I can tell you, though, if water ever gets into it - like a pipe leaking inside the wall - soaked fiberglass is a cold mess by the time you finally locate it, especially in winter.
@@Cetok01 if you have a leaking pipe that's buried in any kind of insulation it's going to be a mess regardless of the type of insulation. To me finding a roof leak on an insulated roof is the real nightmare since water trails down the roofline making it hard to find. I used cellulose for my attic floors on top of either closed cell foam board or 2" rigid foam board. Doing it this way I can rip down my ceilings and insulation won't come pouring down on top of me 🙂
@@robertmedina3195 Good solution, decent outcome. I had to deal with what I described and would have preferred the rock wool, which probably could have been easily removed, shaken, dried and replaced. The glass was a mess, acted like a wick and led to more damage inside and to the wall.
@@robertmedina3195 You pay for insulation once instead of higher utility bills forever.
I work in the fiberglass insulation industry for a direct competitor to the "pink stuff." My job is quality testing the insulation. A few years back, the entire industry stepped away from the formaldehyde and phenolic resin that used to be standard in the manufacturing process. Almost no one uses that in the fiberglass any more. I hope the rock wool manufacturers have also dropped the resin and formaldehyde as well.
Our quality standards require that we make the fiberglass insulation conform more to the standard of the rock wool for rigidity and tensile strength than the "pink stuff" does, but that's just how we compete. Insulation installers like the "pink stuff" because it is soft, but that softness degrades its quality as insulation because it doesn't re-absorb the air as well when the package is opened. That 'recovery" is one of the challenges of making fiberglass insulation; once the package is opened, the glass needs to soak up air between the fibers like a squeezed sponge soaks up water in order for the insulation to perform as intended. Another thing that we, and other manufacturers do is add an environmentally safe water repelling chemical to the glass fibers to make them more resistant to moisture and roof leaks. Every manufacturer has their own process, and your demonstration makes me think that the "pink stuff" uses less of this than we do.
Thank you for showing people how both of these types of insulation are made! Information that people need to know to make wise purchases according to their needs when building or remodeling their homes.
What is the best type of insulation for hot areas?
@@btphong32 prob the same as for cold. Either way the goal is layers of air for insulation
I can use 2-layer walls and do not need insulation materials
I started to itch watching the pink stuff....lol
The formaldehyde use caught my attention as well.
I like the sound deadening qualities of rockwool over the practically non existent sound deadening of fiberglass. Installing it between rooms with off set studding provides a very effective sound deadening barrier. Although taking up some real estate, I’ve installed rockwool for occupants of duplexes to reduce sound transmission from the neighbors. This can be involved as insulating the wall does not provide the full effect. The space between floors must also have rockwool installed to continue the sound attenuating envelope. The sound deadening can continue up through the attic. In newer homes, by code there will be a cinder block firewall. Adding rockwool only enhances this barrier. On older homes, if installed correctly, I use metal studs which are going to perform better in the presence of fire than a wooden stud, rockwool, besides offering acoustic dampening can also provide a fire barrier to gain precious time to hold back a fire from the adjacent unit, where once the fire would spread quickly (grandfathered on older homes).
I think you would be well to install this where you have any air traffic over your house.
You notice the difference with larger doors. Family farm has double entrance doors and when they tried using fibreglass to save money, because farmers, they removed it within a month. House started sounding like a Fiat rather than an Audi..
As an audio engineer and speaker designer for more than 3 decades, I have measured the sound absorbing properties of fiberglass. They are SIGNIFICANT. Maybe not as good as Rockwool, but compared to the GARBAGE non hollow polyester fiber that replaced fiberglass en masse 40-50 years ago it is night and day with fiberglass a clear and measureable winner. Putting the material inside a speaker box shows significant advantages, and the trick is wrapping it in a small weave material to keep the fibers in place, something very very few manufacturers have ever gotten right.
Dear Belinda, you blew my mind with your review!! I'm so glad I found you! So many videos out there lacking this quality of information. You have done a great job. Thank you so much for explaining things so clearly. This is coming from a 40 year old man who is just learning to renovate his recently purchased old house and simply needed the straight facts to understand insulation materials!! Looking forward to the other videos! You put all the male youtubers to shame! Keep going!!
Belinda, I subscribe to what michael just said and I add : finally a youtuber that has NO background music so that I can understand clearly what you just said. When I hear music over voice I immediately switch channel
Belinda has production music behind her clips of trying to burn the insulation.
But thankfully her narration and diction is great!
Belinda,
This is one of the best explanations on the differences between Rockwool and Fiberglass insulation that I've ever seen.
The explanation on the acoustic is as excellent as it is correct.
The fact that the glass fiber batts absorb water and get soggy should be convincing enough not to use them.
Roof leaks are the norm in old houses, not the exception.
Incidentally, Natural Wool based insulation batts are even worse. In the 1990's the NSW Australian Government, allowed the free choice of wool, Polyester fiber and glass fiber batt for the Airport Insulation program for houses in the Western Sydney airplane noise corridor. After a few years , all of the wool batts had to be recalled and replaced due to bug infestations. Insects loved the moisture holding capacity and the natural state of the wool material.
For long term health safety, I would strongly recommend bagging each of the batts in plastic bags (non bio degradable).
That way any fiber break offs cannot get picked up by roof area breeze, and so won't go into air circulation into the home.
A tell tale that there are micro fibers from shedding batts is that your nasal passages get inflamed and blocked after a day's exposure in a room lined with batts .
The denser the material (the heavier) the greater the ability for the material to attenuate sounds travelling through it and reflecting back into a room from a back wall. If you have a choice of different rated batts for acoustics, choose the heavier batts.
Forget choosing "acoustic batts" choose heavier Rock Wool batts. The difference between the acoustic rated batts and thermal batts
is that the Acoustic batts are "woven" in a more regular pattern. Save your money - use the thermal rated batts. They are cheaper.
This is coming from someone with 40+ years of acoustic experience.
On top of the trapped air acting as an acoustic attenuator, the suspended mass in the form of fibers absorbs sound energy in the process of trying to vibrate these suspended-mass micro fibers. It takes energy to vibrate them and this dissipates the acoustic energy travelling through the batt.
We have done live acoustic testing with gated pink noise bursts pointed at walls of these materials with the batts in various states of physical compression. As the batts get compressed down - at some point sound simply gets reflected off the batts rather than getting absorbed by them , that was an eye opening experience. I mention this - because there is a lot of folk lore about squashing down batts as much as is possible. Sorry - measurements show you get worse sound absorption in a room because the sound simply gets reflected back into the room. . You can do very simple tests to corroborate this with a mechanical clacker and an RT60 app ( try Android Audio Tool by jjbunn I've compared this app to very expensive professional grade RT60 meters and its every bit as good. It depends on relative measurements so its not limited by the frequency response of the phone's microphone)
Well done with the video. So nicely laid out and great video clips of the manufacturing process. People can learn from you.
Thank you.
This lady is the G.O.A.T. ive been into alternative building methods for decades, but im also into science, hah, which, it can be tough for us amateur builders to find hard numbers on alternative building methods. I worked in the shipyards for years, and was well aware of the shortcomings, but it is so much easier to use her video on why shipping containers suck as building materials, when friends get hyped about building a shipping container house, its just so much easier, hah.
Getting ready to start hyper insulating my 200 year old house, to make it heated with passive solar, and here i am, on this channel, making sure there isnt something important to know about insulation, that i dont know yet, hah. Thanks for taking the time for making these videos, the knowlede transfer per minute is off the chain, hah.
I have worked in construction (residential and commercial) for 25+ years and love the way to deliver no non-sense information!
Thank you for your videos
🙂
Rock, slag and coke... sounds like basically what my weekends used to be made of too
Used to? We still out here!!
@Giorgio Mumda damn I wish someone invented coke xr
Too funny.
LMFAO!
😆🤣😂
I have been in construction for many years. I highly recommend mineral wool / Rockwool. I used to special order it from Canada for all my builds. As of 2016 it is readily available in USA due to the opening of the Roxul/Rockwool plant in Mississippi
My dad used to work in construction, around 40 years. Most of it in insulation and some in roofing (i hope those are the right therms, English is not my first language).
He swears by rockwool for insulation in our cold region.
He used to demonstrate the fire-resistant of it by placing a block of it in front a propane gas flame and a piece of paper behind the wool. Turn it on, and go for a coffee with the client. 20min later the flame is still going and the paper was still spot loss...
Just a little anecdote.
Thanks for this informative video.
So fire resistant that it is literally the stuff they put small fluffy pieces inside gas fireplaces to give ember-like glo spots.
I don't know if you have expertise in this subject as a result of working in the industry, or you just researched it really well, but either way you did a fantastic job. Truly informative and ably presented, thank you.
I love the way you pack high-quality information into a dense format. When encountering a contentious topic, you summarize your opinion with facts quickly.
Utterly fascinating. I had no idea stone wool insulation was even a thing. I didn't even know I was potentially interested in the topic. You give a stellar presentation and deliciously structured comparatives. Thank you!!
Thats why one might delve into topic they are not familiar with to learn about things like this. Personally i will not use fiberglass insulation anymore in anywhere, simply due it being really hard to recycle and how easily it gets ruined. Even top of the rock wool i prefer for massive wood as it will naturally breath, there is plenty around where i live in cold north and mostly cause eventually every roof will leak some. What i have seen in construction industry around here, i would never put fiberglass into the house as just tiny amount of water that gets into insulation will not show it self, or get dried before whole frame needs to be demoslihed and potentially whole house needs to be tore down and rebuilt if owner wont notice the "early" signs of the water damage.
After that comes rock wool. Not a fan but this is what i recommend on using where you need to put insulation on. Least with this material you only need to rip open exterior or interior wall, get that damn vapor barrier out, witch is locking all that moisture into insulation and try to dry the area after leak is fixed.
On older style log construction: Ou there is a leak, well better fix the roof and thats about it. Logs will suck the water, but also let it dry naturally. I'm living in 101 years old log building that has not been maintained best and roof was and has been leaking from several spots. Biggest one let water straight top of outer wall. There is some rot damage on the top most logs and area was damp for two years.... got the roof fixed properly couple months ago and its been drying on its own. Would like to swap the log on top, but there is enough solid material so its not required and this is rental so i'm not going to go for such large repair my self out of pocket. If this was any other type of building it would be demolished back to the frame at very least. Sadly this construction material is available on near big forested areas and we dont have termites so go figure. Also massive wood does transfer heat witch can be positive or negative. On areas with lots of sunlight, i'm not sure it works that well, specially when there is not much forest anyway. Trick we tend to use is to open all windows at night to let cool air in and to cool the frame from both sides and then close the windows on morning that traps the cool air inside to be enjoyed during summer. Also we have big wood fireplaces that suck up lots of heat during summer from inside while heating in winter. For those who wonder, no you dont put the fireplace into end of the building! You place it in center so it actually warms the house from with in, not let majority of the heat outside, like i have seen in several US houses fire place being at the end of the house.
My old house is insulated with rock wool. I thought it was some obsolete, inferior product.
Thanks for making this video with the valuable information.
I even subscribed. Now I can see a list if your other vids.
You probably live in warm environment. I know the difference even without any construction practice.
I never Heard of Fiberglass insulation rockwool is Like the only Thing besides styrofoam
@@SchlaftaterNrzZz fiberglass is cheaper even today. It is widely used for industrial insulation of pipings.
This is the best in-depth comparison I've seen yet for these products. Very well put together high quality video!
I KNOOOOOW! IT'S LIKE OMG!!!! I WAS WAITING FOR THIS!!!🙄
Just kidding dude! You it was funny!😉😁
plus shes hot
Totally agree!
Agreed. Great job
Im not sure how this channel wound up in my feed but im glad it did.
Ive been a carpenter for 30 years last 20 in the union.
Love the channel and your insight
Same
Just showed up here today too, but some great videos.
Same
Same
i love it; i had no ide what i was working with all my whole proffessional life until the nice lady instructed me on youtube; i must have been just dumb lucky; all those decades of construction work and i did not actually know what is difference between glass wool and satone wool; i wish you wear glass wool in your socks for a year, my lady; your face will turn green after a while; andy will not be smiling any more! i promise;!!!
This has to be the most comprehensive video on Rockwool and Fiberglass. Thank you.
Love the factual content finished with just a slight bit of your personality. You've done a great job explaining and I learned some new things. I'm excited to share your channel with the rest of my team for their own development.
I just clicked on this as whim, and I was blown away how interesting, complete, and well presented the information was. Very well done, Belinda! BTW, where I live in the Bay Area / CA, building inspectors allow / recommend the use of Rockwool to seal top plate penetrations (say for electrical cable) because of it's great fire resistance properties.
ditto.. youtube algorithm is getting more diverse
Me too I have never worked with Rock Wool . I used to work construction - I HATED working with fiberglass. Pain in the ASS. This video was well done.
excellent presentation
@@johnbrowne3518 once you work with rock wool you won’t care about the price.
@Wroger Wroger What can I say, you're just wrong. Building code and fire ratings are based on testing, not periodic tables. Check out Rockwool's website on this matter, it can withstand temperatures exceeding 1,800f www.rockwool.com/learning/fire-safety/
This went to a level of thoroughness I was not expecting... exceptionally well done and interesting, thank you for putting in the time and effort on this for everyone.
Can you explain everything in my life like that? That was great. Keep being awesome.
Thanks for the education. I used Rockwool in my #vanlife and love how quite it makes the van, particular when driving on noisy or bad roads. Bumps and rumble have disappeared. Thumbs up for Rockwool's acoustic deadening.
I love it when I watch industrial style videos like this and then get ads for flooring foam and house-sized industrial ovens.
Great video Belinda. We installed the mineral wool in the Open Book Build home on a busy street and the noise reduction is great. It's definitely easier to install than fiberglass with the friction fit and ability to cut with a hand saw or bread knife. And the batts really fill the wall cavity which really helps with the insulation properties. Throw in the fire and moisture resistance and I truly believe it's a much superior product to fiberglass. We were able to use the R23 batts with our 2x6 walls. Keep up the quality videos.
Rockwool is THE way to go. It ‘mounts’ when trimmed carefully as opposed to fiberglas. I also feel it has better absorption in the lower frequencies. I’ve used both extensively and wouldn’t even think of glas again.
I only worked with them a bit (spent a few weeks "as an intern" ;D in construction between real jobs) and even with that short time I can wholeheartedly agree, rockwool is superior.
only reason to use Glaswool is a stingy customer that doesn't listen to the benefits of rockwool
@@theultimatefreak666 is it because of the Lower price of glaswool some rather take it?
@@KeVIn-pm7pu yep, especially if you get one of these pre-designed houses built there's a good chance that company will tell you to get Glas wool because it's cheaper (although the video said a few things how rockwool is more durable and thus technically cheaper than getting new Glaswool once the old one stops doing what it's supposed to, anyways cheaper building cost always look better and how shitty it is for the person getting it build once he moves in doesn't matter to those companies)
Btw: seriously, if you ever want your own house built don't get such a pre-designed those companies will fuck you over any way possible (including raising the price above what they promised based on fine print of "what we showed you'd get was extra, the mentioned price was basic")
The way to go is a low density aerated concrete.
Vacuum panels and aerogels are superior
I have to compliment you on the outstanding and informative video you put together. I have been a home builder for 30 yrs and can honestly say your information is exact and concise. Well done!
A chippy with 40 years experience, after watching this l felt like a first year apprentice. Great work.thanks.
This video is what inspired me to use stone wool in the walls of my wife's home office. She does telehealth and needs to keep out background noises. We are both very happy with the choice. Thank you for this excellent presentation.
Excellent video. Been working energy conservation for 30 years now and this was one of the best educational videos I've seen. Keep up the good work!
This was as good as watching that show "How its made"... but most of all you've educated me on something that the staff at the big box stores never cover when i buy insulation for a project. Great Job Ms. Carr!
Hi Belinda, a couple of comments to your informative video:
1) For the heat flow meter test method ASTM C518, the temperature of 75F is actually the 'Mean' exposure temperature based on a hot plate set at 100F and the cold plate set at 50F, and not the actual testing temperature since there is a requirement to apply a thermal gradient to determine the heat flow properties. One can use other mean temperatures, but for many purposes, the mean value of 75F allows for sufficient validation or quality control.
2) You stated that the polyurethane foam requiring over 24 hours to reach steady-state for testing. When freshly applied, the PU foam will undergo exothermic heating as it reacts and cures. Also, some of the blowing gases or byproducts like CO2 will diffuse out of the foam and can change the insulating value, However, one normally does not test a freshly applied foam and most laboratories will follow a protocol of allowing the material test specimens to 'age' under controlled conditions of temperature and humidity prior to testing. Once placed into the testing instrument, the results can generally be obtained with high accuracy/repeatability in well under one hour. - Source: 20+ years of experience in testing PU foam materials (but admittedly not for the building industry). Thank you, and I'm enjoying your channel!
After months of confusion this video answered every single question I didn't even know. Ihad!!!
Thanks again for another informative video
Amazing how many lay people think Rockwool is a natural wool product and how many retailers don't correct this misnomer.
After 30 plus years of trade work crawling through ceilings, the fibreglass and paper insulations are definitely the worst for holding dust, water, mould etc. They both require 300mm unretained or 150mm retained isolation from down lights or other penitrations. Rock wool is 150 mm unreturned and 100mm retained. (Local building codes in my area in conjunction with installation guidelines) In a house with even 20 down lights, this is a massive thermal deficit.
Before watching this video today, I knew next to nothing about the properties and nature of Rockwool compared to glass fiber insulation. I now feel much enlightened - thank you Belinda !
Thank you so much for the info. I feel a lot better about my choice of using Rockwool instead of the pink fiberglass insulation in my current construction project. What a relief 🙌🏼👍🏻
Absolutely the best most comprehensive video on batt insulation and super timely since I'm doing my insulation now. Very glad I went with the rock wool!
I have been working with both stonewool and glasswool. This is the best explanation ever made.
Hello, Belinda. I just wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for this beautifully presented explanation of the difference between rock wool and glass wool. I am a senior citizen who is faced with insulating my home on my own. I had no idea how to even begin this project. Now, I know so much more about the differences in the two materials and the relative merits of rock wool. I subscribed today. You impressed me so very much. Thanks for this wonderful resource for us ignorant home-repair newbies.
Awesome video, great in depth explanation! Also confirmed what I was suspecting about those two products. Mineral wool might be more expensive, but is so vastly superior to fiberglass, it is definitely worth the price! Also, just to add, mineral wool is also practically rodent repellent. Mice just hate the stuff, and leave it alone. I have seen fiberglass insulation completely destroyed and rendered useless by mice. Another thing to consider, especially in attics, basements and outbuildings.
I've been building homes for 50 years. People don't seem to understand the way insulation works, specially when coupled with steel. I always said that by the time you make the container livable you havent saved anything and it will rust out in about 15 years. Thank you.
I can't believe I was just mesmerized by a video about insulation 🤔🤔🤔
Right??! Im trying to analyze the beginning of this video to figure out how she did it. It was such a subtle hook!
Well, let's not mention the lady is so fine!
Your presentations are remarkably clear and unbiased. Consumers, as well as tradespeople should be thankful for your efforts...
It's people like Belinda here who make youtube amazing. Thank you !
Good job Belinda, I've wondered about the two insulations for some time, I prefer rock wool insulation.
Another great video! I used the mineral wool batts for a sound isolation room and it works wonders for the price.
Subscribed because you know how to organize and summarize information and communicate it well. Every time I thought "You didn't define x", that was your next comment. Thank you.
Thanks, Jennifer!
This women is an asset to youtube.
This is one of those things people take for granted or never even thinks about unless it concerns you. Really interesting topic.
Thank you. Great presentation! I switched to rock wool a few years back. It's easier to work with and I can feel the difference especially on exterior walls. Also much better for sound dampening.
Wow, handyman here and I learned a ton. Thanks Belinda.
So, roxul or pink panther?
Elvis Presley I'm going for Roxul, just like the benefits better...I think the king would agree
@@risinbison1106 well thank you bison! Thank you very much!
I've been a construction technology teacher for 15 years and this is the best video I've seen on the topic. Great job!
a brilliant Indian woman talking about house building, love it, love you, ignore the haters. You come off very classy, very knowledgable, and humble, love, love you
I watched your video on shopping malls. Now I'm watching about insulation. Architecture and building have always fascinated me. I have not worked in either area, unless you count Lincoln Logs. Your channel is unique and fascinating. I'm learning so much! Thank you
Great video Belinda. You give easy to understand information that even a lay-person, outside of the construction industry, can understand. This comparison was well done, as others have commented here. I will be recommending that people seeking information, regarding construction products and processes, should subscribe to your videos. You do a much better in-depth analysis than I could ever present.
Thanks Belinda.
Super well-done, as always! You did a great job of setting out the differences between the two, and why you might want to use each one for different applications. Your videos are great, they have exactly the right amount of detail for us understand the subject,differences between products and methods, and the reasons behind why things are the way they are. You don’t talk down to your viewers at all, but at the same time don’t over-complicate things. I can’t say enough how much I enjoy and appreciate your content! 👍😁
Excellent review. Very informative and thorough. One easily overlooked benefit of the mineral wools is that insects and rodents typically don't like to live in it.
I was blown away at just how good RockWool is for sound insulation - I have two different guitar speakers in a cabinet in the loft with an array of microphones, the cabinet is surrounded by RockWool, this is surrounded by a second cabinet and surrounded again by RockWool. The cabinet is also stood on sorbathane feet. You can't hear anything other than a very dull bass thud and thats quiet. In the studio below its silent, all I hear from the studio monitors is what the microphones produce.
Also I get 5mm plywood, put a slab of RockWool on it, no need for frames, and wrap it with faux crushed velvet (which scatters treble better) and they make really good yet cheap and beautiful sound absorbsion for rooms - way, way better than those awful grey foam rubber tiles!
Rock wool reminds me of Pele's hair which is made naturally at volcanoes (like Hawaii) where wind blows molten basalt into fine glass hair.
Rockwool is amazing stuff, it’s less itchy than fibreglass and it repels water. I remember dropping a 2” batt into a water trough. It came out soaked and I thought fit for the bin. An hour later it was bone dry. The water just ran out.
idk what you mean “less itchy” that’s the only thing i refuse to touch without long sleeves, even when i do wear long sleeves i can feel it poking through
@@nevanuel1983 That’s what I’m saying I thought the rock wool was worse Lol
I have mixed experience with the itchyness. It is in some cases much easier to handle rockwool and in some cases fiberglass. Fiberglass weighs less and does not break from being bent. In other cases the bending becomes an issue.
@@nevanuel1983 They're both pretty itchy to be honest. For my purpose in the application of sound absorption, I prefer glasswool because it's generally odorless and performs the same as rockwool. But if I were using it for insulation buried deep in the walls stonewool is clearly better
what a great review, here in Bonnie Scotland I am always trying to ensure that the products I use are good for insulation and this has really helped me
This is the first time I’ve watched one of your videos and I must say, I am extremely impressed. Keep up the great work!
This is the most incredible explanation regarding the materials used in insulation and how they are composed. Absolutely excellent and a very pleasant surprise. I'm a new subscriber for sure. Thank you!
I was not familiar with rock wool insulation until just recently so when I built my house over 25 years ago I just used glass wool insulation like everyone else. Now that I've done some remodeling and have had to get back into my walls I have found issues that the fiberglass insulation has caused (or contributed to) that I believe the rock wool would not have. These issues are generally moisture related but also have to do with the compressibility and installation. Knowing what I know now, I wish I could go back and do it over again and use rock wool instead.
Hello Belinda - excellent presentation thank you. One thing about Rockwool is the increased density makes it more effective for sound insulation, particularly low frequency sounds.
I remember my first job was as a labourer on £40 a day, labouring to a dryliners squad, I'll never miss the itch of fibre glass on my skin 😂
Just as bad as a Asbestos in my books.
I'm 60 and worked with both in the air-conditioning industry since 1979.
Do not ever breathe these products.
I itch at the though I detest fiberglass insulation
@@sqike001ton LoL and i didnt flinch when i was in trade school installing fiberglass. Little itch sure, but nothing shower could not fix... Went on repairing fiberglass boat 5 years later... holy shit that was absolute hell of itching and peeling skin as fiber particles rubbed into my skin under the particle half mask. Ended up selling the boat and know now to use full mask and protective disposable full jumper.. essentially Asbestos removal gear when doing fiberglass anything that creates particles. Still dont mind glass insulation install, though knowing the material i would not use it in any valuable building like house, maybe in animal shelter at most.
Nothing worse when it’s down the back of your shirt and combining with sweat
@@johngriffiths118 nah the worst part was the money for me, I can firm itchiness and pain but at the end of the day no matter what you'll always question "is this a fair wage for all the graft and effort you put in, along with putting up with power hungry manchilds of site managers and contractors" even £120 a day wouldn't be worth it for me, my advice is never become a dryliners/joiners nor site labourer period 😂👏
I remember back in the mid-80’s Rockwool as it was know then only, appeared on the market but it was only available as “ blown-in insulation “ for attics, bat-form was not available yet, they hadn’t figured out the process of binding the fibres. It took until the late 90’s to get some form of bat, but nothing like the industry has today. We conducted a physical test to check the heat pass through rate of the wool and pink-bat insulation comprised of 2 heat lamps , 2 compartments of the same height (8 inches) filled with uncompressed wool and the pink with 2 thermometers poked in (1inch) deep on the tops of each with a timer set at 5 minutes. The end result? the wool had hands down slower heat transfer rate than the pink fibre-glass. We used that actual hands on comparison test to sell the wool product. If you can afford the rock-wool in it’s different densities for sound deadening or insulation that’s the way to go. As a side note, the reason why original fibreglass-bat was pink is the colour pink is what they call a “warm” colour, it’s a psychological selling tactic of the industry, you think your going to be warmer if it’s pink! 😎
For areas to block heat use polyisocyanurate.
Color also has to do with branding. Corning is pink and J-M is yellow.
Excellent post that adds real value, thanks.
Rockwool was available in the 50's. It came as r 10 between kraft paper.
@@kkarllwt interesting.wish they didn't use other industry waste and formaldehyde as binding filler material. Lots of building materials use other industry waste as filler.
I’ve used all types in my 25 years in construction Rock wool is my favourite, I’ve also used sheets of styrofoam with tin foil type material on both sides when I didn’t want to gut the interior it worked amazing and at that time I lived in a -50 winter location.
Thankyou so much, Belinda... I've learned more in the last 11 minutes than in 30 years in construction. You don't talk down to people, you present info in a manner anybody can relate to (pretty pictures help - but so do the manufacturing videos), and you present it succinctly. I've ripped out old f-g insulation that has been brittle and where the strands are almost slivers of glass - very unfriendly and hard to handle... newer stuff is much cleaner. Your parting comment about being 'blown away' made me laugh... I myself have often wondered how come someone walking along a beach would think to heat up some of the sand, add some soda ash - and make something transparent.
Am not a builder or engineer, but find your presentation easy to understand and informative. Could you do an analysis of common water filters used in home taps and similar consumer products for filtering water in containers?
Well done! This is the kind of detailed video with science and clear explanations and comparisons that I have been looking for.
Great video. Thank you! Glad the UA-cam algorithm finally sent something refreshingly interesting my way. Thanks again - looks like a lot of effort went down in researching this topic.
What a great video! I insulated my whole garage with mineral wool just on a hunch that it was a better product and this video is nice confirmation that I made the right choice. Very thorough
Was so excited to find that you covered this, good to have trustworthy voices you can turn to.
Go stone wool, you'll never have to question if your insulation is harboring mold
@John Grzeskowiak the stone wool is water resistant, making it hard for mold to grow. Which if you have a leak you would still have repairs to do, but at least you dont have to replace your insulation.
@John Grzeskowiak those are gutters, you should try insulating them.
@John Grzeskowiak have you tried insulating your brain?
Go stone wool, it insulates well against both temperstures and sound.
Thank you for that education, it was just what i needed to hear.
Roxul is awesome - I'm slowly replacing all fiberglass insulation in my house with it.
I've been comparing these two products and this is very enlightening. Thank you for a great video
Thanks for your excellent channel and your approach to The building sciences, which as we know can be very subjective.
As a design professional for a major utility company I was given the task to update our insulation spec.
Many factors were discussed amongst stake holders.
In the end cost wasn't the major factor.
Fire, smoke , and performance (across the spectrum) were determining factors.
Only two insulation types were finally spec for above ground use - mineral wool (gernetic) and cellulose met our requirements.
Airport next door, all rockwool insulation. Heat stays in, noise stays out.
Nice!
One advantage of the mineral wool, also known as rockwool it capable of sustaining life in a hydroponic growing system. Never tried fiberglass though.
Seems like something you wouldn't want in your walls unless it was a vertical farm
@@KaceyGreen It's use as a medium to transmit nutrients and secure the roots in horizontal and vertical grows. The garden centers even sell cups and pots made of rockwool.
@@TechGorilla1987 I wonder what my Aero garden uses for a medium, I always thought it was a sponge.
@@KaceyGreen I looked them up and it looks like a composite material Like it may be peat and rockwool pressed in to a shape. Others like using a 50/50 mix of perlite and vermiculite for the same purpose.
@@TechGorilla1987 Rockwool is really neat stuff, and it's so weird to me that a bunch of petroleum byproducts can become something like it. I don't think fiberglass would work in the same application because it doesn't hold its structure when it is wet. Rockwool works because it is just ridgid enough to allow water to flow through it, and fine enough to hold both water and air for healthy root growth.
It is like sitting in a Chemistry class. well done.
Lies! This is more informative and better done thanking in chem class, while being easier to follow.
@@arthurr8670 especially because it is about physics and not chemistry :-) :-)
If only she wouldn't use outdated, atrocious imperial system. for pity sake USE METRIC in any educational videos
Yes this is both brilliant and informative. Easy to listen to and without the BS of so many other content creators. Many thanks
I stumbled upon this and am so grateful for your due diligence in preparation of comparing the differences between stone and glass insulation. I have been searching for the best sound proofing for a new room addition and this is was very educational as well as enlightening in presentation.
rock wool from an insulation standpoint will be the way to go and if you don't have drywall up, look at using 5/8 instead 1/2 drywall
This is really well done. I recently did a lot of restoration work on my house where 3/4th of the house was down to the studs. I went with rockwool, and I'm glad I did.
1st time visitor, new subscriber. Miss Belinda! What a great channel! Thank you and Merry Christmas.
This video is informative and done very professionally. I'm impressed. Thank you! (I always wondered why pink fiberglass is more popular -- I think now it's just cheaper and has better marketing. Most people don't know the difference.)
I bought a 1200 foot square house that needed gutting. Full rewire, insulating, the works. I went with Rockwool for the attic, internal walls, external walls and first floor ceiling. It was pricy but so worth it, the house is toasty in winter and needs less AC in summer, thanks to its excellent thermal properties. The sounded deadening is a great bonus too, as we have wood floors throughout and it helps to keep the noise down in this compact, cape style house.
I saw a rep at homedepot yrs ago about stone wool/rock wool. It was awesome and from that day on. This is the only insulation I use now. Fire resistant, water resistant and sound proof. So easy to cut into shape.
perfectly illustrated. thank you for the detailed look at these insulation products.
Fibreglass has come out with higher density products comparable to rockwool (R24 has 7 pcs per bag). I’ve installed both for 30 years and find fibreglass much easier to install, especially around plugs, wires and pipes.
That's good information. I MAY have to re-insulate my townhouse. After watching this video, if I do re-insulate then I'm going to spend the extra and use Rockwool.
I re-insulated my house a little at a time. What a difference! Believe me, you will not regret it.
This is a fantastic presentation with clear, concise and factual information. It’s such a refreshing change to listen and learn from an obviously well educated and credible presenter. Thank you for making my day.
I'm not sure how detailed of an explanation I was expecting, but this covered everything. Great video.
That was the best review/explanation of these two I have ever seen! One question I have is about mice and Rockwool . Will mice use it to make nests or live in it? Good job on this video!
@@kenthhamner2641 - which makes it idea for crawl space joists...
Yes, mice do get into it Rockwool and pull away at it. Our cats keep the mice down, but I do occasionally have to fix small areas of insulation in our crawlspace.
@@kenthhamner2641 Only asked about pests. We already got the rest of that from the video.
Seems to me that rodents will make a nest of just about anything so I have my doubts they would leave Rockwool alone.
@@kenthhamner2641 *no* insulation will hold its insulation value when wet. that applies to rockwool. the insulation shown in the video (comfortbatt) *does* bend easily. i think you are confusing rockwool comfortbatt with rockwool comfortboard. it does cut, but it dulls knives very quickly.
I learned a lot of new things today, thank you for the video, no idea that rock wool was made from actual rock.
This video was amazing! Thank you! So much information, well presented and entertaining. You also answered many questions that I have been unable to find information on (I'm an audio engineer and need to use acoustic treatment).
This is really helpful. I was trying to figure out how to sound insulate my home theater, but this video made it clear, rockwool is the correct choice along with double thickness drywall so the rest of the house doesn't hear the movie I want to watch.