Years ago, I participated in a comparative insulation study with the National Association of Home Builders that yielded a surprising result: Correctly placed fiberglass batt insulation, a keen eye, and a well-aimed caulk gun delivered a tighter and better-insulated house than spray foam. However, it’s hard to rely on such careful craft from many insulation contractors.

Owens Corning responds withPINK Next Gen，欧文斯·康宁（Owens Corning）发言人特雷·麦克纳米（Trey McNamee）表示，改进的玻璃纤维泡沫绝缘材料将削减培训新安装程序的大量时间。该公司还声称，其新的和增强的Batts安装速度比标准玻璃纤维Batts快23％。

Owen Corning invented fiberglass and later the ubiquitous pink insulation. The improvements with PINK Next Gen include finer glass fiber that will not cut or itch installers. The material cuts easily and responds like a Memory Foam mattress, regaining its fluffy form after being squished. The material isGreenguard认证对于低VOC，R-15 Batts适合3-1/2英寸。墙腔。McNamee表示，该公司可以将更多的R值塞入2×4墙中，并最终可能提供一种在经济上产生标准2×6组件的R值，以3-1/2英寸深空的空隙。最后，McNamee告诉我粉红色的下一代是在以100％风产生的电能运行的植物中制造的，并包含该行业中最高的再生含量。

粉红色的下一代玻璃纤维板从R-11到R-49范围从3-1/2英寸到14英寸的厚度。

大麻绝缘

All kinds of cool ingredients can go into insulation, from recycled newspaper to shredded blue jeans. But nothing is cooler today than insulation made with hemp. Hempitecture has sold over one million square feet of itsHempWool, which is similar in density and appearance to mineral wool. The material cuts easily with a grinder and steel cutter and fits tightly into voids.

Tommy Gibbons, a co-founder of Hempitecture, claims HempWool is the only thermal insulation product with a “biogenic carbon uptake” that maintains the efficiency of a thermal envelope. In this case, what makes the material “green” is not just its performance. Some carbon-intensive insulation materials justify their use through energy savings. HempWool does not need to offset its carbon footprint on the back of a home’s reduced energy consumption. The product is made with hemp fiber grown sustainably in rural communities across the United States. The company reports that their growing operation offsets 9.8 tons of CO2 per acre, which makes the insulation carbon negative.

HempWool batts range from R-7 at $1.10 per sq. ft. to R-28 at $2.50 per sq. ft. You can purchase directly from the factory.

Of course, I asked, “What happens if I smoke it?” A little tired of the joke, Gibbons replied, “You can’t. It’s nonflammable.”

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费尔南多·帕格斯·鲁伊斯（FernandoPagésRuizRuiz）是一名建筑商，并且是ICC认证的住宅建筑检查员，活跃于代码开发。