NASA Technology in our Home & Barn

[future pather]

This page has some good resources of agencies who have used this paint with good results.

HY-TECH Insulating paint products, News and Updates



Jessica

[DavidE]

Great thread!

low thermal conductivity of 0.1 W / m / Deg.C.

Certain frequencies/flows are minimized by this ceramic barrier. But do not mistake this technology for an insulation answer for environments that range to a great degree seasonally (-20 F - +100 F). Energy flows (outside to in or reverse) grow in pace geometrically as the differences between inside and outside temperature changes.

At every structural conduction point there are streams of energy, volume and speed determined by the variation of temp outside versus inside. Always flowing from high energy to lower energy. Your greatest gain would be to use such a technology outside and inside. Again low conductivity rating would deter amount being conducted into materials thus keeping the energy "outside of the envelope." Seasonal variations change the directional flows through the conducting materials (thermal shell).

Having spent 15 years in reasearch and application of such materials, this category interest me greatly. If you can in your area build a structure with "no venting" you will be ahead (r-control panels or like). If you must utilize an air cavity, spray the underside of your roof deck with closed cell spray foam products. You won't need more than 2.5 inches at R17. In the field I have specified, applied and built roof systems utilizing these material and they will (regardless of weather conditions) out perform R60 rated fiberglass or cellulose (yes, I do know why this is so).

High density (2.0lb) hydrophobic foams perform regardless of moisture content of air.

The paints suggested are great partial solutions, for a complete effect (new structure) always consider utilizing a system to produce comprehensive results.

[DavidE]

If you are working on building a new structure...

One additional thought.

Optimum efficiency of the ceramic barrier would be at the exterior sheathing level... and on the inside of the same sheathing/framing before insulation is applied.

Anytime you can isolate energy "flow" through framing sheathing/framing the and isolate interior mass the better. Isolating interior high mass materials can very effectively produce an all encompassing "radiant effect." How? Mass (i.e. drywall) becomes a conductor for air bound energy, then the energy hits the non-conductive barrier and reflects back to the air by which it came.

You can make any and all surfaces "radiant reflectors" by utilizing the appropriate isolation and reflective technologies. There is no need to install a water based radiant heating system (high cost) to produce high levels of comfort in home space. Barrier technologies with a conventional forced air heating system can produce far greater efficiencies. Lower capital cost, more comprehensive effect, less maintenance cost, and benefits are delivered in all seasons.


Radiant Effect - High mass isolation, with appropriate reflective technologies applied as part of a system.

[Aaron]

insulation and radiant barrier package

Hi David,

That is some great information, thanks for sharing!

Last week, I had new low E vinyl windows with triple glazed silver coating on the windows. I can take a heat lamp and shine it on the window and on the other side, I can't even feel the heat.

I have a foil radiant barrier laying on top of 1 foot of fiberglass insulation in my attic and every square inch of paint inside the house is on top of 2 layers of primer that was heavily saturated in the ceramic paint additive.

When I heat it up to 75 for example, it takes about 10-12 hours to drop to 73 and that is if the outside is about 60. Very efficiently holding on to the heat I'm making.

I have an efficient oil forced air furnace and 2 days ago, just had a very high efficient wood burning stove (fireplace insert) installed. 2 pieces have about an 8 hour burn time and there isn't even visible smoke coming out the chimney.

Anyway, these things are worth doing because the payback gets better and better every year from here on out because of rising energy costs. I'm glad to have these things out of the way so I don't have to pay in the end.

[DavidE]

Coool.

Aaron

Last week, I had new low E vinyl windows with triple glazed silver coating on the windows. I can take a heat lamp and shine it on the window and on the other side, I can't even feel the heat.

-These are pricey windows but excellent investments.

I have a foil radiant barrier laying on top of 1 foot of fiberglass insulation in my attic and every square inch of paint inside the house is on top of 2 layers of primer that was heavily saturated in the ceramic paint additive.

-Foil Radiant Barrier. Whenever possible this layer should be utilized to stop those wavelengths before they infiltrate the building envelope. If you have space in your attic... consider using a thermostatically driven fan to keep vent cavity air temp closer to outside temp versus soaring temperatures found in poorly ventilated roof systems. A simple fan solution may change the temp in the attic (summer) from 130 F to 80 F. Putting far less strain on an air conditioning unit. Or your hot head

When I heat it up to 75 for example, it takes about 10-12 hours to drop to 73 and that is if the outside is about 60. Very efficiently holding on to the heat I'm making.

-My prior note suggested where possible, install the ceramic barrier as close to outside wall as possible. But in your case, application on a finished surface is all you could do. The hope is to isolate the mass (drywall/plaster) inside of the shell (heated space). Then you can greatly benefit from the mass storage effect in a high density material. I guess you could even apply the ceramic barrier to the back of the drywall before installation. With finished homes obviously this is not an option.

I have an efficient oil forced air furnace and 2 days ago, just had a very high efficient wood burning stove (fireplace insert) installed. 2 pieces have about an 8 hour burn time and there isn't even visible smoke coming out the chimney.

-Actually fuel oil has a very high ratio of BTU's per unit, higher than most other forms of energy. As far as the wood burner goes, do keep in mind that efficiency is achieved a certain operating temps... either side of the curve is diminished. Isn't that the heat source that heats you twice? Once when you chop the wood, then when you burn it?

Anyway, these things are worth doing because the payback gets better and better every year from here on out because of rising energy costs. I'm glad to have these things out of the way so I don't have to pay in the end.

-You have made good investments, technology is a moving target!

In just a bit, I will share some photos of a sample home IR scan. What we learned about home efficiency (in early 90's) came from the data sets produced by looking at that spectrum. Many counter intuitive things were observed...

[DavidE]

IR Data



Click on picture for full size.


The first photo on the left shows air infiltration at the plate (where the wall intersects with the floor).
This is an example of how pointless insulation can be, if you can't manage air infiltration to finished space.

The second photo demonstrates how a radiant floor actually works. Everybody is convinced that the temp
is one grand warm floor, wall to wall. The IR spectrum really shows that it is a local effect, directly related
to where you actually have a pex run.

The third photo shows the heat coming from a floor register. Also demonstrates how windows work. Red is
warm blue is cold. Notice the blue strip on the bottom of each window? That was condensation on the window...
conducting cold through the frame (glass insert frame).

The chart on the bottom demonstrates how the IR chip captures data. Each pixel is assigned a temperature value.
The image software converts the temperature into a color.

When we started in the biz we teamed with people that had refurbished military equipment. Such technology was
not allowed in the private sector.

The image that you see here was taken by one of the first room temp chips (no cryo cooling needed) produced for
hand held imaging.