Originally posted by Denver:
quote:
Originally posted by Denver:
Prodex Buyer Be Careful!
The Prodex product appears to be very suspect in its claims of a high R value. I went to the Prodex SA website and saw the Florida Solar Energy Center, a research institute connected with University of Central Florida listed prominently as an affiliate. I contacted their director and he said the center has no affilations with any businesses and he will contact them and ask them to remove this reference. He further stated that this product can not be considered to have an R value of 14.5 for convective heat loss, the primary form of winter heat movement through walls and ceilings in cold climates. (The two layers of aluminum act as a radient heat reflector, which is how this product should be used.) In other words, inspite of what appears on this and the associated websites, this product should not be used in place of several inches of fiberglass batting or other similar insulation.
That this product is primarily a radient heat barrier is is further reinforced by this product information taken from the Prodex SA website:
Prodex is an incredible effective multilayer reflective insulation product that
reflects 97% of radiant heat, the primary source of heat flow. Mass building
insulation products are inferior in that they absorb and hold radiant heat.Reflective insulation is the most effective when incorporated with at least a
3/4" airspace between the insulation and any adjacent material. The R value of the system will vary dependent on the airspace size and the
direction of the heat flow, and the conductive and convective properties of surrounding materials."
Bottomline, the Prodex product may be used to reflect radient heat (summer sun on the roof) but not to replace insulation in a cold winter environment when convective heat loss dominates.
