Roof Plywood With Radiant Barrier

Five problems with foil backed osb radiant barriers.

Roof plywood with radiant barrier.

Many building supply companies offer a plywood or osb oriented strand board sheathing product with a radiant barrier already laminated to one side of the board. So when the sun hits the roof and radiates into the attic or wall the foil layer of the osb sheathing reflects the heat to the roof or exterior wall which keeps the top layer of the insulation just a few degrees warmer than the outside air temperature. Radiant barrier sheathing made up of either plywood or oriented strand board osb with athin layer of aluminum facing on one side is installed to the roof rafters with the aluminumlayer facing down. Thermostat radiant barrier plywood can reduce heat flow through your ceiling up to 50.

With no barrier to restrict the heat it radiates through the insulation into living spaces causing room temperatures to rise. Structural radiant barrier roof sheathing panels help keep structural radiant barrier roof sheathing panels help keep your attic cool and save on cooling energy consumption during hot summer months. Radiant energy transferred through standard roof sheathing creates heat build up in the attic. Other kinds of radiant barriers combine reflective materials usually aluminium foil with materials like plastic films cardboard and kraft paper.

How traditional roof sheathing works. Basically plywood or osb sheathing with a thin aluminum facing on one side radiant barrier sheathing installs like any other roof sheathing. This seems like such a simple solution to reduce energy consumption. You just have to keep the shiny side face down.

Made from high quality osb sheathing these panels are built for stiffness and stability. I have a sealed cathedral ceiling in my log cabin and would like more insulation or radiant prtection the roof is rafters with insulation and plywood on top then shingles do i have to pull off the plywood to install a radiant barrier or is there a panel that i can put over the plywood then reshingle. Radiant barrier plywood sheathing rigid strong ultra cool. To combat this problem many builders in hot climates have made radiant barrier roof sheathing standard on their houses.

I find it curious that i have never seen radiant barrier sheathing installed on any house that i ve ever toured during the construction phase and that s a few hundred houses at the. More energy is needed to cool the house and that means higher energy costs for. The aluminum is not used for its reflective properties but for its low emittingproperties. The most effective radiant barrier sheathing is a structural roof sheathing panel which consists of an osb panel with heat reflecting foil laminated to one side.

In fact tests reveal that radiant barrier panels block up to 97 of the sun s radiant energy making the attic up to 30 cooler and reducing indoor hvac cooling costs by up to 17.