According to Fortune magazine California is now the world’s sixth largest economy, surpassing France and India. Because of its economic clout, California’s Title 24 energy codes are being closely watched and emulated in many other states across America. It’s the ultimate goal of Title 24 to have all new residential construction in California reach Zero Net Energy goals by 2020.
Title 24 Part 6 focuses on high-performance attics, and the best way to meet those requirements is to use a time-tested solution—radiant barrier sheathing. It’s a solution that builders, roofing specifiers, and HVAC professionals are all familiar with, plus it can dramatically improve a home’s energy efficiency.
To meet tomorrow’s Zero Net Energy objectives—both in California and beyond—builders, specifiers and HVAC pros will need to learn more about the benefits of radiant barrier sheathing and the improvements that can be achieved by placing all ducts and air handling equipment inside a home’s conditioned space.
Here are some of the many advantages of energy-saving products like LP TechShieldRadiant Barrier Sheathing:
- Blocks up to 97% of the radiant heat in the panel from entering a home’s attic, lowering attic temperature up to 30° F
- Helps builders qualify for Green Building credits and energy rebates and can lower HERS scores
- Installs just like conventional roof sheathing, requiring no additional labor
- Some products feature post-lamination incising that lets the panel dry more quickly during construction and allows for moisture evaporation
Of all the Title 24 methods that use radiant barrier sheathing, the Deeply Buried Ducts option provides the simplest solution for both builders and HVAC professionals. It’s a more intuitive approach that can also provide time and labor savings. By burying the ducts beneath standard insulation materials, builders have a cost-effective way of meeting Title 24 code that’s easy to understand and fairly easy to integrate into existing plans.
In California and elsewhere, radiant barrier sheathing will continue to play a major role in building high-performance attics.
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