[Greenbuilding] Nansulate Insulation

Sat Jan 22 14:36:32 CST 2011

It is definitely up in the air as we are talking about ultrafine particulate
pollution. Less up in the air as to its effects. Increased cardiovascular
and pulmonary disease and subsequent death associated with increased
exposure.

I used a nano based paint about 10 years ago. Not for insulation, didn't
hear about that?? but because it works incredibly well as a paint filler.
Exterior paint for houses is a problem. It is a sacrificial surface that has
to be renewed 5 years on average and over its history has presented a lot of
long term toxicity problems (heavy metals primarily but also anti-fungals,
etc.) for the soils surrounding houses. Paint deteriorates primarily because
of breaks in the paint film. Traditional fillers have been low cost
materials such as simple chalk. These particles are coarse with numerous
edges that capture dirt and basically break the film down. Nano particles
are spherical and as part of a film provide extreme resistance to retaining
dirt and subsequent weathering and mildew.

The renovation projects that it was used on have held up extremely well.
After 10 years there is no evidence of failure (peeling, blistering,
fading). The paint had no anti-fungals but the walls show no mildew problems
(which is common here). It was a pretty impressive product and the painters
loved working with it and it required less paint. Obviously the surfaces
have weathered and the eroded material is now part of the atmosphere and
soils and I think that though it may not pose significant risk it is adding
to the pot and increasing the risk. In comparison to 'normal' paint
(whatever that is now) it means that we use less paint (less often) and
decrease that waste. How it compares in the end is anyones guess.

A goal in greenbuilding is to minimize toxicity to the environment and the
maintenance and renewal of exposed surfaces has a high cost. The first line
of defense is design solutions and the second is selection of appropriate
'low risk' materials. Solutions such as earthen wall finishes and soil
covered roofs I think are very appropriate finishes to expose to the
environment but not quite the acceptable norm at this point.

JOHN SALMEN ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN

4465 UPHILL RD,. DUNCAN, B.C.  CANADA, V9L 6M7

PH 250 748 7672 FAX 250 748 7612 CELL 250 246 8541

terrain at shaw.ca

  _____  

From: greenbuilding-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org
[mailto:greenbuilding-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org] On Behalf Of Gennaro
Brooks-Church
Sent: January 22, 2011 8:53 AM
To: Green Building
Subject: Re: [Greenbuilding] Nansulate Insulation

I partnered up with nansulate a couple years ago to show the stuff in my
show house. I didn't test the heat loss properties, although I suspect it is
in the realm of other radiant barriers foil (but less effective).

I wasn't impressed. It smells toxic. If you are not careful it dries as a
milky white instead of clear. In some places it started flaking off.

I have concerns that if in fact it is nanotechnology then the dust could
enter our body and cause possible harm.

Nano particles are still a new frontier and the effect of small synthetic
particles on our body needs to be looked into. 

I classify nanotechnology in the same realm as playing with food genetics -
it is still up in the air whether we are the sorcerer or the sorcerers
helper. Probably a mixture of both.

Gennaro Brooks-Church

Cell: 1 347 244 3016 USA
www.EcoBrooklyn.com
22 2nd St; Brooklyn, NY 11231

On Fri, Jan 21, 2011 at 10:32 PM, Steve <steve at greengeek.ca> wrote:

Hi Eli,

> http://www.nansulate.com/nansulate_homeprotect_clearcoat.htm
>

> Is this stuff legitamate or snake oil?

I've looked into several similar products over the last few years,
invariably none of them were any more effective at insulating than a
clay-based paint. I have no experience with this particular product,
but based on similar ones I've seen, I'd lean towards snake oil. I
hope I'm wrong about one of these products eventually though, as
paint-on insulation would be very beneficial!

The closest I've seen to a thin insulation that have proven results
are aerogel-based products:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerogel
http://inhabitat.com/exciting-advances-in-insulation-with-aerogel/
http://www.aerogel.com/
http://thermablok.com/

-Steve
--
http://www.greengeek.ca

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