Blown in Fiberglass Insulation Machines

Blown in fiberglass is a favorite of many contractors. While the cellulose industry markets blown in cellulose as a superior product, blown in fiberglass has been in use more many years and does provide great insulating value.

In the 1970s and early ’80s, cellulose was notably a superior product. It was a more dense material than fiberglass and was the favored product. Now, blown in fiberglass achieves the same R-values as cellulose and provides comparable insulating value for your home.

However, this article is not going to focus on the superiority of one product over another. What this article will do is to demonstrate that you should be equipped to blow either fiberglass or cellulose.

While all Cool Machines are equipped to handle fiberglass, that is not necessarily true of all insulation machines.

An insulation machine designed to handle fiberglass requires an airlock. The fiberglass is broken up, shredded and dropped into a cavity. Over time, the coarseness of the fiberglass will create some wear, but you will get many years of service with an airlock machine.

Machines that are not able to handle fiberglass have the following features:

• Through blower machines. These blowers are designed to push the material using an aluminum fan. Aluminium is not designed to handle the coarseness of fiberglass.
• Small hopper capacities. Any hopper smaller than 6 cubic feet will not be able to handle fiberglass very effectively. Fiberglass is shrink wrapped into rectangular bales. These bales are cut in half. Even with half a bale, less than 6 cubic feet means you will have fiberglass overflowing the hopper, making it very difficult.
• Carousel arms. Fiberglass is densely packed. It takes an aggressive machine to peel apart the strands of fiberglass bundles. Small arms that simply rotate are not capable off handling this density.

Why purchase a machine that is designed to handle only one product?

Even during a great economy, we have had times where we were asked specifically to install cellulose. Other times, we were asked to install fiberglass. While you may have a preference and mostly blow one kind off material, it is always wise to own equipment that is able to handle the big three products – cellulose, fiberglass and rockwool.