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Bird Family Insulation, Atlanta, Georgia: A Top-notch Insulation Company

Bird Family Insulation, Atlanta, Georgia: A Top-notch Insulation Company

Bird Family Insulation has been serving Atlanta, Georgia and the surrounding area for more than two decades. They are passionate about making their customers’ homes comfortable and safe.

They are not just a blow-n-go installer. The reason they do a lot of extractions is because they want to make sure each home is sealed up properly. Every home they insulate is given the same care as if it is their own. They are truly an insulation company that understands home performance.

Bob and his two sons, Beau and Chris, reminded us so much of my growing up in the industry. I worked with my dad and my two brothers from 1977. We enjoyed ourselves on site as these family members worked well with each other and had fun; even when the job is not pleasant.

Bob, you and your family have built a wonderful insulation company and we are blessed to be associated with you all! We pray that you have great success and continue to develop your company for generations to come.

Bird Family Insulation, Atlanta, Georgia: A Top-notch Insulation Company
Meeting with Beau (L) and Chris (R) and talking about vacuum bags.
Bird Family Insulation, Atlanta, Georgia: A Top-notch Insulation Company
Bird Family Insulation Trailer. Sporting Canada geese!
Bird Family Insulation, Atlanta, Georgia: A Top-notch Insulation Company
CoolVac23s ready for work!
Bird Family Insulation, Atlanta, Georgia: A Top-notch Insulation Company
Rolling out the vacuum hose for an insulation removal job in downtown Atlanta
Bird Family Insulation, Atlanta, Georgia: A Top-notch Insulation Company
Replacing a standard faceplate with a Cover Saver.
Flying a drone in an attic to film Chris extracting fiberglass.
Flying a drone in an attic to film Chris extracting fiberglass.
Bird Family Insulation, Atlanta, Georgia: A Top-notch Insulation Company
Showing Bob Bird the new CoolVac20hp Electric Vacuum
What Size Hose Should You Be Using When Vacuuming Out An Attic?

What Size Hose Should You Be Using When Vacuuming Out An Attic?

Vacuum hose size has a lot to do with the efficiency of your vacuum. Common sense tells us that using the largest diameter of hose as possible is the most efficient. Sometimes, that is not the case.

What is the Best Hose Size to Use?

Most insulation extractors use 6” hose to remove loose-fill material. In many cases, that is the right choice. Use as much 6” as possible. This allows for the machine to take advantage of the maximum Cubic Feet per Minute (CFM). You don’t want to choke the performance of your machine.

What Do We Recommend when 6” is Hard to Manage?

Sometimes, you may find extracting insulation to be most efficient with 4” hose. If you are in an attic that is tight and has a lot of mechanicals, you should consider reducing down to the 4” hose, only the last 25 or 50. Trying to push and manipulate a 6” hose in tight areas will slow down your ability to vacuum. It is important to keep your hose in the material as much as possible. In our testing of performance, we found that running 100 feet of 6” and then reducing to 25 feet of 4” did not slow the vacuuming efficiency by much.

Summary

Use the largest diameter as possible: 1) That allows you to use as much CFM as the machine is designed to provide; 2) That allows you the most flexibility to move quickly and easily in the attic.

Remove R-30 Fiberglass Batts with a Vacuum: Cool Machines Offers 4 Ways!

Remove R-30 Fiberglass Batts with a Vacuum: Cool Machines Offers 4 Ways!

Cool Machines is leading the insulation vacuum market with many options to remove the largest of fiberglass batts. You may have stumbled across a video of people vacuuming batts in attics. You will notice that they are breaking down the batts, or even vacuuming up small batts used in WALL systems, not attics.

With a Cool Machine vacuum, you have the capability to vacuum the most difficult of items: fiberglass and rock wool batts. With a Cool Machine, you can remove what you actually find in ATTICS. There are various ways you can do this.

daisy chain coolvac23 insulation vacuums

Combine TWO CoolVac23s to vacuum R-30 24″ fiberglass batts

When you combine two vacuums together, you are able to increase the water column rate and use 8″ hose. This daisy-chain method doesn’t quite double the suction power, but it does give a substantial amount of suction to handle common R-30 fiberglass 24″ wide batts in the attic.

Here are some pros for this method:

  • You have two machines. Having a back-up vacuum is helpful.
  • These vacuums are direct-drive impellers.
CoolVac 37

CoolVac37

In 2020, Cool Machines introduced the CoolVac37. With a Briggs/Stratton 37hp motor, this provides enough power to create enough suction and CFM to vacuum any fiberglass or mineral wool batt you find. This machine is a single unit and can be moved around the property to get close to your project.

Here are some pros for this machine:

  • With a single machine, your set-up is faster.
  • The commercial Briggs/Stratton engine has a 3 year warranty.
  • High temp belts drive the impeller.
diesel-insulation-vacuum-coolvac25-cool-machines-6

CoolVac25 Diesel

Following the introduction of the CoolVac37, this powerful vacuum has the torque to create greater suction and CFM. At 11,200 pounds, this vacuum is designed to be truck or trailer-mounted.

Here are some pros for this machine:

  • With a single machine, your set-up is faster.
  • The Kubota Diesel is a workhorse and has an internal, water-cooled system.
  • High temp belts drive the impeller.
EV-10HP

CoolVac20 Electric

The CoolVac20 Electric is adaptable to the ever-changing energy changes. You can use shore power to run this vacuum. It can also be run from a generator as small as 16kw running (single phase) or 22kw (three phase). Because it is electric, this vacuum is direct-drive and provides torque comparable to the Gas and Diesel engines.

Here are some pros for this machine:

  • With a single machine, your set-up is faster.
  • Electric: give you powering options.
  • Direct-drive impeller.
Insulation Removal Vacuum: CFM & Water Column — Two Important Measurements

Insulation Removal Vacuum: CFM & Water Column — Two Important Measurements

Vacuum performance is figured by two measurements: Cubic Feet per minute (CFM) and water column rate. We measure the CFM to determine the quantity of air the vacuum is able to move. When you add fiber to the hose, the CFM will reduce by up to 50-60%.
 
So, we determine what overcomes that reduced rate. The water column measurement tells us the vacuum’s maximum pulling strength. Water column gets its name from a water-filled device originally used to measure water column. A measuring tube with inch gradients filled with water, connected to the vacuum would measure the rate. The greater the suction, the more inches the water would climb in the tube. This provides, in inches, the maximum pulling strength of the vacuum. Today, digital devices measure the water column rate. The higher the number in inches, the greater the suction.
 
VACUUMCFMWATER COLUMN

2,500

19"

3,200

25"

2,500

19"

3,200

25"

3,600

27"

3,800

48"

6,400

47"

6,400

47"
Insulation Removal Vacuum Safety: Equipment & Features

Insulation Removal Vacuum Safety: Equipment & Features

As Cool Machines innovates stronger, more powerful machines, they are deploying safety features that should be on every vacuum. Vacuums, of any size, have at least a 4″ barrel which sends objects through hoses at 100s of miles per hour. For example, we recently measured the velocity of an object coming out of a CoolVac23. It reached 215 miles per hour. An object coming through the CoolVac37 has a staggering speed of over 250 miles per hour… a football field’s length in one second!

If you have not seen this video, it is a MUST watch and you need to make sure everyone on your crew watches it. Cool Machines has accessories that are designed to lower the risk, but there is never a 100% safe situation.

warning-labelIMG_6697

Warning Labels: The Cool Machine CoolVacs have safety warning labels to inform and remind the user of potential dangers. The featured image at the top of this page is located on the output of every vacuum. The output of these vacuums are like sawed off shotguns and can fire debris with a very wide field. This label reminds the user NOT to stand directly behind the output. Also, when refilling the fuel tanks, it is critical that your vacuum is shut down and de-energized from static build up. A label is placed on the fuel tank.

cool machines vacuum saver vacuum defender

Vacuum Saver: The vacuum saver is the first line of defense when it comes to safety when using a vacuum. This accessory should always be purchased and used with a vacuum. It separates debris (found in every attic) from the insulation being removed. This provides a good amount of safety when attached to your vacuum. It reduces the amount of debris reaching the vacuum.

output safety deflector for insulation vacuum

Output Safety Deflector: The output safety deflector is the last line of defense. The vacuum saver does not stop everything. This deflector will stop the velocity of any object that bypasses the vacuum saver and hits the fan.

limit switch prevents accidents from insulation vacuums

Limiter Switches: The vacuums have switches on the input and output of the vacuums. You cannot start the vacuum until these switches have been pushed closed by the hose and/or output safety deflector. The powerful suction can pull your hands into the input.

input flap to prevent injuries from insulation vacuum suction

Input Flap: Because of the strong suction, and to minimize the risk of pulling your hand into the vacuum, an input flap covers the input. This is a spring-loaded flap that remains closed when there is no hose attached.

masserati

Layout of your Vacuum: After setting up your vacuum, make sure that you carefully inspect where the output of your vacuum is pointed. We were on a job site where a vacuum was pointed at a Masserati. They did not have an output safety deflector on that vacuum. It would have been a catastrophe! The picture below shows a good setup with the operator standing in front of the machine and the bags at an angle.

proper insulation vacuum setup
Insulation Vacuums: Measuring the True Performance

Insulation Vacuums: Measuring the True Performance

The insulation machine industry has standards for measuring the performance of blowing machines. Unfortunately, the industry has lacked in providing customers with information related to the real performance of insulation removal vacuums.

This video explains the two factors you should know before you buy a machine. Cool Machines, in Van Wert, Ohio tests all of their machines and provides accurate measurements. Why not? They excel in the industry with these numbers. See our line-up of top-performing insulation vacuums here: https://insulationmachines.net/insulation-removal-vacuums/

Claim: You can vacuum fiberglass batts with an insulation removal vacuum

Fiberglass batt and vaccum

A shapshot of a video showing that a fiberglass batt must be shredded/torn to pieces in order to vacuum.

A common question that comes our way is, “Can your insulation vacuum remove fiberglass batts?” Until 2021, this was a spurious claim. In an attempt to persuade people to purchase an insulation vacuum, some made videos showing that their vacuums could suck up insulation batts. Let’s examine the claims made and what it REALLY takes to vacuum up a R-30 24″ wide batt.

First, the video. One video, which is either removed or difficult to find now, showed a person using a 6″ hose, sucking up insulation batt. While it seemed impressive, a close watch of the video showed the remover slicing up the batt into small chunks to remove the fiberglass. The video was brief and did not show the time it takes to remove the batt this way. Certainly, if you slice and dice the batt, small enough, you can remove fiberglass batts with any insulation removal vacuum. The picture above is from another video showing the handful of fiberglass being sent into the vacuum.

Second, in another video clip, a person feeds 3″ thick fiberglass into a 6″ hose. Certainly, that fiberglass will be sucked into a vacuum, no matter the manufacturer. Small chunks of fiberglass are very capable of being vacuumed.

Third, some claim that their vacuum can remove fiberglass batt because they have a 8″ hose. Until now, that claim was absurd. The amount of suction required to vacuum a R-30 – 24″ wide batt is enormous. Keep reading.

Fourth, if you own a vacuum, even our daily worker, the CoolVac23, the amount of time to massage the fiberglass batt down the hose is not worth the time. The time doesn’t make sense. Of course, if you have pieces of fiberglass in the attic, certainly use the vacuum. However, if you are trying to vacuum size-able batts, the time it takes to breakdown and extract that batt is exceedingly long. The best, and fastest, practice is to just grab the batts, roll them up and throw them into large, cheap garbage bags. You will SAVE a considerable amount of time and money. It only takes about 1 1/2 hours to rollup the fiberglass batts (1,000 sq ft attic) and toss them into garbage bags. Tearing the batts apart will take you close to 8 hours to do the same.

Now for an AMAZING UPDATE (Feb 2022).

Where are we at now in the industry? In 2021, Cool Machines introduced two vacuums – CoolVac37 and CoolVac 25 diesel. These vacuums have enormous suction power. The CoolVac 23 and CoolVac 22 have been leading the industry with the highest water column measurements (see this article) at 27 inches. That is still not enough power to pull a fiberglass batt through a 8″ hose. The CoolVac 37 and CoolVac 25 Diesel are measuring at 35 inches and have 5,000 CFMs. This suction is so strong that placing a R30 fiberglass batt near the end of the hose, it will take it out of your hand and instantly take it down the hose. When we combine TWO CoolVac23s in daisy chain, we are measuring a staggering 48″ water column rate. Cool Machines now offers a 8″ opening on these vacuums to accommodate for the removal of fiberglass batts. Here is a video that explains:

On-site with Attic Queen in St. Petersburg, Florida. She demoed our CoolVac 37 and CoolVac 23. Here are her thoughts on these vacuums.
We visited NYS Foam in New York. They purchased the CoolVac25 Diesel. This video shows them vacuuming fiberglass AND mineral wool (Rockwool) batts.

Maintaining Your Insulation Removal Vacuum Machine

Small Engine Insulation Vacuum TuneupInsulation Removal Vacuums go through abuse. The obvious problems are caused by the foreign objects that are sucked through the hose (nails, pieces of junk, even brick pieces) from the attic.

The SILENT killer of a vacuum is failure to maintain the vacuum. Dust gathers around the engine, unlike most applications. While extracting the insulating materials, they create enormous clouds of dust. Here are some tips and videos on maintaining and tuning up your insulation removal vacuum machine.More

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