Due to the growth of the market and the success of the paint industry, more and more methods of use have emerged. But what exactly does thermal insulation mean in thermal insulation coatings? If you put white paint on a roof and compare it to a normal black roof, can you say that white paint has insulating properties? No, this only shows that the paint has a reflective function, and because of this function, the paint can reduce the indoor temperature to a certain extent. But from another point of view, the paint has the ability to insulate, but the fact is that the heat is reflected by the paint before it penetrates into the room. Presumably this is why the same effect can be achieved with a very low cost white paint. This product shall be defined as a reflective roof coating.
Therefore, you should be careful when choosing a thermal insulation coating. If only to reduce solar heat on the roof, reflective roof coatings are sufficient (but before they get dirty). By applying the paint to the inside of the roof to reduce solar reflectance (dazzling white), all you need is a thick coat of white paint. But in reality, all you have is a reflective roof coating, not an insulating coating. If it's for a roof, a reflective roof coating might be just what you need. Except at relatively low ambient temperatures, it may not be economical to use true insulation.
Reflective Roof Coatings vs True Insulating Coatings
Our definition above is: A true thermal insulating coating (TIC) is a coating that generates a temperature difference (both sides of its surface) under any circumstances. In particular, the TIC contains encapsulated particles that trap air, making the thermal insulation coating insulating and low-emissive, that is, the coating is mechanically composed of a viscous, light wet coating of (less than 0.75 kg per liter). Conversely, when reflective roof coatings conventionally contain resins and solid particles such as titanium dioxide, calcium carbonate and other filler materials (which have natural reflectivity), the reflective roof coating weighs about 1-1.4 kg/liter. When the paint is applied at high temperatures, it is likely that its thermal insulation performance will be greatly reduced, and bubbles will be generated and even peeled off. When those so-called competitors do not understand these limitations, then the reputation of true insulation coatings may suffer as a result.
Legitimate Competitor's Proposal
The success of these insulating coatings is largely due to their science. However, problems arise when someone exaggerates the results, or comically claims they offer an R-value of 24 at a thickness of 0.5mm. Many people fall for the bragging and ignore the facts, but the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) considers such boasting technically illegal. So when some products are touted unbelievably, we remind you to think calmly.
Before choosing an insulating coating, you'd better ask yourself the following questions:
1. How did you obtain the information, verification, rumors, fancy charts, exaggerated facts, or others? When you need to verify these materials, you can invite verification units to verify. Be sure that these materials are not copies of copies, and that the information has been verified by engineers, not the manufacturers themselves. (Believe it or not, this works!) If you find a vendor offering information that refers to space shuttles, then you need to seriously consider the scope of use for these coatings. Most of these companies claim that they have adopted the technology used in the space shuttle, but in fact, the only thing in common is that they are ceramic. The thermal insulation tiles used on the space shuttle are ceramic composites, but the composition and function of ceramic insulating coatings are completely different.
2. If some manufacturers advertise R value, please note that there is no such reference index for heat insulation coatings! (According to FTC regulations, R value should be determined by ASTM (518 or C177) test). Technically, insulation coatings do not have an R-value. Some manufacturers may declare the RvE equivalent of the R value. We consider these to be acceptable as long as there are data and tests to support these claims.
3. What is the wet weight of the paint? If it is higher than 0.75 kg/litre, the coating is a reflective roof coating. If these types of coatings are applied to heat pipes or places where the temperature is higher than 65°C, it will cause failure. In fact, reflective roof coatings can act as heat conductors in places with high temperatures, such as on steam pipes.
4. Can the manufacturer provide detailed information or test certificates to support their technical data? Make sure that the information provided by the manufacturer is registered information. If not registered, the product you are considering may be a private label. At the same time, you should also consider this situation, that is, although the product you are considering has passed a series of tests, there is no relevant information to prove it. At this time, you need to be cautious. In general, many of the standards specified by ASTM give specific values, not just "pass" or "fail". It may be considered passed after reaching a certain value, but this is determined by the approval authority, not specification driven.
5. Has the manufacturer's quality assurance obtained UL certification or ISO9000:2001 certification? If not, other than the fact that they don't make these products, they don't have a basic quality control system in place. Quality assurance procedures are costly and a major stressor for industrial companies. The importance of quality control cannot be overemphasized, given that thermal insulation coatings sometimes deteriorate.
6. Ask about the mechanics of the paint and verify that the salesman can adequately list the advantages of the paint they are selling. If the material you get is far-fetched or unbelievable, it's probably because... Or, if the salesman states that what makes their product unique is that they're ceramic, they simply don't understand the physics behind the product. The market is flooded with a large number of ceramic-type thermal insulation coatings. So, again, I remind users to be careful.
7. Ask about the production site of the paint. This is important because many insulating and reflective roof coating products are sold through many hands, and they may be private label free brand (or by the time you buy, the product may have been through many hands with a significant added value. high). So if you find the producer, you might get real information. Some marketers use plagiarized materials to flaunt their own brands. Typically, marketers exaggerate the facts and inflate sales to make their products believable. It may not have been their fault when the snowball started rolling, they just pushed the snowball one step further.
