Specially designed to go on top of existing attic insulation on the attic floor
Radiant barrier blocks hot summer heat by reflecting heat back out of your attic. But did you know that AtticFoil also helps keep the heat IN for climates that have long cold seasons? It’s true! The foil prevents radiant heat loss by blocking 97% of the heat from escaping through the foil.
In cold climates, this means a house or room is easier to keep warm when a radiant barrier is installed properly. However, with colder climates also comes reservations about moisture getting trapped in the attic. To alleviate concern with using a radiant barrier in the attic of a home in a cold climate, we specially designed our SuperPerf™ foil. *Live in a hot/mixed climate (southern half of the USA)? See below for more info.*
SuperPerf™ radiant barrier foil is punched to create perforations, versus our traditionally perforated foil that’s perforated with pin-holes. These larger holes allow for moisture to have a much easier path to escape past the foil layer. In cold climates, the preferred installation method is laying radiant barrier foil over the insulation on the attic floor to keep heat in during the cold months and to help block heat in hotter months.
This type of installation is easier than the conventional staple-up method, but it also has some precautions. The most important tip when installing a radiant barrier over your insulation in the attic is to make sure you don’t block any areas that are bringing air/moisture from inside the home into the attic, or areas that are producing a lot of heat. The two main examples of this are bathroom vents and can (or recessed) lights. In the event that a bathroom vent or can light was mistakenly covered with a regular perforated foil, the moisture produced in these areas may not easily pass through a tiny pin hole. However, with SuperPerf™ foil, most all of your moisture concerns are cast aside because this foil is very breathable!
Installation and Use of the SuperPerf™ Radiant Barrier
As if the peace-of-mind wasn’t enough, you also need no special tools or processes to install this foil! The product goes over your existing attic insulation, just as shown on our Over Insulation Method page.
The foil can easily be trimmed to fit the space you have and then simply lay it out over your insulation, making sure to avoid bathroom fans and can lights as usual. Pieces should overlap a couple of inches at most and don’t worry if you can’t reach a few areas. You can either use a long pole with a nail taped to the end, or you can skip an area if it’s too hard to reach.
Live in a HOT/mixed climate (hot summers and cold winters)? If you have NO ductwork in your attic and your attic floor is free and clear of HVAC components and miscellaneous storage boxes, then you can use the SuperPerf™ for an over-insulation method too! For homes like this, using radiant barrier foil on top of the insulation gives you the best year round benefit by both reflecting heat in the summer and keeping heat inside the home in the winter. If your attic does have ductwork or storage and you’re looking for year round benefits, you should consider the Hybrid Method installation.
Is SuperPerf™ Just for Cold Climates?
If you live in a WARM CLIMATE but your attic doesn't have ductwork (or your ducts are insulated and buried in insulation or have radiant barrier on them) or storage, you can use the over-the-insulation installation method for year-round results.
You always get some moisture (vapor) coming out of the house into the attic. Newer homes have less of an issue with this so you can use the Original AtticFoil™ over your insulation. However, if your home is older, it's more likely to be leaky and so we'd recommend you use SuperPerf™ over your insulation, regardless of the climate you live in.
Remember to avoid covering lights, fans, vents, etc from inside the home when you go over your insulation. We have the full guidance for this install method on the website here. So as a rule of thumb, if you're laying foil insulation on the attic floor over existing insulation, always choose SuperPerf™ to ensure the best breathability of the insulation. If you're planning to staple foil up to your rafters or trusses, then the Original AtticFoil® is the better option.
Can I Staple Up SuperPerf™?
If I staple SuperPerf™ up to my rafters, how much of the benefit will I be losing compared to the original AtticFoil® that’s micro-perforated?
The first and only reason you would staple up the SuperPerf™ is if you had some extra and didn’t want it to go to waste. If you plan to staple foil up, just go with the Original AtticFoil®.
As far as the difference in effectiveness of the SuperPerf™and the Original AtticFoil®, you will not be able to tell the difference. In a typical 1,000 sq ft roll (of either product) there’s about 600,000 holes. In the SuperPerf™, those holes are about 1.2 millimeters each. If you took all those holes and multiply times 600,000, you get a total surface area of about 8 square feet (that's a two-foot by four-foot section).
So if you installed 1,000 sq ft of AtticFoil® and 1,000 sq ft of SuperPerf™, the difference is equivalent to installing 8 square feet less of the SuperPerf™ — which won’t even be measurable.
So yes, you can staple up the SuperPerf™ — it's basically just the same, no worries.
Remember, when compared to the Original AtticFoil®, the SuperPerf™ is not quite as strong or as durable because it has larger perforations (holes), but if you've got some extra and want to put it to work, by all means go ahead and use it.
If you’d like to see some examples of SuperPerf™ installations, check out our customer DIY Project Gallery.
