Rating of the best heaters for balconies and loggias in 2020

Do you want to equip a study or a cozy corner in your apartment, but there is not enough space? Or maybe you just want to increase the useful area of ​​the apartment? To solve all these problems, you can use a balcony or loggia. It is only necessary to convert this room into a living space. And so that the corner can be used in winter, you need to insulate the walls with the help of high-quality thermal insulation.

Modern stores offer a huge selection of heaters that solve this problem. The rating of the best heaters for the balcony and loggia, which we present to you, will help to understand all the diversity.

How to choose the right insulation for balconies and loggias

Usually these premises are used as a warehouse for unnecessary things. In order to turn them into habitable living space, a good renovation is needed. To begin with, a balcony or loggia is glazed with high-quality windows with an energy saving function. After that, it is the turn of the balcony insulation.

All construction stores have in their assortment a large selection of materials suitable for wall, floor and ceiling insulation. They all have a different structure, composition and quality. But they solve the same problem - insulation.

Another parameter by which materials for insulation differ is the price. There are expensive materials on sale that are not available to most buyers, there are also more budget options. In addition to insulation, you will need to purchase other materials that will be needed when repairing a balcony. This includes battens for lathing, fasteners, adhesives, and foam for installation.

How to choose insulation

Before you go shopping for insulation, you need to figure out what to look for, which characteristics are important, and which can be ignored. After all, all the best-selling materials differ not only in price. So you can avoid mistakes when choosing.

Weight

Since the balcony or loggia is actually on the street, all surfaces will have to be insulated. In such conditions, it is important that the weight of the insulation is minimal. Such insulation will not deform building structures.

In damp weather, fillers with a cotton or fibrous structure are able to absorb moisture. As a result, they become heavier.

Insulation thickness

Please note that there is very little space on the balcony or loggia, and during installation, part of the space will be eaten by a structure made of beams. In addition, cladding material will still have to be laid on top of the insulation. Therefore, the thickness should be minimal.

When installing some materials, for example, mineral wool, a special wooden lathing will be required, which takes up additional space.Therefore, it is wiser to choose thermal insulation of small thickness, which can be attached directly to the walls or balcony ceilings on reinforced concrete.

Flammability

We all know that often apartment fires happen due to the fact that someone, having smoked on the balcony, throws an open cigarette butt down, and it ends up on the neighbors' balcony. Therefore, resistance to fire is one of the important qualities of insulation.

Give preference to non-flammable materials. Moreover, now there is a wide selection of heat-resistant heaters in stores.

Ease of use

This parameter is relevant if you are going to make repairs on the balcony yourself. In this case, it is important that the insulation can be easily assembled even without the special skills of the builder.

For example, the widely advertised insulation called polyurethane foam has many benefits. But in order for them to insulate the balcony, a special device for spraying and the efforts of several workers is required. If you arrange insulation with mineral wool, then first you need to make a special crate. But for wall insulation with expanded polystyrene, no special knowledge and skills are needed.

Vapor permeability

In any room, there are always moisture vapors penetrating through concrete or brick walls. When using insulation that traps heat, it is often necessary to use insulation with a film or foil as an additional protection against moisture. This leads to the fact that wet vapors cannot penetrate outside; they settle in the form of condensation on the walls and on the insulation. All this leads to the growth of mold and damage to the walls by fungal colonies.

To avoid this unpleasant phenomenon, it is necessary to use insulation with vapor-permeable properties. Otherwise, it is necessary to leave a small gap between the layers of insulation so that the air can move. In this case, the flow of fresh air will not allow moisture to settle on the insulation.

Insulation of which company is better

There are quite a few popular companies engaged in the production of heaters. However, the following companies have earned the greatest respect from buyers:

• The Danish company Rockwool is rightfully considered one of the best manufacturers of such materials. In production, natural raw materials are used, which are processed at high temperatures. The result is an environmentally friendly and durable insulation. The insulation turns out to be non-combustible, absorbs sounds well, does not deform, is not afraid of moisture.
• The thermal insulation of the French company Isover is environmentally friendly and at the same time affordable. The products of this company are resistant to fire, absorb sound well, retain heat well, have good vapor permeability and are very durable.
• The Ursa company produces excellent thermal insulation that can be used both for home insulation and for summer cottages. All products are manufactured using modern technologies that exclude the use of phenolic compounds. The company offers a wide range of products for insulating various surfaces.
• Knauf is traditionally associated with excellent quality. This applies to all goods produced by the German company, including thermal insulation. Insulation from this company can be used to decorate a wide variety of buildings and surfaces. It is resistant to combustion, does not allow fungus to develop on the surface, is durable and does not contain formaldehyde.

Rating of quality heaters

Let's look at the most popular heaters that can be used to insulate walls, floors and ceilings on balconies and loggias.

Styrofoam

This material is known to everyone, it belongs to the category of inexpensive thermal insulation. It has been used in construction for over four decades. There are many companies that produce foam, so it is not difficult to buy it.

Polyfoam is available in sheets of various thicknesses and sizes.It has good thermal insulation properties and can be used as sound insulation. For polystyrene, moisture, rodents and fungus are not terrible. It can withstand environmental influences well and is very durable.

At the same time, it is dangerous to use polystyrene due to its high flammability and the ability to break down from contact with certain chemicals.

• Cheap.
• Good thermal insulation properties.
• Easy.
• Long lasting.
• Resistant to fungus, does not attract rodents.
• Easy to install.

• Combustible.
• Fragile.
• Afraid of exposure to chemicals.

The price of polystyrene depends on many parameters, the cheapest material costs an average of 28 rubles per sheet.

Izolon

This product is made from polymer raw materials by heating and foaming under high pressure. The result is durable plastic capsules with air inside. Izolon, otherwise known as polyethylene foam, provides good sound absorption and thermal insulation. Outside, the insulating material is covered with a layer of foil, which provides protection from moisture and heat reflection.

Izolon is resistant to chemicals, does not emit substances hazardous to humans. It can be used as a stand-alone insulation or in combination with other materials.

• Durability.
• Resistant to chemicals, weathering.
• Non-flammability.
• Lightweight and slim.
• Elastic and resilient.
• Easy to install.
• Environmental friendliness and safety.

• Dear.
• It is necessary to take care of the outer layer.
• The isolon layer can only be covered with a protective film or painted.

The average price depends on the thickness and starts at 101 r per square meter.

Extruded polystyrene foam

The product provides excellent quality thermal insulation. The trade name of this material is penoplex. It is produced by mixing conventional foam granules with a blowing agent. This makes the penoplex very durable and allows it to withstand high mechanical stress.

• High thermal insulation qualities.
• The ability to use for thermal insulation of foundations, roofs or plinths without waterproofing.
• Virtually does not burn.
• Use at high and low temperatures.
• Ease of installation.
• Fungus resistance and environmental friendliness.

• The material is poorly breathable.
• Dear.
• You need to make a frame or use special glue.
• Poor UV resistance.

The average price is 1,332 rubles per package.

Comparative video of this insulation with the following material - Stone wool:

Stone wool

Thermal insulation called "stone wool" is made from basalt using binders. After processing, a fibrous material is obtained from which slabs or rolls of various thicknesses and sizes are made. Stone or basalt wool can be used to insulate walls made of hollow bricks or wood.

• Provides good thermal insulation.
• Does not absorb water.
• Does not retain moisture in the room.
• Virtually does not burn.
• Does not deform.
• Does not react to chemicals and fungus.

• High price.
• When installing, you must use protection.
• Cannot be used to insulate a foundation or plinth.
• May release phenol.

Average price from 436 rubles per package.

Glass wool

This well-known insulation is made from waste glass production, combining microscopic fibers into mats or plates for thermal insulation. This insulation is versatile; it can be used to insulate walls from the inside and outside of a building, roof and other things.

• Good thermal insulation properties. A five-centimeter layer of glass wool conducts heat in the same way as a meter layer of hollow brick masonry.
• Does not absorb water.
• Lightweight and compressible.
• Does not emit harmful substances.
• Does not burn.
• Does not attract rodents, insects and is not susceptible to fungal infection.
• Cheap.

• Fibers break frequently.
• You need to isolate well.
• Destroyed by sunlight.
• Short service life.

Average price from 800 rubles per roll.

Expanded clay

This bulk material is used for floor insulation. It is an oval granule made from clay. As a result of processing, a light porous fraction is obtained that perfectly fulfills its main task - to retain heat.

• Safety for humans.
• It tolerates low temperatures well.
• Will not rot, fungus or chemicals.
• Easy to install.
• Cheap.

• Fragile
• A large layer of expanded clay is required for high-quality thermal insulation.

The average price is 200 rubles per cubic meter.

Slag

One of the varieties of mineral wool is slag wool, which is obtained from blast furnace slag by processing into microfibers. Slagovata were first used in Soviet times. Now it is rarely used, since more modern materials have appeared.

• Good thermal insulation, but inferior in quality to stone wool and glass wool.
• Good protection against extraneous noise.
• Budgetary.
• Easy to mount even alone and without special skills.
• Under suitable conditions, the service life of the slag wool is 50 years.

• Does not tolerate sudden temperature changes.
• It absorbs water, which is why it loses its thermal insulation properties.
• Cannot be used for thermal insulation of wooden structures, facades and rooms with high humidity.
• The presence of harmful substances in the composition.
• The need to use protection during installation.

The average price is 400 rubles per package.

Penofol

This insulation is polyethylene foam, additionally protected by foil. The action of this material is based on the principle of heat reflection and is similar to the action of an ordinary thermos. The material is particularly thin, its thickness does not exceed 10 mm. On both sides, the polyethylene base is covered with the thinnest layer of aluminum foil.

• Small thickness. At the same time, penofol does not lose its thermal insulation qualities.
• Easy.
• Easy to mount even alone without special tools and knowledge.
• Harmless to humans.
• Does not burn.
• No vapor barrier required.
• Low price.

• Poor stiffness, which limits finishing options.
• You need to use special glue or fasteners.

Average price from 1400 rubles per pack.

As you can see, the choice of thermal insulation materials is quite large. Therefore, it is not difficult to choose a product that is suitable for all parameters. In addition, modern materials are quite simple to use and you can insulate a balcony with them even without special skills.