Rockwool Floor Butts thermal insulation description

The floors in modern apartments need both insulation and sound insulation. Rockwool Floor Butts basalt floor slabs are a material with equally high sound and thermal insulation properties. The company produces mineral slabs suitable for soundproofing floating floors, under screeds, for insulating wooden floors on logs.

Description of Rockwool Floor Butts insulation

The material is obtained by melting rocks - basalt and gabbra. Recycled materials are used, which reduces the cost of the product and contributes to the preservation of the environment. In a special oven, thin fibers 1.5 cm long are obtained. A web is formed from them, and then a material of a certain density is obtained under pressure and after heat treatment and cut to length.

No glue is used to connect the fibers, therefore Rockwool basalt wool is very durable.

The heat and sound insulation qualities of the slab are determined by the structure. Thin stone fibers are located horizontally, vertically, at different angles to each other. They form many tiny air pockets. An insulating plate from Rockwool, 100 millimeters wide, lets in the same negligible amount of cold as a 196 cm thick brick wall or 43 cm timber.

Floor Butts slabs are designed for soundproofing rooms. The 25 mm thick material reduces the level of acoustic noise - loud music, street noise, up to 43 dB. It also absorbs structure-borne noise, especially impact noise - up to 35 dB. In addition, Flor Butts dampens up to 40% vibrations.

Rockwool insulation is the first thermal insulator to receive the EcoMaterialGreen certification. They decorate any premises, including children's rooms.

Specifications

Technical indicators of Rockwool Floor Butts slabs:

• The density of basalt wool reaches 125–150 g / sq. m. With high thermal insulation qualities, the plate is quite rigid, does not deform, does not crack, but at the same time retains its flexibility.
• The thermal conductivity coefficient is 0.037–0.041 W / (m · K).
• When compressed vertically, the dry mineral board can withstand a pressure of 33 kPa. If a higher resistance is required - up to 50 kPa, choose such a type of insulation as Flor Butts I.
• Basalt wool does not absorb water, water absorption does not exceed 1.5%. Even when the Rockwool slab gets wet, it does not change its properties.
• Water vapor permeability is 0.30 mg / (m * h * Pa). Insulation is placed under a wooden floor, wall-mounted varieties are used for thermal insulation of houses and beams.
• The material is fireproof: it does not burn and does not support combustion.

The cost of the boards depends on the type, sheet thickness and density.

Advantages and disadvantages

All types of slabs - Rockwool Cavity Butts, Flo Butts, Light Basst Scandic, have all the advantages of basalt insulation and all the advantages of Rockwool products:

• Although the material is positioned as acoustic, its sound insulation properties are in no way inferior to thermal insulation. 25 mm slabs replace 50 cm bricks.
• Floor Butts slabs are stiff but flexible and slightly springy. During installation, the material compensates for the unevenness of the base floor and does not deform under stress.
• Flor Butts does not shrink.
• The weight of the slab is small, installation is very simple and takes a few hours.
• Basalt wool is not to the "taste" of rodents, mold, fungi.
• The Rockwool company guarantees that the floors insulated with mineral wool slabs will last at least 50 years.

This material has limitations:

• When the load exceeds 33 kPa, the structure of the basalt wool changes. It can withstand a short-term load of up to 17 kPa, but under pressure it flattens and loses its thermal insulation properties.
• Insulation needs to be waterproofed. Although the slab itself does not get wet, retaining moisture inside will not lead to anything good.

The material is used to insulate only floors and ceilings. For insulation of walls, roofs, building structures, Rockwool produces other models.

The use of insulation

Mineral wool boards are used in the following areas:

• when constructing floors on soils in private buildings;
• under a wet or dry screed for thermal insulation when arranging floors indoors, on balconies or loggias;
• when insulating wooden floors - the plates are vapor-permeable and prevent the appearance of condensation;
• under the heating system "warm floor";
• for heat and sound insulation of intermediate floors of any type.

The material is used for thermal insulation of floating floors. Such a solution is rare, but leads to the creation of resonance. Together with slabs of plywood or OSB mineral wool, instead of suppressing sounds of a certain frequency, it transmits them. Usually these are structural noises - slamming doors, elevator shaft noise.

Range of sizes of insulation

The dimensions of the slab are standard: length - 1000 mm, width - 600 mm. The minimum sheet thickness is 25 mm. The next value is 30 mm, then the parameter is increased in 10 mm increments to 200 mm.

The thicker the layer of material, the better its thermal insulation properties. Pressure resistance remains the same - no more than 33 kPa.

Rockwool Floor Butts Insulation Assortment

They produce 2 types of material: Floor Butts with a basic density of 125 kg / cubic meter and the "I" series with a density of 150 kg / cubic meter. m. The latter is taken for thermal insulation of loaded areas, where the assumed constant pressure can reach up to 50 kPa.

Installation of slabs

The laying technology depends on the type of floor: dry screed, reinforced screed, floating floor, wooden on logs.

The most popular option in apartments is a floating floor. It practically eliminates deformation at any temperature and humidity fluctuations.

Installation of the structure is performed as follows:

1. The concrete base is cleaned, if necessary, impregnated with antifungal and hydrophobic compounds. Lay with sheet soundproof material.
2. Strips are cut from the slabs, slightly wider than the height of the floor. They are laid around the perimeter of the room.
3. Installation of inserts and slabs is carried out simultaneously: first, an insert is placed on the wall, and then pressed with a mineral wool slab.
4. Lay a screed made of plywood or OSB. The sheets are laid in 2 layers so that the seams of the lower and upper layers do not coincide. Plywood is laid end-to-end, fastened together with masking tape. A gap is left between the substrate and the wall.
5. The inserts along the wall are trimmed to the height of the screeds. After that, the finishing coating is mounted.

If a cement screed is made, the technology changes. To protect the slabs from moisture, they are covered with plastic wrap. Then the structure is poured with cement, with a layer of at least 30 mm, and reinforced.

It is just as easy to insulate a wooden floor on logs.

1. The base floor is cleaned of dust, dirt, remnants of the old finish. To make the surface of the base more uniform, do not prime. You need to wait until the soil is dry.
2. Install wooden logs. The distance between them is equal to the width of the sheet. Plates should fit tightly between the bars.
3. The floor and logs are covered with plastic wrap and secured with construction brackets. Then the Flor Butts slabs are laid.
4. It is recommended to cover the thermal insulation with plastic wrap, or better with a Rockwool vapor barrier.
5. At the last stage, a final floor is laid.

To insulate the attic floor, you can use Light Butts Scandic or Light Butts. They are less dense, withstand less stress, but in a non-residential attic, high pressure resistance is not needed. The cost of lightweight boards is lower, and the level of heat preservation is just as high.