Why Insulate Your Barn Floor?

It is unquestionable that wall and roof insulation saves energy. It is certainly an effective way to reduce costs of production, and keep money in farmer’s pockets. Although contractors focus on wall and roof insulation, in many cases the floor is left completely uninsulated. Why do people continue to ignore the proven benefits of floor insulation?

This oversight seems to be caused by the belief that floor insulation does not play an important role in building heat loses. This belief stems from a common misconception that heat rises. Heat does not rise; hot air rises because of relative densities. Heat energy generally moves from hotter to colder; or more simply, heat follows cold. With a well-insulated roof and walls, the floor becomes the coldest surface inside of the barn. Therefore, the heat will travel downwards through the path of the least resistance. Floor insulation then becomes a barrier to the easiest way out of the barn. So instead of heating the ground below the barn floor, more of the heat remains in the barn to create a better atmosphere and reduce costs.

There are several options for floor insulation that can be used. Up to now, the most common materials used for floor insulation are: bubble wrap foil, EPS boards, and polyurethane panels. Although most research has proven that bubble wrap is completely ineffective as insulation (approximately R-1) yet many contractors still use this material to give the impression that they are using insulation. Polyurethane foam panels, more than other materials, meet all of the requirements for insulation used under concrete in floors. These panels protect against water, capillary action, and diffusion, are strong enough to support heavy equipment working on the floor, and have the highest heat resistance (R-value).

Direct energy savings resulting from insulated floors are not the only factor affecting broiler production profitability. The advantages of having an insulated floor can be divided into three main parts: lower mortality, lower maintenance and lower energy costs. Each of these parts is very important and can have a direct influence on profitability. Warmer, insulated floors have influence on:

Reduction of mortality

• Warmer floors give a better start to chicks when they enter the barn, which decreases mortalities and gives higher returns
• Drier floors reduce microbial loading in the litter
• Drier floors reduce the moisture content in the litter, thus reducing ammonia levels in the barn. This provides a better work environment and less respiratory problems for the chickens

Reduction of maintenance costs

• Less bedding required
• Reduced cleaning time between flocks
• Potential reduction of ventilation maintenance costs

Reduction of energy costs

• Less energy losses through the floor
• Reduced electricity costs in winter resulting from less moisture in the litter and better air quality

The following is a sample two-story broiler barn with 10,000 sq ft of floor space per story with an insulated floor, and compare it to the same barn with an un-insulated floor. Based on the following:

• 2 stories with 10,000 sq ft of floor space per level
• Bird density is 2.1 kg per sq ft
• 5.8 flocks per year (9 week cycle)

Our sample barn produces 42,000 kg of bird weight per flock. The costs for heat, electricity, and bedding in Ontario range from 3¢ to 12¢ per kg of live weight. This can vary greatly depending on the age of the barn, the age of the insulation, and the management practices of the producer.

Research has found that producers have noticed a 3 to 5¢ difference between barns with insulated floors and barns without floor insulation. For this example, a 4¢ difference between barns was assumed.

Floor insulation can cost as low as 45¢ per square foot. In the above example, this would mean a cost of $4,500 to insulate the floor. This gives a pay back time of 24 weeks, or less than three flocks. With a one-story barn with double the ground-floor space, payback would be similar. Although the cost of insulation is higher, there is more floor space to heat and thus there is more need for floor insulation.

To all of the above we need to add that broilers grown in comfortable conditions gain weight faster and are healthier. This can have a big influence on reducing condemnations, noting that this number may be as high as 5 to 10 per cent of shipped meat.

As shown, floor insulation in broiler barns can have a very strong affect on production costs. In the span of one year saving from floor insulation are very significant. In conclusion, floor insulation saves money and time, provides healthier birds, better returns, and is inexpensive with a quick payback. So, the question again, is why do people continue to ignore the proven benefits of floor insulation?

Learn More about INSTA-PANELS^®

• What are INSTA-PANELS^®
• How do they Work?
• Benefits
• Residential Uses
• Commercial Uses
• Agricultural Uses
• FAQs

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