Is the insulation strong enough? Will it take the weight of my furniture, or even my car? What about my balcony, will I be able to walk on it?
If you’ve asked yourself any or all of these questions, today’s blog is here to explain how we go about identifying the maximum loads our insulation can withstand and simplify what is regarded as a technically challenging topic.
Before we get started, we thought it might be helpful to define a few keywords that you’re likely to hear along the way:
- Relative deformation – a material’s reduction in thickness from its original state
- Strain – a force that creates relative change in a material’s shape
- Yield – the point in which a material fails / gives way
- Compressive strength – the point at which the load causes the insulation to yield, before it reaches 10% relative deformation
- Compressive stress – when the compressive strength is not reached, the point at which the load stress causes a 10% relative deformation of the insulation
When identifying the compressive capabilities of insulation material, it undergoes two tests:
- Short term testing (Compressive Behaviour BS EN 826:2013), and;