British Wool: Local, Sustainable, Quality Insulation
The Dyfi valley, where the Heartwood Saunas workshop is situated, consists of a rugged landscape of woodland, mountains, heathland, peatland and mixed farmland, the latter home to numerous sheep. We like to source our materials as locally as possible, and here in Mid-Wales, sheep farming is an integral part of the landscape and culture. Keen to know more about the materials we use to build our saunas and learn about the benefits of sheep’s wool insulation, we followed the process from sheep to sauna.
The Benefits of Wool - Here are the Key Points…
Exceptional Efficiency: It has far superior insulating properties because of its higher density. Thermal conductivity is the ability for heat to pass from one side of a material through to the other. It is measured in W/mK, where a lower value signifies a better insulator. Sheep wool insulation has a thermal conductivity of between 0.035 – 0.04 W/mK, whereas typical mineral wool has a thermal conductivity of 0.044 W/mK. It also has excellent acoustic insulation properties.
Environmental Benefits: Sheep’s wool is proven to absorb and neutralise harmful substances – the wool is a natural protein made up of a number of different amino acid chains, of which 60% have a reactive side chain. These reactive areas allow the wool to absorb harmful and odorous substances including Nitrogen Dioxide, Sulphur Dioxide and Formaldehydes and neutralise them through a process known as Chemisorption. So using the sheep wool as insulation actually has environmental health benefits for the sauna.
Humidity Regulation: It regulates humidity. It can absorb and release up to 33% of moisture without compromising its insulation ability. The core of the sheep wool fibre is hygroscopic, meaning that it will absorb water vapour – making it perfect in an environment like the sauna where steam is produced.
Flame Resistance: Sheep’s wool has a naturally high nitrogen content making it one of the only fibers that is flame resistant and self-extinguishing. As a result of the wool’s high nitrogen content, if it were to catch alight, it would simply smoulder and singe away instead of bursting into flames.
Workability: Sheep’s wool is really nice to work with. No protective clothing or equipment is required to handle or install it - it does not irritate the skin or lungs when handled, unlike rockwool or glasswool.
Sustainability: As well as having superior insulating qualities which mean our saunas are efficient, sheeps wool is a more energy-efficient choice in terms of manufacturing too. Since sheep naturally produce wool, it requires just 15% of the energy used to manufacture synthetic equivalents - the energy used is simply from washing the wool. It’s also 100% recyclable and biodegradable.
By using British sheep’s wool insulation, we support local farming communities, and we can be sure of the quality of the wool we use to insulate our saunas.
