Is the Dupont Tyvek Thermawrap worth it?

Question

I'm building my first home and with so many upgrade options it gets all a bit tiresome rather than exciting. One major option was the Dupont Tyvek Thermawrap for energy efficiency. I've searched online. A lot of sites talk about it but I havent yet to find any reviews for it or if its even worth it. $3,000 upgrade for that therma whatever is quite a lot but will it be better to get it in the long run?? Please help!!!

Answer 1

Well, the short answer is it depends.

How big is your house?  Do you use the heat and a/c a lot, or do you just leave the windows open as many months of the year as possible?  In other words, you'd want to get an idea of "on an average day, I am trying to make the temperature of ___ cubic feet of air be ___ degrees different than the outside temperature".

Now, what other insulating features do you have?  Single, double, or triple-pane windows?  Weatherstripping around doors?  Those foam inserts behind the faceplates of switches and outlets on exterior walls?  The Tyvek won't do much good if the air has an easier route to the outside.

Lastly, unless you really play it up in the home description, when it comes time to sell the house, I don't know how much it's going to add to the selling price.  Well, maybe I'm wrong - most homes I've toured had a display showing their energy costs over the past 12 months.

Anyway, that's long-winded, but if it were me, I'd do it.  It's often a good idea to accept a one-time cost in order to reduce a recurring cost.  Besides, less energy use in your home doesn't just mean lower bills for you - it also likely will mean (slightly) less pollution for as long as that home exists.

Answer 2

I am a professional sidewall installer and I think that dupont tyvek is not worth the extra money you pay for it.  You can get other housewraps, which are cheaper and work just as good.