Expired Equine Abuse

[BeakerMuppet]

Aka, Beating a dead horse:

I've been looking for several hours for an answer to this question, and while I haven't gone through ALL the threads, the dozens that I have surveyed were bereft of answers.

Is insultex really a radiant barrier? My understanding of it is that the 'active ingredient' in insultex is the polyethylene foam layer. Foam is not a radiant barrier. In my searching, I have found no hint of a mylar or foil membrane, that would actually function as a radiant barrier by reflecting infrared heat back to its source.

The reason I'm looking for an answer is that I'm wondering if an underquilt (or top quilt, or any insulative item for that matter) with a layer of reflective material would be more efficient, perhaps to the point of eliminating one of the three layers of insultex.

[zukiguy]

Look for some threads with the word "thermoflect". This stuff is thinner than IX but has a foil coating. I know Black Wolf and a few others have made some UQs with this stuff. I've got two of the blankets sitting here waiting on me to find the time to construct my own prototype. I'm thinking an inner layer of thermoflect, then 1 or 2 layers of IX plus a nylon shell would be great.

[BrianWillan]

Is insultex really a radiant barrier? My understanding of it is that the 'active ingredient' in insultex is the polyethylene foam layer. Foam is not a radiant barrier. In my searching, I have found no hint of a mylar or foil membrane, that would actually function as a radiant barrier by reflecting infrared heat back to its source.

Radiant barrier, no. Most would say that insultex acts like a vapour barrier as it has low air permeability. There are issues with the mylar space blankets in that they tend to be fragile and they break down over time. They are also noisy. So for your application I don't think the benefits out weigh using an extra layer of insultex. It's pretty light stuff to begin with.

Backwoods Daydreamer has a reflective ripstop nylon that you may want to checkout. However it is also vapour barrier and you will have to know how to manage your moisture levels accordingly.

Cheers

Brian

[BeakerMuppet]

Look for some threads with the word "thermoflect". This stuff is thinner than IX but has a foil coating. I know Black Wolf and a few others have made some UQs with this stuff. I've got two of the blankets sitting here waiting on me to find the time to construct my own prototype. I'm thinking an inner layer of thermoflect, then 1 or 2 layers of IX plus a nylon shell would be great.

I know I've had a good idea when someone else had it first. :wink:

Where on earth do you find the stuff? The website lists blankets, but no pricing or order information.

And, moisture not withstanding, I would think you'd want the radiant barrier as close to the hanger as possible; perhaps ripstop, then thermoflect, then ix and a final shell of ripstop.

Brian, thanks for the link, I will definitely check it out. As for moisture control, there's another can of worms I have yet to address. Maybe that would be a good argument for having the IX on top of the thermoflect.