- We are located on the first hills of Reggio Emilia, in Quattro Castella. And here stands the private building that has been carefully restored since the early 20th century. For thermal insulation, Aeropan was chosen.
Aeropan in Reggio Emilia - Quattro Castella
“We are facing a building that has over 120 years of history,” explained architect Armano Fratti, the designer of the restoration and owner of the building. “I wanted to treat it with the respect it deserves and improve both its thermal insulation and seismic structure without altering its essence.”
For this reason, Aeropan panels were chosen for the external thermal insulation on the facades that had decorative friezes. Using “traditional” materials with greater thickness would have required removing and repositioning the friezes, where possible, afterward.
“I am very attached to the historical value of buildings,” emphasized architect Fratti from the Burani and Fratti Studio. “I only want to replace an element if it is absolutely necessary. The friezes, even if removed and repositioned after the installation of the thermal insulation, would no longer be ‘original.’ Some would inevitably be irreparably damaged during disassembly, and we would lose a piece of history. I chose a different approach. I chose Aeropan with its minimal thickness, and this delicate intervention was not necessary.”
Improving Hygrometric Comfort
As we know, a historic building, despite its undeniable beauty, often faces thermal insulation issues. The early 20th-century building involved in this careful restoration is no exception. Especially at night, the internal comfort was almost nonexistent once the heating system was set to the minimum. In the morning, it was necessary to turn the heating to the maximum to restore the internal temperature to normal levels.
“When we talk about improving the hygrometric comfort of a building,” explained the designer, “we must consider all the factors that make up the building envelope. The building envelope consists not only of vertical surfaces but also of horizontal surfaces and installations. Everything must be studied to collaborate in improving the environmental well-being.
I significantly increased the insulation in the roof, completely changed the winter air conditioning system, emphasized the importance of windows and chose Aeropan. This teamwork allowed us to achieve more than satisfactory results.”
Why Aeropan?
“For many reasons.
As I mentioned before, to preserve the external friezes of the facade. Aeropan with its minimal thickness allowed me to leave everything intact.
I wanted a breathable material with significant density. I chose Aeropan for these two characteristics as well because the insulation should work both in winter and summer.
Furthermore, I improved the seismic aspect, and all the walls were treated with reinforcing plaster. Choosing Aeropan, with its minimal space requirements, prevented further thickness increase in the already reinforced walls.”
The properties of the panel – low thermal conductivity, flexibility, compression resistance, hydrophobicity, and ease of installation – make it an essential product to ensure maximum thermal insulation in both new and renovated structures.
It is an ideal product for applications on external and internal perimeter walls, intrados, window frames, floors, and resolving thermal bridges.
Aeropan is the optimal choice for external and internal renovations, as well as building restoration and historical buildings subject to architectural constraints that require maximum living comfort.
The Final Result
“The final results are exactly as I expected. The thermal and hygrometric comfort has significantly improved. It is no longer necessary to increase the heating in the morning to get up without the unpleasant sensation of cold. The same goes for nighttime: with the heating set to a minimum, the internal temperature drops less than a degree during the night. This confirms the effectiveness of the thermal improvements made to the building.”
