Three ranges, one job. Bradford Gold and Fletcher Pink are glasswool, Bradford Polymax is polyester, and at the same R-value they are different thicknesses: R3.5 in a ceiling is 175 mm in Pink, 180 mm in Polymax and 185 mm in Gold. Choose on the depth you have, the stud you are filling and the pack coverage, because the R-value is the one thing all three already share.
In short
- R3.5 in a ceiling is 175 mm in Pink, 180 in Polymax and 185 in Gold. Same number, 10 mm apart.
- Bradford's own product code table puts Polymax R3.0 and R3.5 at the same 180 mm.
- Every ceiling batt we stock, in all three ranges, is 1160 x 430 mm or 1160 x 580 mm.
- A 90 mm stud tops out at R2.7 across these three ranges, in HP Bradford Gold. Polyester stops at R2.0 on walls.
- Pack coverage is the cost signal. R2.0 Gold wall batts cover 10.97 m² a pack, R2.7 HP covers 2.44.
Nobody asks for glasswool. They ask for ceiling batts at R3.5, or wall batts for a 90 mm stud, and three ranges all do it. This is the product ladder: what we stock, at what thickness, in what width, and how much a pack covers. The materials themselves belong to our material comparison, and which R-value suits which element to the element by element guide.
The three ranges, as products
Bradford Gold is CSR's glasswool batt, sold standard and as a high performance version badged HP. Bradford Polymax is unfaced polyester from the same company in the same format. Fletcher Pink Batts are glasswool as well, Australian made, with a high density wall version badged HD.
Glasswool twice and polyester once, all doing the same thermal job, so what separates them on an order is narrow: the depth each needs to reach a number, whether that number exists at all, the widths, and the coverage in a pack. Bradford also has run-out and transition notes under its sheets, and one Pink wall product has dropped out of Fletcher's.
The ceiling ladder, R2.5 to R7.0
A ceiling is the one place where depth is usually free, so thickness reads like a footnote until the eave gets shallow. Width is already settled: every ceiling batt we stock is 1160 mm long and either 430 or 580 mm wide. What is left is thickness and the square metres of batt in a 430 mm pack.
| R-value | Gold, mm | Gold, m² | Polymax, mm | Polymax, m² | Pink, mm | Pink, m² |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R2.5 | 140 | 7.98 | 140 | 3.99 | 130 | 7.98 |
| R3.0 | 165 | 7.98 | 180 | 3.99 | 155 | 7.98 |
| R3.5 | 185 | 7.98 | 180 | 3.99 | 175 | 7.98 |
| R4.0 | Not made | n/a | 200 | 2.99 | Not in Fletcher's table, see below | n/a |
| R4.1 | 215 | 4.99 | Not made | n/a | 215 | 4.99 |
| R5.0 | 240, HP | 3.99 | Not made | n/a | 220 | 3.99 |
| R6.0 | 260, HP | 2.99 | Not made | n/a | 250 | 2.99 |
| R7.0 | 290, HP | 2.00 | Not made | n/a | 285 | 2.00 |
Polyester stops at R4.0, so above that the decision is made by what exists. Bradford Gold reaches R7.0 at 290 mm and Pink at 285 mm. Coverage is the price of going up: Gold holds 7.98 m² a pack from R2.5 to R3.5 and 2.00 m² at R7.0, so a ceiling that took ten packs at R2.5 takes roughly forty at R7.0. Polymax is twice the packs of Gold wherever both exist.
R3.0 and R3.5 Polymax are both 180 mm, which is what Bradford's code table says: 126361 and 126362 at R3.0, then 126363 and 126364 at R3.5. Same thickness, same eight batts a pack, half an R-value apart. Density is doing the work in a ceiling, which is usually a wall trick.
R3.5, and the 10 mm that decides it
R3.5 is the rung where all three meet, and across the flat of a ceiling that 10 mm spread means nothing. It matters at the eave, under a low truss chord, anywhere the batt has to sit in a pinch point and still stand at full thickness. A bulk batt only delivers its rated number at recovered thickness, so if your tightest point measures 180 mm, the Pink fits and the Gold does not.
The packs differ here too. Bradford Gold R3.5 comes 16 batts to a 430 mm pack and only 10 to a 580 mm one, so the wider batt covers less ground, 6.73 m² against 7.98. Fletcher Pink does the same, and only at R3.5. Order that rung by pack count and you will be short.
The wall ladder, by stud depth
Walls work the other way round. The depth is fixed before anyone opens a catalogue, so read the range by stud.
| Stud | Product | Widths, mm | Batts per pack | m² per pack, narrow width |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 70 mm | R2.0 HD Fletcher Pink | 430/580 | 12 | 5.99 |
| 75 mm | R1.5 Bradford Polymax | 430/580 | 16 | 7.98 |
| 75 mm | R2.0 Bradford Polymax | 430/580 | 8 | 3.99 |
| 75 mm | R2.0 HP Bradford Gold | 420/570, steel 450/600 | 12 | 5.85 |
| 75 mm | R2.2 HP Bradford Gold | 420/570 | 6 | 2.92 |
| 90 mm | R1.5 Bradford Polymax | 430/580 | 16 | 7.98 |
| 90 mm | R2.0 Bradford Polymax | 430/580 | 12 | 5.99 |
| 90 mm | R2.0 Bradford Gold | 430/580, steel 450/600 | 22 | 10.97 |
| 90 mm | R2.0 Fletcher Pink | 430/580 | 24 | 11.97 |
| 90 mm | R2.2 Bradford Gold, run-out | 430/580 | 16 | 7.98 |
| 90 mm | R2.5 HD Fletcher Pink | 430/580 | 12 | 5.99 |
| 90 mm | R2.5 HP Bradford Gold | 420/570, steel 450/600 | 9 | 4.38 |
| 90 mm | R2.7 HP Bradford Gold | 420/570, steel 450/600 | 5 | 2.44 |
| 140 mm | R4.0 HP Bradford Gold | 420/570 | 5 | 2.44 |
The top of a 90 mm stud is R2.7, in HP Bradford Gold. What to do when the specification asks for more than the cavity holds is a design question, and the element by element guide works it through. R4.0 on a wall needs a 140 mm frame, the only one we hold.
Below 90 mm the choice is mostly Bradford. The one Fletcher Pink wall batt we stock under 90 mm is R2.0 HD at 70 mm, and Fletcher's R1.5 at 70 mm we do not carry. Its separate Soundbreak acoustic range also goes to R2.0 at 70 mm on Fletcher's sheet, 75 mm on our page.
Bradford also warns that R2.0 Polymax wall batts will not compress during installation and must go into a cavity of the correct size, or a rigid lining can deform or come away. That is why R2.0 Polymax exists in both 75 mm and 90 mm. Match the stud.
Pack coverage is the cost signal in that table. R2.0 Fletcher Pink is the largest wall pack we hold, 11.97 m² in the 430 width, about 9 per cent more than Bradford Gold at the same 90 mm, while R2.7 HP Gold covers 2.44 m² and takes four and a half times the packs. That is why most residential walls stop at R2.5.
Why 420, 430, 450, 570, 580 and 600 all exist
Six widths across three ranges looks like clutter. Two groups have a published reason and the third does not.
| Width | Framing | What the manufacturer says |
|---|---|---|
| 430 and 580 mm | Timber at 450 and 600 mm centres | Coverage per pack assumes one batt between 35 mm framing, one nogging per cavity, 2400 to 2550 mm wall height |
| 420 and 570 mm | Bradford Gold HP wall batts only | Bradford publishes the sizes and gives no reason for them anywhere in the document |
| 450 and 600 mm | Steel frame | Marked with an asterisk, "Suitable for steel frame construction". For those sizes the batt area and the coverage per pack are the same figure, because frame thickness and area are treated as negligible |
Timber framing eats wall area, so a pack of 1160 x 430 mm R2.0 Gold holds 10.97 m² of batt but covers 12.2 m² of wall, while the 1200 x 450 mm steel size lists 9.72 m² in both columns. Every steel frame size we stock is on a 1200 mm batt, though Bradford also marks a 1160 x 450 mm R4.0 HP size for steel.
Which column you read matters. Bradford lists m² per pack, which is the batt, and coverage per pack, which allows for framing. R2.5 Gold ceiling batts in the 430 width are 8.0 m² of batt against 8.6 m² of coverage, so the wrong column puts a take-off out by 7.5 per cent. Our quantity guide covers the measure.
The 420 and 570 mm sizes are the ones to watch. They belong to the Bradford Gold HP wall batts alone, so do not assume an HP batt drops into a bay sized for a standard one. The same widths are set against steel stud fitouts in our New South Wales buying guide.
What HP and HD actually buy
Neither maker defines its badge. Nowhere in the five technical documents behind these products is there a sentence saying what HP or HD means, and neither publishes a density figure, which is the number someone comparing the two actually wants. What both do publish for glasswool is airflow resistivity in Rayls per metre.
| Wall batt | Thickness | Flow resistivity |
|---|---|---|
| R2.0 Fletcher Pink | 90 mm | 4730 Rayls/m |
| R2.0 Bradford Gold | 90 mm | 4839 Rayl/m |
| R2.2 Bradford Gold | 90 mm | 5256 Rayl/m |
| R2.5 HD Fletcher Pink | 90 mm | 7930 Rayls/m |
| R2.0 HP Bradford Gold | 75 mm | 9880 Rayl/m |
| R2.5 HP Bradford Gold | 90 mm | 10489 Rayl/m |
| R2.2 HP Bradford Gold | 75 mm | 20240 Rayl/m |
| R2.7 HP Bradford Gold | 90 mm | 23989 Rayl/m |
The two standard density R2.0 products at 90 mm sit within about 2 per cent of each other, so a standard glasswool wall batt is much the same whichever brand is on the bag. The badged products pull away: R2.7 HP Gold is almost five times the standard R2.0 in the same cavity.
Where the badges meet, the makers differ. Bradford's R2.5 HP publishes 10489 Rayl/m against 7930 for Fletcher's R2.5 HD, same material, same R-value, same 90 mm cavity. Bradford publishes nothing at all for Polymax or for R4.0 HP Gold, so an acoustic comparison across the three ranges has holes in it. Treat acoustics as its own problem and read acoustic against thermal insulation.
What each range carries on paper
If a specification names a compliance document, the three ranges stop being interchangeable. Bradford Gold is assessed non-combustible to AS 1530.1, holds CodeMark Certificates of Conformity CM20329 and CM20332, and is quoted against NCC 2025 Volume 1 J4D3(1), Housing Provisions 13.2.2(1), C2D10(1) and S7C7. Fletcher Pink Batts, in the ceiling and wall products with a current data sheet, are non-combustible to AS/NZS 1530.1, CodeMark certified, carry ignitability, spread of flame and heat evolved indices of 0 with smoke developed 0 to 1, and are rated BAL Low to Flame Zone under AS 3959. Bradford Polymax is expressly not classified as non-combustible, claims no CodeMark certificate, and is not suitable as an exposed lining requiring a Group Number.
Within the Gold ceiling range, only the R3.5, R4.1 and R7.0 HP codes carry a mark saying an AS/NZS 1530.3 test report is available. R2.5, R3.0, R5.0 HP and R6.0 HP rest on professional assessment instead.
Service temperature is the other gap. Bradford states 150 °C for Gold, framed around long term surface operating temperature near heat generating equipment, while Fletcher states 340 °C for Pink to ASTM C411 and C447 with no application context. The two may not be measuring the same thing, so get any specified service temperature confirmed in writing. How these documents get used is in our guide to fire performance.
Where the documents disagree
We read the batt catalogue and the manufacturer documents behind it to write this. Some of it did not line up, and knowing that serves you better than a tidy table.
- Pink ceiling thicknesses on our own pages. R4.1 variant titles say 195 mm against 215 mm in both our datasheet field and Fletcher's sheet, and R6.0 titles say 240 against 250. R5.0 carries no thickness at all. Use 215, 250 and 220.
- Fletcher's ceiling sheet disagrees with itself. Its physical characteristics table gives R4.1 at 215 mm and R5.0 at 220 mm and lists no R4.0 product, while its flow resistivity table on the same document maps 195 mm to R-Value 4.0 and 215 mm to R-Value 5.0. Both sit inside RTDS9 Revision 7, so the Pink ceiling flow figures are quoted by thickness rather than by product: 2470 Rayls/m at 130 mm, 2850 at 155, 2700 at 175, 3160 at 195, 4500 at 215 and 4460 at 250. The 250 mm figure is lower than the 215 mm one.
- Bradford's footnotes on the Gold wall range. R2.2 at 90 mm, codes 170351 and 170227, is discontinued with a last manufacturing date of 31 March 2026, now passed. It is in our wall table because it is still on the shelf. Every other Gold wall code is marked "product transition from Gold to Gold Comfort Touch Technology, effective April 2026", and the sample specification now names both. No separate data for Comfort Touch appears, so we are flagging it rather than guessing.
We supply it and we install it
AWBM stocks all three ranges in ceiling and wall sizes, and we install batts, wall wrap and sarking. Send the areas with your framing centres and the R-values from your report, and we will come back with the range that fits the depth, the right width, a pack count and a price. Delivery in Victoria and New South Wales is $55 in metro Melbourne and metro Sydney, $99 in the outer suburbs and $149 anywhere else, set by postcode.
Or browse ceiling insulation, wall insulation and Fletcher Insulation.
Frequently asked questions
Bradford Gold, Polymax or Pink Batts: which ceiling and wall batt should I buy?
Start with the depth you have, because the thinnest product at your R-value wins a tight ceiling or stud. At R3.5 in a ceiling that is Fletcher Pink at 175 mm, ahead of Polymax at 180 and Gold at 185. If the specification names a non-combustible material, glasswool carries it and Polymax does not.
Which R-values does Bradford Polymax come in?
In our catalogue, Polymax ceiling batts run R2.5 to R4.0 and the wall batts are R1.5 and R2.0, in both 75 mm and 90 mm. Bradford's statement adds an R2.0 ceiling batt at 120 mm and underfloor rolls we do not carry. Past R4.0 in a ceiling or R2.0 in a wall, the choice is glasswool.
How thick is an R5.0 ceiling insulation batt?
It depends which one. Fletcher Pink R5.0 is 220 mm and Bradford Gold R5.0 HP is 240 mm, and both hold 3.99 m² a pack in the 430 mm width. That 20 mm decides whether a shallow eave takes the batt at full thickness.
What sizes do ceiling insulation batts come in?
Every ceiling batt we stock, in all three ranges, is 1160 mm long and either 430 or 580 mm wide, for timber at 450 and 600 mm centres. Fletcher makes 1200 x 450 mm and 1200 x 600 mm ceiling sizes that we do not carry.
Are Fletcher Insulation Pink Batts the same as Bradford Gold?
Both are glasswool, both are non-combustible and CodeMark certified, but they are not the same product. Pink is usually slightly thinner at the same R-value, 175 mm against 185 at R3.5 and 220 against 240 at R5.0. Published maximum service temperatures differ sharply too, 340 °C against 150 °C, on different bases.
What does HP or HD mean on an insulation batt?
Neither maker defines it in measurable terms, and neither publishes a density figure for these ranges. The only quantitative evidence is airflow resistivity: Bradford's R2.7 HP Gold at 90 mm publishes 23989 Rayl/m against 4839 for its standard R2.0 at the same thickness. A badged batt is a denser one reaching a higher R-value in the same cavity.
Which wall insulation batts suit a 70 or 75 mm stud?
In the three ranges compared here, mostly Bradford: Polymax at R1.5 and R2.0 in 430 and 580 mm widths, and Gold HP at R2.0 and R2.2 in 420 and 570 mm, all at 75 mm. From Fletcher we stock R2.0 HD Pink at 70 mm, and Fletcher's R1.5 at 70 mm we do not carry. Its separate Soundbreak range reaches R2.0 shallower again, at 70 mm on Fletcher's sheet and 75 mm on our page.
How many packs of insulation batts will I need?
Divide the area by the coverage per pack, and check which figure the sheet gives you, because Bradford lists both the batt area and a coverage figure that allows for framing. Coverage drops steeply as the R-value climbs: Gold ceiling batts hold 7.98 m² a pack from R2.5 through R3.5 and 2.00 m² at R7.0.
Sources
- Bradford Gold and Gold Hi-Performance Ceiling Batts, Product Technical Statement, Gold & Gold Hi-Performance Ceiling_Bradford_PTS152_D, Issue D, undated. Gold ceiling thicknesses, codes, coverage, the AS/NZS 1530.3 test report marks, CodeMark numbers and the 150 °C service temperature
- Bradford Gold Wall Batts, Product Technical Statement, Gold Wall_Bradford_PTS032_P, Issue P, undated. The Gold wall ladder, widths, steel frame marking, coverage basis, flow resistivity and both footnotes
- Bradford Polymax, Product Technical Statement, Polymax_Bradford_PTS129_I, Issue I, undated. The Polymax code tables and the R2.0 wall batt compression warning
- Fletcher Insulation Pink Batts Ceiling, technical data sheet RTDS9 Revision 7, 17 February 2025. The Pink ceiling ladder, coverage, fire indices, BAL ratings and flow resistivity
- Fletcher Insulation Pink Batts Wall, technical data sheet RTDS7 Revision 12, 1 February 2025. The Pink wall range, its 70 mm sizes, and the absence of any R2.2
- Fletcher Insulation Soundbreak, technical data sheet Revision 7, 9 October 2024. The 70 mm published for R2.0 Soundbreak
- AWBM product catalogue, queried 23 September 2026. Variant titles, sizes, pack quantities and datasheet fields
General information about what we stock and what the manufacturers publish. It does not decide which R-value your job needs, which is set by your energy report, and it does not settle fire or acoustic performance, which belong to tested systems rather than to a batt. Ranges and codes change, so confirm any figure against the current data sheet before you order or specify.