Unfortunately, you will not be able to get into all the openings. The ceiling will probably be closed off to you unless you remove the drywall or other finish material. You may have better luck getting behind sidewalls also called knee walls. There are two basic ways to insulate a finished attic. In this case, the area behind the knee wall will be uncomfortably hot or cold. If you want to keep the area behind the sidewalls from freezing in winter, apply insulation from the roofline all the way down to the floor.
Such ventilation keeps the roof cold in winter, which prevents ice dams that can damage your roof and even your house. To provide ventilation in a roof that is insulated, install special rafter vents.
These are stapled to the underside of the roof sheathing, between rafters. They allow air to move behind the insulation so the roof stays nice and cold while the room inside is insulated against the cold. Make sure the eave vents at the bottom of the rafter and the ridge vent or other vents at the top are free of obstructions so air can move freely. Caution: Avoid covering recessed lighting or any other heat-generating fixtures when installing insulation in an attic.
Always check labels for specifics on whatever you buy. Insulation fibers are packaged in bags and blown in place to the desired depth and density using special machinery you can rent from a home center. You can pour the fill in place and spread it manually, but the process is much more labor-intensive and the results won't be nearly as good. This flexible insulation material is most often packaged in rolls that come in various thicknesses and standard widths, usually 16 inches and 24 inches, to fit between joists or studs in a house's framing.
They come with or without a paper or foil facing that acts as a vapor barrier. You add one or more layers to achieve the desired level of insulation. Grab a tape measure and a flashlight to see what kind of insulation you already have in the attic and how deep it is. Then use the numbers in the chart at right to estimate its R-value. Pull up and dispose of any material that's compressed, water stained, or moldy—it's useless. Owners of houses built before take note: If what you see is lightweight, grainy, loose-looking insulation with shiny flecks, it could be vermiculite from a mine with asbestos deposits.
Get it tested, and if necessary, call in a pro to remove and haul it away safely. The Department of Energy recommends these minimum R-values for unfinished, unconditioned attics. The numbers are based on your house's location and climate zone.
Most federal tax credits for weatherizing your house and boosting its energy efficiency expired in But your state's energy office or local utility may offer product rebates, discounts, or other financial incentives for insulating.
See a state-by-state directory of such programs here. Measure your attic's square footage. For loose fill, read labels; each bag lists the required depths for a range of R-values and the number of bags needed to cover 1, square feet at those depths. For batts or rolls, calculate the number based on the width and length of the product you're using. In either case, get an extra bag or roll—you really don't want to run out when you're almost done putting it in.
Gaps in the attic or between the lower floors and the attic will let heated or cooled air escape to the great, unconditioned outdoors, making any insulation you add essentially useless. Find a diagram of common air leaks here. Here's a quick primer on fixing draft-prone spots. Batting comes in rolls and is sized to fit between rafters or joists. When unrolled, batting assumes its loft, or thickness. Loft is a property that helps give batting insulation its R-value — a measurement of how well the material impedes warm air migration.
Batting is either faced with paper that provides a vapor barrier, or unfaced so you can add your own, says Habitat for Humanity. Blown-in insulation comes in bags that empty into the hopper of a machine that shoots it through a tube and into the attic. Shooting blown insulation between the rafters requires the spaces be sealed with sheets of plastic stapled to the roof rafters.
During the construction process, many builders insulate the outside of foundation walls before backfilling. This strategy is possible but impractical and disruptive for existing homes. How you insulate a crawlspace depends on whether it's ventilated or unventilated. Most building codes require vents to aid in removing moisture from the crawlspace. However, many building professionals now recognize that building an unventilated crawlspace or closing vents after the crawlspace dries out following construction is the best option in homes in hot and humid climates using proper moisture control and exterior drainage techniques.
If you have or will have an unventilated crawlspace, the best approach is to seal and insulate the foundation walls rather than the floor between the crawlspace and the house.
This strategy has the advantage of keeping piping and ductwork within the conditioned volume of the house so these building components don't require insulation for energy efficiency or protection against freezing. The downside of this strategy is that rodents, pests, or water can damage the insulation and the crawlspace must be built airtight and the air barrier maintained.
Cover the ground with a thick vapor barrier to reduce moisture entering the crawlspace from the ground. Cold concrete slabs can be a source of discomfort in a home. Insulating a slab in an existing home can be expensive and disruptive, but if the slab in your home is cold it is possible to dig around the perimeter of the house and install insulation, usually foam board. Installing slab insulation during the construction process is more straightforward. Slab insulation, typically foam board, is installed either directly against the exterior of the slab and footing before backfilling or under the slab and along the inside of the stem wall of the foundation.
Termites can tunnel undetected through exterior slab insulation to gain access to the wood framing in a home's walls. As a result, some insurance companies won't guarantee homes with slab insulation against termites.
Building codes in several southern U. Slab foundations with interior insulation provide more termite resistance, but some builders in the southeastern United States have even reported termite infestations through foam insulation on contained slabs.
Examples of where to insulate. Attic Insulation. Duct Insulation. Cathedral Ceiling Insulation. Exterior Wall Insulation. Foam sheathing: Provides a continuous layer of insulation, which reduces thermal bridging through wood studs, saving energy and improving comfort.
Is easier to cut and install than heavier sheathing products. Protects against condensation on the inside wall by keeping the interior of the wall closer to the interior conditions. Usually costs less than plywood or oriented strand board OSB.
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