Attic Insulation

[Chris0nllyn]

Now that I'm about done renovating the top floor, I'm getting my ducks in a row in terms of insulating the attic.

Right now, it's probably about a R-9 value (if that) and you can certainly feel the temperature difference between the top floor and the one below.

Has anyone done their own insulation upgrade, as in rolling out batts of insulation? I quickly looked up some R-30 from HB and it'd only be about $500-$600 to do the attic.

Or should I go blow-in and pay someone to get up in the attic? I believe blown-in is going for about $0.80/sq. ft., but I'm not positive.

Anyone who has had there insulation upgraded, how much of a difference did it make? Lower energy bills?

 

[Freefaller]

Now that I'm about done renovating the top floor, I'm getting my ducks in a row in terms of insulating the attic.

Right now, it's probably about a R-9 value (if that) and you can certainly feel the temperature difference between the top floor and the one below.

Has anyone done their own insulation upgrade, as in rolling out batts of insulation? I quickly looked up some R-30 from HB and it'd only be about $500-$600 to do the attic.

Or should I go blow-in and pay someone to get up in the attic? I believe blown-in is going for about $0.80/sq. ft., but I'm not positive.

Anyone who has had there insulation upgraded, how much of a difference did it make? Lower energy bills?

You'll want the R-value to be about a total of R-38 upon completion. Adding blown attic insulation is by far the easiest and probably the most effective and probably the least expensive. Fiberglass is better than the cellulose because it's less weight on top of whatever existing insulation you have. The average installation time for a professional crew is probably 1-1.5 hours. With blown insulation, there are no seems. R-30 Batt insulation only comes in batts (24"x48") or (16"x48") depending on framing. Therefor, you have lots of seems to be concerned about. If you want to do it yourself, there are a few considerations. How will you get the material home. The bundles of R-30 batt insulation can get pretty big. Also, when you get them home, how will you get the bundles into your attic. Most attic accesses are pretty small and manyt of the bundles won't fit through the opening. That means you have to cut open each bundle in your house and feed the material up into the attic a piece at a time. A very time consuming job. + do you really want fiberglass fibers floating in the living area (and landing on your bed?) Another thing to consider, the batt insulation is very highly compresses within the package. You'll be amazed at how much that material will expand when you slice the package open. How much head room do you have to work with? How hot is the attic to work in. It looks easy when you lay a batt in the middle of the attic where there is plenty of head room but how will you get that batt all the way out to the eaves where there is no headroom. Remember, you can only walk on the wood truss and not on the drywall. One foot though the drywall is a major pain to repair.

I've been in the insulation business for about 40 years and I've seen it all. Having an insulation contractor blow your attic insulation is, hands down, the best way to go. You can call G & B Insulation (In La Plata) for an estimate (No, I don't work there)

 

[Freefaller]

Now that I'm about done renovating the top floor, I'm getting my ducks in a row in terms of insulating the attic.

Right now, it's probably about a R-9 value (if that) and you can certainly feel the temperature difference between the top floor and the one below.

Has anyone done their own insulation upgrade, as in rolling out batts of insulation? I quickly looked up some R-30 from HB and it'd only be about $500-$600 to do the attic.

Or should I go blow-in and pay someone to get up in the attic? I believe blown-in is going for about $0.80/sq. ft., but I'm not positive.

Anyone who has had there insulation upgraded, how much of a difference did it make? Lower energy bills?

Sorry, forgot to mention 1 more thing. You mentioned that the upper level of your house is warmer than the lower. That's quite common and yes the insulation will help, but you should look at your attic ventilation on the upper level. I highly recommend that you consider an attic exhaust fan (The roof mounted type that looks like a spaceship on your roof) If you decide to improve your ventilation, complete that work prior to having your insulation installed.

Okay, something else for you to know. Blown insulation gets its R value from its depth and density. If it isn't installed to the proper density, the material will settle and you never had the proper R-value. It's easy to make sure you get the right amount. Bag Count. It's important that you, as the end consumer, knows how many bags of whatever blown material you select your installation should take. Each bag is labeled with a coverage chart and its an easy calculation to figure out how many bags your house should take. Make sure that you get the right amount of bags. If your insulation measures to the right depth but they didn't use the proper bag count, the density of your material is light and you don't have the R-value you think you have. Check it in a few months and you'll see that it has settled. With a little knowledge, you can get what you pay for and it will do a great job for you. Good luck!

 

[hitchicken]

In 2009, I had Dean install roll insulation in my attic. The old insulation was 'flat' and sinking between the joists. Dean did a great job. Eve ventilation, filling in the cracks, pro job... they did it all. They were there a considerable time. Cost in 2009 was $1292 including 1200 sq ft of insulation (don't remember the R value... too lazy to go up and peal it back and look). My heating oil consumption dropped from a yearly rate of 662 gallons per year to 596... about 11%. At $4 a gallon, it's about $264 per year. Was it worth it? I dunno. Yes, I've already paid for it with savings over the subsequent 5 years, but...

The real savings in heating bills came to me from 2 sources. The first was dumping the old furnace for a Kinetic Energy System 2000. The second was buying a FLIR E4 infrared scanner. I went from well over 1000 gallons a year to 600. (including hot water heating) The furnace was super high efficiency. The FLIR showed my heat leaks (I have since fixed) I never knew I had. Neither was cheap, but a savings of over 400 gallons of heating oil a year... both have already paid for themselves and then some.

Wish you the best.

 

[struggler44]

Definitely go with blown insulation, whether paper or fiberglass I can't comment but the blown fills in so much better.

 

[DoWhat]

Definitely go with blown insulation, whether paper or fiberglass I can't comment but the blown fills in so much better.

Do you ever have to go up into the attic?
That $hit would suck.

 

[PeoplesElbow]

When I upgraded my insulation I used Dow Safetouch, it is a fiberglass free insulation made out of polyester. No gloves, no masks etc, it is basically pillow filling.

The problem with the blow in cellulose is that you have to make sure that baffles around your soffett are installed correctly or you will ruin your attic air flow.

 

[Chris0nllyn]

Sorry, forgot to mention 1 more thing. You mentioned that the upper level of your house is warmer than the lower. That's quite common and yes the insulation will help, but you should look at your attic ventilation on the upper level. I highly recommend that you consider an attic exhaust fan (The roof mounted type that looks like a spaceship on your roof) If you decide to improve your ventilation, complete that work prior to having your insulation installed.

Okay, something else for you to know. Blown insulation gets its R value from its depth and density. If it isn't installed to the proper density, the material will settle and you never had the proper R-value. It's easy to make sure you get the right amount. Bag Count. It's important that you, as the end consumer, knows how many bags of whatever blown material you select your installation should take. Each bag is labeled with a coverage chart and its an easy calculation to figure out how many bags your house should take. Make sure that you get the right amount of bags. If your insulation measures to the right depth but they didn't use the proper bag count, the density of your material is light and you don't have the R-value you think you have. Check it in a few months and you'll see that it has settled. With a little knowledge, you can get what you pay for and it will do a great job for you. Good luck!

Wouldn't adding an attic fan create negative pressure and end up sucking the cool air out? I'd rather not deal with those if I can.

https://www.dom.com/about/conservation/pdf/attic_ventilation.pdf

Thanks for the input!

Do you ever have to go up into the attic?
That $hit would suck.

Not really. The attic access is horrible and nothing gets stored up there. That being said, I may have to go up there every once and awhile. I was thinking the same thing though....If I ever wanted to add a ceiling fan somewhere, wading though 20" of blow-in insulation would not be fun.

On top of that aspect, the reason I wanted to go with batts is the fact they can span across the rafters, reducing the amount of weight on the drywall. I've already gone through and had to laminate 1/4" on top of the drywall that was there (stupid stippled ceilings), so I'd rather not have too much weight on it. Not to mention the full sheet that came crashing down from too much existing blown-in piled up on top of it.

When I upgraded my insulation I used Dow Safetouch, it is a fiberglass free insulation made out of polyester. No gloves, no masks etc, it is basically pillow filling.

The problem with the blow in cellulose is that you have to make sure that baffles around your soffett are installed correctly or you will ruin your attic air flow.

Which is another issue the previous homeowner/wanna-be DIY'er never too into account when they built the addition. They stuffed insulation in the openings so there's no airflow (in some areas).

Overall, the attic needs attention, but I want to be sure I get everything done before I do the insulation. (including sealing all the openings)