Compressing Insulation In Attic

These thermal defects not only undermine the r value of your insulation but they also make rooms uncomfortable and increase your utility bill.

Compressing insulation in attic. When compressed to less than its labeled thickness glass fi ber insulation will experience a reduction. Lay a two by four on top temporarily compressing the insulation to a manageable. Find your zone on the map and then use the chart to determine the level of insulation you need to properly insulate your attic walls floors and crawlspaces. We can compress insulation and increase the performance of it right up to the point where the main mode of energy transfer is through the material of the insulation itself.

Simple thermal analysis reveals that if you have 5 missing insulation in an attic bare sheetrock you ll have a slightly more than a 54 drop in r value. For every x the insulation material is compressed the r value decreases by approximately one half of that percentage or x compressed. Then pivot in place and do the same thing to the other side. For the center areas hold the hose level and blow in insulation evenly until you ve reached your level lines photo 6.

When installed in framing cavities with a depth that is less than the labeled thickness of the insulation. For wool types of insulation fiberglass mineral wool steel real wool etc while it varies based on material this is typically much denser than we are able to get it via compression on the job site. The chart below indicates the compressed r value of standard building insulation products. To cut blanket style insulation place the product over a piece of plywood with its paper or foil side down.

Blow in insulation until the hopper is empty. R value simply means resistance to heat flow. Move across the attic until you ve hit your desired height at every point. Yes the compressed r value can be estimated using the following method.

If you know you aren t going to convert the attic in the future that leads you one direction compressing the insulation is fine maybe you don t care so much about head height and can add some more thickness to improve the insulation etc and if you know that an attic conversion is viable and that you are likely to want to pursue that in the future you can plan accordingly. Achieving greater r values in attics the higher the r value the better the thermal performance of the insulation. There is a path down the center of the attic that has the top 6 inches of insulation above the joists that appears to have been compressed by either some one crawling across the attic or laying a piece of plywood across the joists. Subtract the cavity depth from the thickness of the batt in inches.

Always cover the tops of the ceiling joists to make sure the insulation is deep enough to reach your target r value and.