Attic insulation help needed


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Old 03-15-12, 01:51 PM
F
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Attic insulation help needed

I have an attic above my center hall colonial that can only be accessed through a small trap door in the closet in the master bedroom. The bedroom closet is always 10 degrees wamer or cooler than the bedroom despite having a floor register in it. So I had to go and inspect and was totally unprepared for what I found. My master bedroom has cathedral ceiling that seems to have been built under the main roof. There is no insulation on the ceiling of the bedroom, which I found odd. There is insulation on the flat ceilings throughout the upstairs but not over the master bedroom ceiling, which is also 10 degrees warmer or cooler than rest of house. I also found the 8" fireplace insert exhaust pipe that runs up the wall on that side of the house next to the closet. There is absolutely no insulation there as ewll. That would explain why there is a huge draft at the fireplace downstairs. The former owner/builder then started running "baffles" for lack of a better word, up along the roof about 3 feet up then stopped altogether. I was told by the local builing mega store employee that you could insulat the roof of a home IF you installed the baffles for air to circulate under then actually place insulation on the roof. I'm not sure I buy that one either but wanted to ask someone elses opinion that doesn't get payed for selling stuff to people who don't know any better. I would like to insulate as much as possible but not if it will hurt the roof or any othe rpart of the house for that matter. Can I insulate the outside walls near the vent for the fireplace insert that we seldom use because we know that it wastes more heat than generates. It is pretty and all but we were told that it sucks most of the heat up the flue stack to use the air for burning... oh what to do? I really could use some help on this matter. I understand there are actually several parts to this question and can break them down if needed. I've been meaning to do this for weeks now and finally got 2 minutes free time. Thanks for the help!

Totally confused,
fnolteiii
 
  #2  
Old 03-15-12, 04:25 PM
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Hi fnol, several parts is correct. . My web site starts out with the word STOP, and since your are just getting started and asking questions you are doing perfect. Every house is different, but preparing an overall plan is a real money saver and performance enhancer.

You live in cold country and you apparently have something non-typical, plus it is missing insulation. You also have a fireplace which must be considered unless you convert it to a sealed combustion, meaning it would use outside air for the burning process and not your inside air. A home that is going to be made energy efficient will need to be rather air tight and that improvement cannot be started with an existing fireplace. Number one on your list should be to convert it to sealed combustion. All of the why's are a long story, but I can if necessary go over it.

We will need more details, but pictures are the best place to start.http://www.doityourself.com/forum/el...your-post.html

Bud
 
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Old 03-16-12, 09:46 PM
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In your attic I would suggest a closed cell foam insulation which can be installed in your walls too without having to have to open the walls. As to the chimney area it sounds like you have a gas fire place but like what was said already about pictures it is kind of hard to say. If you do you can't insulate next to it where the chimney goes but you can insulate along the wall. This has to do with the issue of fire codes. Since closed cell insulation has to be professionally installed an installer would know where to put the insulation.
 
 

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