How To Add Extra Insulation To The Attic

A tightly sealed house is just as important as insulation.

How to add extra insulation to the attic.

You can add loose fill on top of fiberglass batts or blankets and vice versa. Because the simplest and cheapest way to insulate an attic is to add material to the floor. Plan to pull up the flooring and layer new insulation on top of the old. See below for a shopping list and tools subscribe to this old house.

Fill all cracks between the living area and the attic with caulk or expanding foam. You should be able to see if there is insulation in the wall. If you use fiberglass over loose fill make sure the fiberglass batt has no paper or foil backing. Then pivot in place and do the same thing to the other side.

Inspect the exterior walls by using an electrical outlet. Turn off the power to the outlet. Use cardboard or rigid foam baffles to keep soffit vents open. It s safer to build a small enclosure with hardware cloth or plywood to keep loose insulation away from lights and exhaust fans.

Insulation should be rolled out perpendicular to the joists and unfaced rolls should be used. Move across the attic until you ve hit your desired height at every point. Cost effective way to save energy with this old house general contractor tom silva. For the center areas hold the hose level and blow in insulation evenly until you ve reached your level lines photo 6.

Check the depth using a tape measure. Any existing batt or roll insulation in the attic should have the facing against the attic drywall floor or no facing at all. An adequately insulated attic reduces your home s energy costs by keeping warm air in during the winter and hot air out during the summer. How to add extra insulation to an attic.

Remove the outlet cover and shine a flashlight into the crack around the outlet box. How do i add insulation to existing attic insulation. Measure how much insulation you already have. Put on goggles and gloves to protect yourself while handling.

But if the floor is covered in plywood you can t stuff enough insulation beneath it to do the job sufficiently not even in warm climates. It needs to be unfaced. When adding additional insulation you do not have to use the same type of insulation that currently exists in your attic. Install fiberglass batts over existing batt insulation.