Ceiling Insulation – Cost-Effective Measure

The ceiling is another vital part of the house that should be considered as well in deciding the places to be insulated. Like all types of insulation, ceiling insulation is a must if you are looking to have a substantial cut in your energy bills. Among others, it is the most cost-effective energy efficiency measure you can do.

For most houses these days that are using cathedral ceiling, or have attic walls that present unique insulation requirements, a proper insulation installation is needed to protect the whole house.

Insulating

In the planning stage and the ensuing installation of the insulation project, you need to ensure their statuses by checking first. You need to ensure that all the air lead through the top floor ceiling is sealed completely and thoroughly. Also, these insulation levels must exceed the local building codes.

There should also be provision of space for both the insulation and the needed air flow from the vents at the eaves.  The insulation coverage needs to be continuous.

Likewise, the area planned for storage should have enough space underneath needed for insulation purposes. The doors must also be insulated and sealed, with the knee wall areas having adequate insulation and air sealing barriers.

Techniques

Loose-fill or batt insulation are typically installed in attics. You need to put the backing next to the ceiling finish for the batts that has attached vapor retarders.

The costs for ceiling insulation vary, which is one of the major reasons for the choices. However, blown-in loose-fill attic insulation that uses fiberglass, rock wool or cellulose is usually less expensive than batts. They also give better insulation coverage.

Loose-fill

The first task is to seal all attics to home air leaks, especially the chases, bypasses and the fur downs. Insulation materials like the fiberglass and rock wool do not necessarily stop the air flow completely.

You then need to follow up the requirement clearances for heat producing equipments. These would consist usually of flues or exhaust fans. The other blocking requirement might be ruled by local building codes.

You can use metal flashing, plastic or cardboard batt files or pieces of batts or rigid insulation to do the blocking. To preserve the ventilation, you need to install rafter baffles for soffit vents in roof eaves. You can use insulation dams at the soffit, porch, and garage and attic to ensure full coverage.

Insulate over the attic access using a piece of batt. You also need to get complete insulation coverage at consistent depths, using rulers, if need be.

Batts

You need to ensure again that the attic is sealed against air leaks. You also need to block around heat-producing devices. It is important to cover the top of ceiling joints or bottom cord of truss with insulation.

You need to use the complete coverage of full thickness, non-compressed insulation. When installing the batts, ensure that they completely fill the joist cavities. Shake them to ensure proper loft. If the joist spacing is not even, pitch the gaps with scrap pieces.

Do not compress the insulation with wiring, plumbing or duct work. Ceiling insulation needs proper installation techniques and care.