Blown Insulation in the attic

[FastbackJon]

Tinted sky lights would be awesome. The kind you can crack open to get a nice breeze. My house has no AC so I'm guessing it will get quite hot up there in the summer.

Well I got most of the insulation out. Issue now is that it looks like when whoever put the knee wall studs in, they put them on top of the old plywood. I want to get the old plywood out of there so the floor will look uniform (all new plywood). So I get to figure out how I'm going to go about doing new knee wall studs. I like the idea of the knee wall studs sitting on the joists or a beam going between two joists, but the plywood is good I guess for weight dispersion.

[Steve P.]

John, I am a firm believer that there is no such thing as TOO MUCH insulation. I did TONS of blown in insulation back in the 80s. There is good and bad to it. The good part is that you can get it into places that are tough to get to in an existing home. The bad part is that it DOES tend to flatten out over the years. My personal favorite is deep joists and the thickest rolled insulation you can buy. I like it because the rolled insulation is spun fiberglass and it is uniform. If installed correctly it lasts many more years without flattening. Insulation needs air space within itself to work properly. The best way to go about this is to measure the joist. Lets say you have 2 x 6 joists and they are 16" on center. You can run 6 inches within your joist bays. This is a good start. Once the bays are all full I like to go the other direction over the joists and insulation with enough insulation to make a good R-39. The second layer should be 24" on center rolls. This will close any gaps you may have from OFF CENTER joist positioning and cover the joists themselves.

Many times people think they need TONS AND TONS of space to put their junk.  This normally becomes the BLACK HOLE. Keep in mind that the opening you will have to get up there will not usually be very big at all and many things just won't fit. For the stuff that you KNOW you will put up there you can build a hanging shelf from the roof joists and keep it close to the opening. This is in most cases more than enough especially for those with a basement. Much easier storage down there....

Also, most times you hear people talking about insulating to bring down energy costs. Well, a good job will do that. That is a good reason, but most find that after doing a very good job of insulating and closing holes to the outside, they find that their homes are much more comfortable. This is huge....

I recommend not making a space that has less insulation than all of the rest because that area will be a fault. This is why I recommend a hanging shelf. It can hang close to the insulation, but don't crush it at all. That just takes away from it's intended use.

By the way, I DID stay at a Holiday Inn once.. 

[FastbackJon]

Hi Steve,

Good input. I'd consider going the other way with insulation but I'm putting plywood on top of the joists. As for a black hole, I don't really want that either. I don't have a basement though (would be nice though, just take a lot of work to dig out my crawl space).

At least I don't have years and years worth of stuff saved up though, I'm still young and am trying to avoid that. I thought it would be cool to get a projector and some bean bag chairs, maybe surround sound and have a movie room to shoot the film onto one of the gable walls that I'd smooth out and paint. It's dark enough up there to do that since there are no windows but it's just a dream for now.

[jayco91]

Just curious but why with the price of heating cost would you non-insulate an attic? Are you heating it? Here in upstate NY our building code calls for an R-54 worth of insulation which amounts to about 20" of insulation in the attic. Just my thoughts but I would be putting insulation in and not taking it out. On a side note I have seen people insulate with weird stuff such as newspaper and even plaster and lathe bricks and also solid concrete.  Good luck on your remodel.

[FastbackJon]

Have an update for ya'll. Got the frame in for the ladder, got all the old plywood taken out except one piece in the center. Under one of the pieces of plywood I found the strangest thing...

A Genuine Heidelberg Electric Belt. 80 Gauge.

Looks like a 104 year old testicle shocker. Box is dated 3/26/1904 and it is from Sears Roebuck and Co.

The Special Notice card reads:

In wearing the Sack Suspensory for Varicocele, Lost Manhood and Nightly Emissions, always be sure to moisten the covered electrode in water (warm water preferred) before using, ortherwise it will not work.

There's also a bigger warranty card in there.

Good thing is, it doesn't look like it's been used (don't see any hairs). Anyone want to see a picture of it in use??? lol

Just kidding!

[Steve P.]

Sell it on EBAY... LOL........

[FastbackJon]

My good buddy Silver R/T (Max) came over today and we got some more work done. Here's a couple pictures. One of before (dark, filled with cellulose, no power going to anything or lighting) and after, cleaned up with new 12' floor joists, and overhead lighting that I put in recently. Of all the things, the overhead lighting makes it look the most like a room, after it's turned on of course. Three 100w light bulbs really do the trick. The new joists were necessary because the originals (actual rough cut 2x4's on one side) were sagging in the middle a good half inch. Anyhow, here's pics!

[PocketThunder]

Nice work.    Working on houses is sometimes a nice break from working on cars isnt it?.   

[Silver R/T]

Nice work.    Working on houses is sometimes a nice break from working on cars isnt it?.   

Especially if it's cold inside the garage! With all that insulation up there it'll be pretty warm house.

[jb666]

Nice!! That'll make all the difference in the world!!

My house is a large old Victorian built in the mid 1800's. It was "updated" about 7 years ago (windows/roof/electrical/plumbing/windows/insulation), but they skipped the attic. The master bedroom happens to be on the 3rd floor with the attic over it. In the winter we'd be LUCKY to see 53 degrees, and it was even tougher maintaining it.

Well, after insulating above us and blowing insulation into the walls (balloon construction house) it never goes below 60. In fact, for a house with 24 rooms we use the oil in one winter that most people around here use in a MONTH. It's very efficient..

So, long story even longer, I agree with Steve.. You can NEVER have too much insulation. That's like having "too much power". Not possible 

Good luck with the house, and nice work up there!!

[FastbackJon]

Done with all the flooring and insulation between floors! With the attic ladder framed in, hung, with trim around it.

Finally!!!!

Here's a comparison and then I'll add a freaky shot for you guys too here at the end...

[Blown70]

DONT JUMP its not worth it...hahahah

Looks good up there......

[Todd Wilson]

THat will be a nice storage spot. Easy to get to and out of the way.


Todd

[Silver R/T]

I was thinking more like "panic room" lol

[MoparManJim]

DONT JUMP its not worth it...hahahah

Looks good up there......

I wonder if he'll fit through that hole without wacking his jaw   

Now serious though, good job man. 

[PocketThunder]

Thats a handy spot for a light switch.  No inspectors present on this job i presume...