Air Sealing & Insulating Attic in Severna Park, MD
Attic Before Work
Here's the attic in question that was causing so many discomfort issues. When we show these types of pictures to homeowners, we tend to point out two main issues - the discoloration of the insulation (that dirty gray coloring) and the fact that you can see the tops of the rim joists. This tells us what we already mentioned before - there is inadequate air sealing & insulation.
Air Sealing the Attic Floor
Here's one of the methods that we use to air seal. First, we need to move the old insulation aside so that we can get to the floors. Then, we place foam board over the larger exposed cavities and seal around the edges with caulk.
Air Sealing the Attic Floor Pt 2
For the smaller cavities and exposures we can use caulk (the orange lines) to effectively air seal the attic floor.
Blown in Cellulose Insulation
After air sealing the attic, we need to make sure that there is the right amount of insulation in it (for our climate zone that would be R-49 or about 14 in). We chose to install the blown in cellulose insulation because it is very dense and works great with the air sealing to form that thermal barrier we talked about before.
Spray Foam Basement Rim Joists
We actually did not just stop with the attic in this project. As home comfort experts, we know that cold air comes into the house through the bottom and, in this case, the best way to prevent that is to air seal the rim joists in the basement. We used foam board (which is underneath the white material) and spray foam insulation (which is the white material).
When there's a lack of air sealing and insulation in your attic, it becomes pretty apparent in the rest of your home. This particular homeowner noticed how hot their upstairs was compared to the rest of their house and how high their electric bills got in the summer/winter. So, Compete Home Solutions did just what needed to be done....air sealed and insulated. We cannot say these words enough! Using these methods to create a thermal barrier is an absolutely critical part in maintaining a home that is comfortable to live in (as well as affordable to live in). Let us take you through the journey of how we did this!
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