With spring coming insulation is not on the mind of a lot of people. But spring is a great time to get up in the attic, before that summer heat comes and install an additional layer of insulation to help keep the summer cooling bills down.
I think the best website for energy savings information is http://www.energystar.gov/. Simply put, whatever you need or want to know, you can find it here.
A much simpler, right to the point web site that will give you recommended insulating levels by zip code is http://www.ornl.gov/sci/roofs+walls/insulation/ins_16.html
In this area of the country the recommendations for insulation are;
Attic ---------------------------R 38
Wall ---------------------------R 13
Floor --------------------------R 25, Over Unheated Space
Crawl Space Wall ----------R 25
Basement Wall Interior ---R 11
The above recommendations are insulation levels that balance the actual cost of insulating and the return in energy savings.
Two methods of installing additional insulation in your attic are fiberglass batts or blown in insulation, either cellulose or fiberglass. In the fiberglass family batts give you a slightly better R value per inch coming in at 3.1 to 4.2 per inch and blown in fiberglass about 2.3 to 2.8 per inch. Cellulose is only available in loose fill and gives you about 3.0 per inch. If your choice is fiberglass batts and the existing insulation is even with the top of the existing ceiling joists then roll out 24” wide unfaced batts perpendicular to the existing joists. Doing it this way will physically cover the joists and seal any existing drafts. If the existing insulation is lower than the top of the joists add insulation until it is even with the joists and then begin the cross layer.
If you choose to use blown in, either cellulose or fiberglass make sure you install the depth gauges that you bought when you purchased the material, these will help you blow the material in evenly.
In either case you must first make sure that all electrical boxes have the proper covers and are sealed. Do not cover any light fixtures such as can lights.
One other caution is not to block the flow of air from the eves to the ridge of the house. The lower the pitch of your roof the easier it is to block the flow. Take a minute to study the drawing so you understand how air flows through your attic.
Keep in mind that houses need to breathe. The air in your home needs to change to keep a healthy indoor air environment. The measurement of air changes per hour ACH in older houses can be 1 to 3 whereas a newer tightly built home can be in the .5 ACH range. Trying to fix a target number of acceptable air changes is nearly impossible because of the wide range of pre-existing indoor air contaminants and pollutants. Factor into that an individual person’s sensitivity to these pollutants and you can see there is no way to recommend a level that would work in all situations
A great online source for understanding the basics of household ventilation can be found here http://www.nyserda.org/publications/guide.pdf
Also remember the better you home is insulated, the more critical controlling the humidity level becomes. We will talk about indoor humidity levels in a future posting.
Saving energy can be really involved or it can be simple and inexpensive. Today we are going to talk about a couple things that are very inexpensive to do that will save energy which in turn will save you dollars.
The first tip we are going to discuss is how to adjust the threshold on your exterior door. The adjustable type thresholds we know today were patented around 1980 and are basically the same mechanically today. Of course materials have changed substantially. To see if it needs adjusting close the door and lay on the floor with your head sideways (ear to the ground) looking under the door. Visible light means you should adjust the threshold.
Open your door and you will see 4 or 5 large screw heads on top of the threshold. There may be plastic caps or even a vinyl strip covering them. If there is no protection the slots may be filled in with dirt. It is very important to clean them out so the screwdriver fits in correctly. The most effective way I have found is to use a utility knife to loosen the debris in the slots and then a can of compressed air, the kind you would use to clean your computer keyboard out. I you don’t have any compressed air you can blow through a drinking straw to remove the loose dirt.
Screwdrivers come in various sizes, make sure to use the largest one that will fit, which in this case will probably be a #3 (large) and most likely Phillips, although I have seen them in the slotted variety. When you are turning the screw make sure to put a lot of downward pressure on the screwdriver so it doesn’t slip out of the head and damage it. You will have to turn each screw about 3 full turns to get a 1/16” rise although this will vary depending on the manufacturer.
If the screw won’t turn, you can these remedies. Set the screwdriver in the slot and tap the screwdriver handle with a hammer (tapping on a wooden handle screwdriver may cause it to crack) and try it again. You can hit the screw about ½ as hard as it would take to drive a nail into a block of wood. If this doesn’t work try spraying some WD-40 or penetrating oil onto the screw head and let it sit as per the instructions on the can. A tip to keep the oil on the screw head is to place a cotton ball on the top of the screw head and soak the cotton ball with the oil and let it sit. Of course you will have to wait until it gets warmer for that.
Adjust the screws turning them one at a time and closing the door and checking for light. Do not turn them too much as this will cause excessive wear and make the door hard to close. If you used penetrating oil of any kind make sure you wipe it up as it will attract more dirt.
Now that you have adjusted the front door don’t forget about the back door and if you have an attached garage check that door too.
