Let me share with you an anecdote from my own personal experience.
Test my attic insulation is cellulose or fiberglass.
Many fiberglass installers fluff the fiber with extra air so you don t get as much insulation as you re supposed to.
Assuming your current attic insulation is made from fiberglass and has a value of r 13 you d have to add roughly 10 inches of additional fiberglass to hit r 38.
If you check with the cellulose insulation manufacturers association they ll assure you that cellulose is definitely your best choice for insulation.
Loose fill fiberglass seems to dominate attic insulation in new construction homes and has an r value of approximately 2 5 per inch.
So what are the advantages and disadvantages of each of these.
A test house burned more slowly with cellulose installed than with fiberglass.
Looking across your attic if the insulation is level with or below the attic floor joists you probably need to add more insulation.
Fiberglass is a suspected carcinogen.
Find your zone on the map and then use the chart to determine the level of insulation you need to properly insulate your attic walls floors and crawlspaces.
More below cellulose provides better sound insulation than fiberglass i e homes are less noisy with it.
Attic insulation contrast compare.
If fiberglass batts become compressed losing some of their air pockets then this insulation may be more affected by air flow than cellulose which performs well regardless of density.
Pros and cons of loose fill fiberglass attic insulation.
If your attic or wall insulation is in batt or blanket form whether it s fiberglass cellulose or another material you generally don t have to be concerned about asbestos.
I just read your article comparing the virtues and vices of fiberglass vs.
You can get to the same place with either material.
Don t let money fly out of your roof.
Or 7 inches of cellulose.
The attic is one of the most essential areas of the home to ensure proper insulation in.
Achieving greater r values in attics the higher the r value the better the thermal performance of the insulation.
Attic insulation keeps the desirable temperature in and the undesirable temperature out.
A few years ago i was remodeling a room in a client s home moving a wall adding a skylight stuff like that.
If you cannot see any of the floor joists because the insulation is well above them you probably have enough and adding more insulation may not be cost effective.
When used in an attic space however both types of insulation are ineffective at air flow across the attic floor such as a strong gust of wind.
Posted september 19 2019 by lewis insulation filed under attic insulation.