The attic floor which is the ceiling of the living space below often already is insulated.
Should i insulate my attic crawl space.
Should the ceiling be insulated when finishing an attic room.
The cold climate choice.
Open crawl space definition concrete floor or 6 mil plastic qualifies minimum permeance rating of 1 laid on the floor not sealed to the foundation piers or taped at the seams lapped 12 at the seams and has mechanical foundation vents.
To make it easy to eyeball how level the material is as you blow it in screw depth guides to joists throughout the space.
Enclosing your crawl space.
I can t address all the crawl space confusion in this article but i would like to discuss crawl space insulation and whether you should or shouldn t insulate your crawl space.
That way plumbing pipes and hvac ducts are protected from freezing temps helping to conserve energy.
Crawl space insulation as a part of overall home air sealing and insulation helps maintain your entire home s energy efficiency without insulation heat and cool air are easily lost through the floor.
In a cold climate the most efficient technique is to insulate the walls of your crawl space and close it off from the elements by sealing all air leaks.
Rather than trying to cut off the crawl space from the conditioned upper floors you should bring the crawl space nearer to upper floors temperatures by leaving off the underfloor insulation and by sealing the crawl space against outside moisture and temperatures.
In unfinished attic spaces insulate between and over the floor joists to seal off living spaces below.
Recommended steps to properly insulate in the different crawl space designs and the expected effect.
1a attic access door.
Make sure the fill s depth is uniform across the attic.
Insulation also helps to preserve the air quality and reduce energy costs.
The idea is to condition the crawl space much in the same way that you might condition other parts of your home.
Department of energy recommends r 11 3 insulation under floors in warm climates and an r 25 6 to 8 in cold climates.
If the air distribution is in the attic space then consider insulating the rafters to move the distribution into the conditioned space.
The short answer is yes you should insulate your crawl space if you want to make your home more energy efficient.
In those days common building practice was to insulate the floor above the crawl space and to leave the crawl space s wall vents open so any moisture buildup would vent to the outside a.