Click on a photo to enlarge.
This homeowner in Unionville, CT reached out to us hoping to get his attic insulated. When our Home Comfort Specialist came out to the home, he noted that the attic in the addition was insulated with old blown in insulation. It was unfortunately not air sealed, and the low catwalk meant that insulation could move around easily. This easily explained the issues that the homeowner was having with uneven temperatures throughout the home.
Luckily, we had a few solutions for this customer. One of these solutions was to replace the old blown-in insulation with our TruSoft™ cellulose insulation. First, we had to vacuum the blown-in insulation out of the home. Then, we went through and air-sealed the attic, adding insulated covers over the can lights in the attic.
This solution then was paused to begin installing the insulated catwalk and dam. This catwalk is insulated with SilverGlo™ foam insulation board. It was installed over the existing wood walkway. Then, oriented standard board (OSB) was installed over the SilverGlo™, using screws to keep it in place. The 18" dams are then installed on it, ensuring that the blown-in insulation does not spread onto the catwalk.
After the catwalk was installed and the attic was air sealed, we began to install the blown-in insulation. This is blown in using a large hose attached to a machine outside. This insulation gets into every crack, crevice, and odd shaped space, making sure that the entire attic is properly insulated to R-60.
Now, this homeowner has a properly insulated attic! Within days of the work being done, the homeowner had let us know that the home was much more comfortable, and the temperature in the house was more even.
This homeowner contacted Fogarty's Home Services to come investigate why the temperature and moisture level in the home were so uncomfortable. We discovered that there was old, dirty batt insulation that had been exposed to the outside air due to leaks in the roof and attic areas. Air that the customer was paying to heat was leaking out of the attic and drawing cold outside air in causing drafts. Fogarty's Home Services removed and disposed of the old insulation.
Fogarty's Home Services received a call from the homeowner who was experiencing cold, drafty rooms near the attic hatch pull down stairs to his attic. Attic hatch pull down stairs are necessary to access your attic. The problem is that when closed, they leak a LOT of air that you paid to heat from your home to the vented attic where it is lost. All of this warm air leaving the top of the house is replaced with cold outside air entering at the lower levels of your home, causing drafts, cold floors and uncomfortable rooms that are hard to heat.
Fogarty's Home Services installed an exclusive "David Lewis Hatch Cover" (named for our engineer who developed it) that rests right over your pull down stairs. It stops air leakage and insulates over the stairs. Made of lightweight SilverGlo™ foam insulation, you just lift it aside to go up to your attic, and set it back in place when you leave. You don't see anything from the finished area of your home. SilverGlo™ foam insulation has graphite infused into the foam which bumps up the insulation value by 24% over standard EPS foam. It also has a radiant barrier (foil) on the flat lid to reflect heat back in during winter and out in the summer, so the insulation isn't doing all the work by itself. Now the homeowner has a tighter, more comfortable, less drafty home he'll notice. His rooms are easier to heat and he'll experience lower fuel and electric bills.
This customer called us when their home did not score well on a home energy audit. Upon inspection, Fogarty's Home Services found their kneewalls were under-insulated and not properly air sealed.
A kneewall space is created when a finished room is built within a sloped roof. A short wall called a “kneewall” forms a triangular space which may or may not be accessible with a short door or access panel. The floor of the kneewall space forms the ceiling of the room below it. The floor and kneewall itself are open to the kneewall space side with exposed fiberglass batts. Since fiberglass does not stop air flow, the insulation does next to nothing to air seal and insulate. The floor of the upper level, the ceiling of the lower level and the kneewall are all cold in winter and hot (from radiant roof heat) in the summer. The kneewall space is not suitable for storage since it is dusty and very cold or hot.
Fogarty's Home Services installed Blocks of SilverGlo™ foam insulation between the ceiling joist bays. Silver-Glo™ foam insulation is installed under the rafters up to the kneewall and sealed at the top with foam sealant. SilverGlo™ increases the R-value by 24% compared to regular EPS foam. SilverGlo™ also has a radiant barrier on both sides to reflect roof heat out in the summer and house heat back in during the winter. The addition of this radiant barrier gives some thermal benefit so the insulation isn’t left alone to do all the work. After installation, inside air can’t get out of the house through the kneewall spaces and outside air can’t get in.
The Results, significantly warmer upstairs room in the winter, cooler room upstairs in the hot weather, less drafts, more comfort, less dust. A kneewall space suit-able for clean storage. Lower fuel and electric bills.
The owner of this Enfield, CT home reached out to Fogarty's Home Services because her home was feeling drafty and cold. After completing her free home energy evaluation, we found that one of the contributing factors to this discomfort was a kneewall space in her attic that wasn't properly insulated. A kneewall space is created when a finished room is built within a sloped roof. A short wall called a "kneewall" forms a triangular space which mar or may not be accessible with a short door or access panel. The floor of the kneewall space forms the ceiling of the room below it. The floor and kneewall space side with exposed fiberglass batts. Since fiberglass does not stop air flow, the insulation does next to nothing to air seal and insulate. The floor of the upper level, the ceiling of the lower level and the kneewall are all cold in winter and hot (from radiant roof heat) in the summer. The kneewall space is not suitable for storage since it is dusty and very cold or hot. Fogarty's Home Services installed blocks of SilverGlo™ foam insulation between the ceiling joist bays. Outside the blocks, the surface of the ceiling was sealed with sprayed foam or SilverGlo™ foam. (Fiberglass insulation may be installed on top). SilverGlo™ foam insulation is installed under the rafters up to the kneewall and sealed at the top with foam sealant. SilverGlo™ is expanded polystyrene foam insulation with graphite infused into the foam, which increases the R-value by 24% compared to regular EPS foam. SilverGlo™ also has a radiant barrier on both sides to reflect roof heat out in the summer and house heat back in during the winter. The addition of this radiant barrier gives some thermal benefit so the insulation isn't left alone to do all the work. After installation, inside air can't get out of the house through the kneewall spaces and outside air can't get in. Insulation can now be added, with integrity, to the correct surfaces. This happy homeowner will now see results such as significantly warmer upstairs rooms in the winter, cooler rooms upstairs in the hot weather, less drafts, more comfort, less dust, a kneewall space that can be used for clean storage, and lower energy costs.