rolled insulation and blown insulation in the attic?????

[Krischaser]

I have rolled insulation in the attic. Do I need blown insulation also? I live in Mich. so the weather gets cold and the house is chilly. Thanks

 

[dawson5]

I thought the rule of thumb was that you stick with the same type that is there. If it's blown, add more blown. If it's rolled, add more rolls.

Have you checked your insulation? If it's chilly, you might not have enough or it could be shifted. There are guides on how much you need to achieve a certain R value.

Guidelines for what you need by zone:

http://www.simplyinsulate.com/savings/index.html

This looks to be helpful:

http://insulation.owenscorning.com/homeowners/easy-weekend-projects/weekend-project-attic.aspx

 

[seashoreCM]

Doesn't matter what kind of additional insulation you add, it's the overall thickness that makes the difference. (Not sure whether one inch worth of blown is superior (has a geater R value) to one inch worth of rolled but you can make up for any difference by using more or less.)

If you add rolled insulation that has a paper layer, you must cut slits in the paper (suggest at least 8 inches long and no more than a foot apart) to let out any moisture that got by the existing water resistant layer (moisture barrier) just above the attic ceiling. Two moisture barriers is a no-no.

 

[Disneyjamie]

I am in Michigan, and last year our gas bills got up to $400 a month (2600 sq ft house, but average height rooms, no cathedral ceilings, etc.). We didn't want that again, so in the spring we added a lot of insulation, up to the R68 level (well above builders code level of I believe of R46). So far, our gas bill for comparing Oct/Nov this year and last year is half. So we are very happy in that investment.

I believe we had rolled insulation up to R13 or 16 (the level up to the rafters, that was code back in 1963 when the house was built I think), and then they blew in more to reach R68.

Also, by adding the insulation, and also an attic fan, we didn't even turn on our AC this summer. But that may be because it wasn't a very warm summer this year.

Hope that helps!

 

[kellia]

We just added blow in insulation last month. (Also in Mich, lol!) We had roll in kind, but not much of it. It has made it so much nicer in here!! Our furnace used to run constantly in the winter, now we hardly hear it. They have rulers at the store that will tell you how deep it is to figure out the R-factor. We got about the highest they have on the package. Figure we sure aren't going up there again!

 

[treehugnmama]

we are in ontario so it gets cold. we added blown insulation 2 seasons ago and it made a big difference in the heating and ac bill. we have both batts and blown in.