Found 21 results for the keyword(s) ‘Crawl Space, Insulation’

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  Warming a house over a cold damp crawl space.

  Tanya from Surrey, British Columbia has a very shallow, very wet, very cold crawl space under her house, and the heating bills show it. She has tried all the weather-stripping and caulking she can do up in the house. Now what to do about the crawl space?First, despite the fact that there is ...
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  HOW DO I INSULATE CRAWL SPACES?

  First, decide whether you want your crawl space heated, warm, or cold. (search keyword "crawl space" for the title "BASEMENT: HEATED SPACE, WARMED SPACE, OR COLD SPACE?")Insulating under the floor is usually done by first stapling a plastic vapour barrier to the underside of the floor. This ...
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  HOW DO I INSULATE JOIST SPACES?

  The joist space is commonly insulated with fiberglass batts jammed up into the cavity. The header should have been well sealed with caulking first. (search keyword "sealing" for the title " WHERE SHOULD I SEAL AND HOW?") The batts should be covered with simple paper (an acceptable vapour barrie...
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  BASEMENT: WHAT R VALUE SHOULD I HAVE?

  For detailed R value recommendations, search keyword "R-Value" for the title "WHAT ARE THE RECOMMENDED INSULATION LEVELS?".Note that in the previous answer, some of the common options for basement insulation does not even meet the minimum recommendation of RSI - 2.1 (R-12). Manufactures of all...
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  BASEMENT: FULL HEIGHT OR PARTIAL HEIGHT INSULATION?

  This is the most controversial question about basement insulation. Everyone, however, agrees on two points:-- Outside the wall, go as far down as you can afford to. -- Concrete block walls have large continuous air cavities that run the height of the wall. (The code now requires that this air ...
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  BASEMENT: HEATED SPACE, WARMED SPACE, OR COLD SPACE?

  It is not a good idea to leave a basement completely cold, as this subjects the walls to freezing. A crawl space under the house can be left cold by insulating the floor above, but less insulation is required to simply insulate the perimeter of the crawl space (although you will have higher ...
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  FIVE CHOICES TO MAKE BEFORE INSULATING A BASEMENT OR CRAWL SPACE.

  You must make five decisions before insulating your basement or crawl space:-- Heated space, warmed space, or cold space?-- Interior or exterior insulation?-- Full height or partial height insulation?-- Fiberglass or rigid foam board?-- What R value?I discuss each of these decisions separately in...
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  WHAT FACTORS CAN MAKE BETTER BASEMENTS?

  The three fundamental cures for basement problems are: removing the water from the outside, using granular back fill or a drainage layer against the foundation wall and insulating on the outside of the basement. Any one could stop or prevent a problem, all three of them together is the bes...
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  WHAT FACTORS CAN MAKE BASEMENT PROBLEMS WORSE?

  Any of the following five factors can make matters worse:-- Thermally conductive soils: Dense soils that hold water fairly well, in contact with the basement wall are asking for trouble. Clay soils are even worse in that they allow migration upward of water through capillary action, the prim...
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  BASEMENTS AND CRAWL SPACES

  I love the story that Harold Orr of the National Research Council tells about basements. Years ago, a farmer went into his field, dug a hole and prayed to God that it would fill up with water for his cows. He called it a watering hole. Then a housing developer bought the farm, dug a hole o...