How to Cool a Hot Attic | Hot Attic Solutions | Hot Home Repairs
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- Опубликовано: 19 июн 2017
- Learn how to cool your hot attic. We recently got a call from a local homeowner saying that the attic, in which their kids liked to sleep in occasionally, was becoming unbearably hot. Their attic had no insulation on the cathedral-style ceiling walls, and therefore it pretty much just collected thermal energy all day until it became downright uncomfortable to be in.
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Check out our latest video on radiant barrier and how it can help keep your attic cooler! ruclips.net/video/Vd0EMHJ4Lxs/видео.html
I was just wondering the home owners didn't choose an option for radiant barrier film against the sheathing? those soffit baffles would have given the rb the necessary 1" air gap it needs to work. advantage of batt insulation is a roof leak won't go unnoticed compared to ... foam. in 2018 I had the double sided perf rb you describe added under my new sheathing. contractor could only find 1/2" prefab rb osb so we went with a roll of rb and thicker normal osb. I have 2x4 rafters and lots of roof webbing obstacles, so don't have much of an insulation option, possibly staple housewrap under the 2x4 to help direct soffit airflow to the ridge vent. when maintaining the hvac in the attic, the radiant barrier alone has made working in georgia's july sun - hot..from unbearably hot :)
Thanks for the ride along CSNinja and thanks for the tech tips.👍 But why paper always in on batts?
Thanks for the comment! If you are in a climate and your assembly is such that you need a vapor barrier, then kraft facing would be towards the interior.
Great video but I am wondering how and if it would be wise to incorporate the foil to help with radiant heat.
Put the paper OVER the stud. Unless you are gluing drywall, the staple won't stop a drywall screw. The vapor barrier needs to be as complete as possible - side stapling defeats that.
Thanks for the comment!
It also compresses the fiberglass somewhat which potentially reduces R value (slightly). Most people seem to do this Michael's way tho. Great video!
That 90 seconds of lost was certainly educational.
Thank you for the idea on the Solar Fan!
What do you do about vents in the Roof. Because they love most of the hot air NI live in Phoenix Arizona by the way.
Hey guys love the video. Im from the UK and work in many attics which dont have any crawlboards and are packed with insulation on the floors, any ideas how to cool the attic space (fan will obviously blow around fiberglass)
Thanks for watching! Adding a radiant barrier may help with cooling the attic.
What R- value insulation do you recommend for the cathedral insulation? How about poly-ISO boards?
My house was built in 1867 (yes 18). No soffit vents, no roof ridge vent, just an exhaust fan in the wall. A typical new england metal roof has been installed some time in the past. I have a walk in attic over a cold kitchen. I want to stop the heat loss from the kitchen up into the attic. I am planning on insulating the "walls". They slope from ceiling peak to the floor. Would I need baffles? This room is fully floored and has some insulation under the floor boards. Thanks for all your videos. They are very helpful. PS. an insulation company wanted to just blow in insulation which would mean I couldn't use the space as a room again. I didn't like that option.
We no longer do attic work, but if you're interested, we just launched our "Ask a Ninja" page where you can submit your specific situation and up to 3 questions and for a chance to have Michael answer them over the phone. Check it out here: crawlspaceninja.com/ask-a-ninja/
You should look into spray foaming. You may want to consult an engineer to ensure it can be brought up to modern standards
Many options for you, but remember that northern houses have different needs than southern ones. Ice dams are a big worry up north, though your metal roof combats it. Something needs to prevent warm moist air from your kitchen working its way up to your cold attic roof and then condensing and freezing. Glad you didn't just blow in insulation, as that would have caused the condensation inside the insulation. Baffles are one way of venting that moisture up, but you need good ventilation at the ridge line. You can, fortunately, retrofit a ridge vent on your metal roof.
I had a similar situation to yours. I put in a ridge vent in the process of replacing my shingles. I put baffles in to vent air immediately under the roof decking, then fiberglass under that. An important step is a vapor barrier between the fiberglass and the warm, moist inside air. You can use plastic film, but that seems to have lost favor recently. As an additional block, I used foil backed bubble wrap to form the baffles. I'm not sure it added much, but the price vs baffles was nearly identical.
Someone here suggested foam, which is a great idea as it both insulates and blocks moisture. It would likely not need the baffles either. It is pricier per unit R value than fiberglass, but if it can avoid the other steps, it might be worth it.
Whatever you do, get more than one recommendation. Good luck.
The insulation company placed insulation all around the cement is that good enough to keep the area warm. Do I need a dehumidifier installed. My house is 26x44. My crawl space is 4ft in height
"all that thermal heat"
As opposed to heat from the fuzz. LOL
Good vid, I might have learned something!
If you do not plan to ever put up drywall, what about using foil covered foam board to insulate with (would act as its own baffle too)?
It's been 4 years, I'm gonna take his response as "Yeah I don't know about that."
What was old/new temperatures?
What was savings on monthly energy bill?
If you were going to live or make a living space in the attic, would you follow the baffle method?
Did this make the house more comfortable?
If dont have baffled, it will mold is that right?!!
OK I finally installed thermometers in my attic and outside and garage. The attic goes about 20F degrees above outside temperature but cools off pretty quick at night and last night it went down to the 60’s and so did my attic. We live in Southern California and it gets hot here and triple digits. Do you think it I should put an attic fan in just for the daytime when it gets really hot outside and in the attic
It may help cool your attic during the warmer months.
I just did two days ago. Makes a huge difference for our room directly under the attic. Another one sucking air from the house up the attic would help too.
Thats pretty cool...👍
Michael, did this home have a crawlspace? If so, did you focus on it first? Also do you have pre\post temperature\humidity data from the project?
Good morning Whitney, We dont have those readings from the project. For this project it was just an attic job that we completed. Hope this helps!
I like the vlog type video
That's great space, I would drywall that room and use it
What do I do with a hipped roof on a farm house that only has about 2 feet of ridge vent
Looks nice.
Thank you!
I'm in the Memphis area, and it gets UNBELIEVABLY HOT! And the humidity makes it just that much worse. I wish you would've had a Temp dial/gauge to show the difference, before and after. And I've had to deal with 110* heat index, 100% humidity at 2 am!! And not a cloud in the sky! Then get home, strip down to jump in my 18' pool that's somewhere near 80+* But you couldn't just float, because you'd get eaten by the mosquitos. they were not as bad as Wisconsin or Minnesota, but still bad.
So I’m not sure what the laws are where you are but here we have to have overlapping continuous vapour barrier, so the paper (which is no longer even minimum code here) would HAVE to overlap on the rafters
Great video thanks! I’m in Texas and my attic gets HOT! With a really large attic, is it true that I should get 1 solar intake and 1 solar exhaust fan? Thanks!
Texas does get hot!, whether its solar or electric ventilation is recommended.
What was the end project cost ? I need this... I just moved into a loft apartment/ garage and I need help cause it's super hot. I'm in N.C .
Hi Lisa, it depends on material and labor costs in your area, as well as the size and needs of your space. We'd recommend contacting a local contractor in your area to get some quotes.
I can't believe you can work with the insulation without wearing gloves! I guess some people are immune to the itchiness of fiberglass. Great video explanation on how to insulate the attic.
Don't those fans cause a negative pressure in the attic and make conditioned air leak up into that space? Dr. Energy Saver has a product that just tightly seals the attic up with foam board that has a radiant barrier and the attic space is then near the same temp as the conditioned space.
An important factor not mentioned in this video is soffit vents. These need to be nearly continuous. With these in place, the baffles in place, and a ridge vent, the pressure difference is minimized. Of course, with these in place, you may not need the powered ventilation. Just depends on your particular situation.
Resist the urge to use the attic as a closet keep it empty and clear, for better air flow and circulation. Rugs are bad heat absorbers and humidifiers, cold hard floors carry the day in hot summer days! If you have one of those bad week long heatwaves use a quick put up and take down shade or tent awning and shade any windows that take in full sun between 11AM-sundown.
I've redone all my window screens with solar shade screening and fabricated a freestanding screen for the room on the second story that gets sun almost all day, it has helped a lot, now my over insulated/no ventilation knee walls are next, I can feel heat actually radiating off them from the attic being 150 degrees
Nice Ram! Gps all day haha😂
Is there an ideal percentage of allowed humidity in an attic - basically what's a safe amount of humidity ? Thanks
We try to keep it under 50 percent
how much does this cost?
This is not the right solution. You would be better off augmenting the attic floor insulation and taking that to R49. Before doing that that attic should be air sealed, and baffles installed along the soffits to extend 3” above the insulation. If necessary put a radiant barrier on the west facing attic walls. Solar fans are.... ok but may not be necessary if the attic floors is air sealed and insulated properly.
Not if you want it to be anything more than storage...
How would you detect a roof leak if you add insulation to the roof rafters??
Use a flashlight to inspect the underside of the roof sheathing and rafters for shiny or wet spots. If the leak is older, there may be rotted wood or mold growing nearby. The insulation batts that cover the rafter bays may also be wet if they are insulated.
Your attic is making your home lose valuable heat in the winter and causing your home to heat up in the summer if it is not properly insulated and ventilated. Thanks for watching. 😀 Hot Attic Solution DIY Products now available with FREE shipping: goo.gl/NDfYtd
Could you have just installed radiant barrier and have the same results?
Yes, very likely. Radiant barrier does a great job at keeping the attic cooler. Check out the most recent video we did about it: ruclips.net/video/6vVfdM4yzMs/видео.html
I could see my fingers stapled to those rafters with a slap stapler lol
😂 Please use with caution!
What model number of the solar attic fan are you using?
The Solar Royal SR1800 Solar Attic Vent Fan. We did a review of it here: ruclips.net/video/7VTbheYFYNc/видео.html
@@CrawlSpaceNinja in this video (not the unboxing solar panel) you mentioned it had a thermostat that was activate at 70°, is that something the you can do a video on how to install solar fan with thermostat activating setting?
@@vizioasdf For the Solar Royal product the thermostat is built into the unit. No installation needed, it just hangs from the fan into the attic.
Depends on your square footage
My apt ducts are my apt dont cool till 10pm at nite. I know 3rd floors are the worst but I never had problems except in this one. Texas summers suck
Cut little holes and buy cans of spray foam to shoot in hot zones, nothing bad could ever come of this idea
I wish i have insulation but my attic has drywall so I'm done for
How much did is cost to do that?
The prices vary, considering each attic to be different and where the materials are purchased.
Is that Ram a 6 speed?
It's not. It's an 8 speed. Has the rotary knob. Would be a column shifter if it was the 6 speed.
This is a diy job. You can easily save thousands by buying your materials and doing it yourself on a Sunday morning.
If you are looking for products check out diy.crawlspaceninja.com
Ok dude, post your attic DIY attic, thanks
The previous owner stuffed insulation into the soffits of our 900 sq ft bungalow. We have no baffle at all. I am sure the trapped heat heats up our house in summer. I cant go up there and crawl around I have arthritis in my knees.
I'm sorry to hear that! Hope you are able to find a company than can help resolve these issues.
Find an attic insulation company to fix it.
Why not put radiant barrier?
Why don't use polyvents?
I think any open vents would detract from the powered vent (pull in air through other vents rather than pulling air just from the attic).
Radiant barrier Would be easy to add but would be best if those baffles were coated with aluminum on the Sun side (to act as the radiant barrier)
I installed radiant barrier in my home, my usage went from around 1800 kw per month down to around 900 to 1000 kw per month
Steve Hann I installed insulation in the rafters just like they show in the video and I also installed radiant barrier on the attic floor after doubling to r60. I did this to keep my winter heating in the house rather than escaping up and out the ceiling.
72 degrees? my ac barley hits 75
Why not just staple a radiant barrier material?
Feel free to submit a Ask a Ninja Form for expert advice with more insight on this! Link - crawlspaceninja.com/ask-a-ninja/
In my area most people who can afford it just spray foam the rafters and run HVAC in the attic.
To make your house energy efficient and comfortable you need to make your house like a thermos. A thermos can keep a drink hot or cold for 24 hours. Why? Because is 100% air tight all the way around and insulated all the way around. Fiberglass is NOT an air tight insulation. Hot air from the roof decking can easily move through the sides of the fiberglass and paper. The most effective way to make an attic energy efficient is to spray 7 inches of open cell spray foam to the bottom of the roof decking and seal off the soffit vents and roof vents. This will make the attic space 100% air tight and insulated. This strategy is known to cut electric bills in half. Using spray foam under the roof decking and eliminating attic ventilation will not shorten roof shingle life as well. I have a letter from GAF shingle manufacturer that spray foam insulation will not void their warranty. Research open cell spray foam. I will be doing it on my own house.
It’s not that this is bad advice it’s just not completely accurate. The building science has proven this approach to be less than optimal in most cases and detrimental to both the life of the shingle and the life of the decking because it does not adequately address thermal bridging. Also, closed cell is a better answer for air tightness. I would advise you to consult someone proficient in addressing the whole house building envelope as it performs as a system and not just a collection of components
They installed the bats wrong. The edges are suppose to go over the studs not beside them.
No, that is a widely done practice by both contractors & homeowners for many, many years.
This is what I need. Over my garage. So it won't keep getting so hot.
Reflectixe bubble wrap is a excellent choice for most stituations. However you must install 1 x 4 boards horizontally instead of stapling directly to rafters. This allows the heat to not get trapped on any corners. This also has a R-value of at least 6. I like to call it redneck spray foam. This prevents any heat from entering your attic. I used pallet boards in place of 1 x 4 because of lumber prices. Works great
That ain't NOTHING! Nice attic you can stand up in. Try a 3 foot attic being the highest point!
That sounds like a challenging task! Good luck.
Solar attic fans will cool down the attic BUT will cause a roof leak.... eventually .. !!
For professional people this was very poor ! Why didn't fissicly check the cealing(floor) to make sure of insulation? Why didn't they put reflecting foil up? Why didn't they put foam sheets in or spray foam with fire retarder? Why didn't they put a moister barrier up? Fiberglass only slowes air flow it does not insalate! Common solar fans really! Did they check sofits for openings? This gives us a really bad rap !
We definitely do recommend radiant barrier in most cases, and would recommend the other things you mention depending on the needs of the homeowner. In the case of this video, sometimes the homeowner only wants what they want done and you can't force them to spend more money. We have a large library of other attic solution videos available if you'd like to check them out. It's hard to cover everything in just one! Thanks for watching. 🙂