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Insulate and Save

Attic Insulation is the Number One Way to Cut Energy Costs

This week’s question comes to us from Kirk, “I am looking at adding insulation to my attic.  The Owens Corning website, www.InsulateAndSave.com, recommends R-49.  However the closest I can find is R-38.  That is 12 inches thick which almost doubles the height of my rafters.  Is it ok to go higher than my rafters?  You might want to know I currently have three inches of blown insulation in my attic.

Kirk, it’s great that you are being proactive about your insulation – especially with heating costs estimated to increase 20 percent this winter Northeasterners may see an increase as high as 37 percent! With 30-40 percent of a home’s heat loss through under-insulated attics, you can save energy and dollars by ensuring yours is properly insulated. And lower your carbon footprint at the same time.

Since you currently have only three inches, you are wise to add more. If you can see your wood joists on the attic floor, you don’t have enough insulation. The Department of Energy recently upped its attic insulation recommendation to up to an R-value of 60 – which in most attics means you need a minimum of 19 inches of fiberglass batt insulation or 22 inches of blown insulation.

www.InsulateAndSave.com is a great resource.  There are a couple options to make sure your attic is properly insulated. As you already have blown insulation, consider adding 19 inches more of blown insulation to get you up to R-60. Depending on where you live and availability, the portable Owens Corning AttiCat® Expanding Blown-In PINK Fiberglas™ Insulation Machine and AttiCat® Expanding Blown-In PINK Fiberglas™ Insulation make it easy and quick to do the job.  Thanks for listening and good luck!

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