Once you ve decided which type is best for you examine the material options and prices to home in on the right product.
Best type of attic insulation in florida.
Residential requirements for insulation are divided by the location in the home.
Adding insulation to the attic is relatively easy and very cost effective.
To find out if you have enough attic insulation measure the thickness of the insulation.
Batts fiberglass or cotton.
You also don t see any gaps that allow you to see all the way down to the ceiling drywall.
Typically current best home building practices indicate an r 30 to r 38 for attic insulation.
According to the florida department of agriculture and consumer services attic insulation is the most important location and best return on investment okay but why.
Insulation requirements in florida.
Broward collier hendry lee miami dade monroe and palm beach and require a minimum r 30 attic insulation.
For diy attic insulation you ve got two choices.
In general an attic s r value should be between r 30 and r 49.
Batts are the most common type of insulation which consist of blankets of interwoven fiberglass or cotton.
Notice how you don t see any of the ceiling framing down at the ceiling level.
Why should you care about insulation for attics.
Most insulation you buy will have a sq ft number for easy reference.
Loose fill or batt the common term for blanket insulation.
The type of insulation you choose for your attic greatly affects what you ll end up paying.
Here s what you need to know about insulation requirements in florida.
The more common types of insulation for this method are.
That s because blown insulation is great at filling the gaps and giving you a good complete layer of insulation.
The installation is fast has good fire performance is effective and affordable the disadvantage is that the effectiveness of the insulation or r value degrades faster than any other type of.
Let s say you measured your attic and you realize your attic has about 9 inches r 30 of insulation and your attic is about 40 sq feet you d need at least 3 inches of extra insulation that covers 40 sq ft to get an r value of r 38.
Let s look at 3 of the most common types of insulation.
Framed wall insulation must meet or exceed r 13.
Is the most popular insulation in south florida for retrofit homes.
Both can be added to uninsulated attics or layered over existing material.
If it is less than r 22 7 inches of fiber glass or rock wool or 6 inches of cellulose you could probably benefit by adding more.
In particularly cold climates you might go up to r 60.
Your home s r value score will guide you toward the type of insulation you need.
For block walls interior insulation must meet or exceed r 7 8 and exterior insulation must be r 6.
Heat rises which means it ends up in the attic.
Climate zone 1 consists of the following south florida counties.