Insulate a 12,0000sf shop on the cheap?
I have a buddy who has a 12,000 sf millwork shop. Current roof is a three tab truss roof open to the shop floor below. The shop is heated with gas infrared radiant heaters from above. We want to figure out the cheapest, most effective way of gaining some efficiency. I think we have the most obvious bases covered… 1/2″ foil faced polyiso, thermo-ply, or astro-foil stapled to the underside of the trusses, fiberglass or foam between the trusses, etc. No matter how you slice it, 12,000 s.f. of material is going to be expensive to buy and even more expensive to install. Any one got any wacky ideas or input on cost vs. efficiency? In this case, I don’t think the overall R-value is as important as some radiant reflectivity and stopping airflow and heat from rising. But I could be wrong…
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It'd be less expensive to buy snowmobile suits for everybody who works there.
How about screwing up some steel to the bottom of the rafters. I am talking about the type that is used for roofing. As money allows insulation then can be blown in the attic. Another benefit is that the steel can be purchased already painted. I used this approach in a shop before and it worked great. A couple of scaffolding sections on wheels are a definite asset during installation. I got the steel thru a contractor who called it liner steel and it cost me about $25 a square. None of my screws match but they were free, they were the ones that were left over from different jobs.
rock and paint the cieling gloss white...
do it in stages...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Have a buddy who had the same need on a shop half that size. He put white painted steel siding on the bottom of the trusses and insulated on the top. Looked great, worked great and really reflected the light. DanT
For a job this size it's worth it hiring an expert in insulation design. For the cost of his fee, you'll be sure you get the best reduction in energy costs for the money you spend.
Install numerous overhead variable speed fans. (whirly birds) Get that heat to circulate downward, where it'll do the most good
If you are within driving distance of Lancaster PA I have a tip for you.
The shop is in Conshohocken, right outside Philly. Easy drive to Lancaster from here. E-mail me at [email protected] or reply here if you prefer. Thank you.
Thanks to everyone else for their input.