Insulation for 2×4 construction
Folks — I am trying to figure out my insulation options for a kitchen remodel and hope you can advise me. Since I’m opening up walls, I’d like to re-insulate (it’s chilly here in Minnesota and there’s not much existing insulation in this 1940 house). I have 2×4 existing construction and don’t want to fir out the studs because it’s a tiny kitchen and inches truly count.
I used icynene in a different room and love the results, but it wouldn’t be cost-effective here — I have only two exterior walls to insulate (one 11 feet long and one 16 feet long, with patio doors and two windows taking up some of the square footage) and the icynene installers here have a minimum charge of $1,000.
If I put in rigid foam, which I think I can stack to achieve the necessary R-value if I understand this correctly, can I carve it around wires and pipes? Are there other foam applications that are less expensive than icynene that you would recommend? I’d really appreciate your input.
Thanks!
Replies
Greetings dellen,
As a first time poster Welcome to Breaktime.
This post to your question will bump the thread through the 'recent discussion' listing again.
Perhaps it will catch someones eye that can help you with advice.
Cheers
I have recently faced a similar situation on my own home remodel. My home isn't very large either, but I elected to add a layer of 1" styrofoam insulation over the studs. I laid up the sheets horizontally. I then sheetrocked using long screws. The styrofoam adds R-5 plus the added benefit of covering the studs. This is the first winter for the remodel and we're not really moved in yet. But, so far, the house feels much better than ever before. I don't think we will miss the 1".
Jeff
Look into dense pack cellulose.
Cost for that small an area should be considerably less than the foam.
Dave
Most bang for the buck would be 1" foil faced iso ("Thermax" is one brand, and "Tuff-R" (sp) is another) on the inside of the studs and then use longer sheetrock screws. Use those button nails sparingly to fasten.
Like another poster said, dense pack cells in the stud spaces, then the iso, which serves as: a vapor barrier if the seams are taped; a thermal bridge barrier; and a radiant reflector.
I put rigid foam in my bathroom stud bays, closing air gaps with a foam gun. Fairly labor intensive but I expect the results will be much better than FG (especially since there are gaps in the sheathing). The only things I had to work around though were nails and blocking.
I wanted XPS for bathroom insulation because I was worried about moist vapor for FG or cells. Presumably any dew point will be in the foam and the wall can dry (slowly) either to interior or exterior. I did not put in a VB to allow drying both ways (I'm in NE).
Short answer, yes you can, carve it up and fit it around wiring etc,, use spray foam to seal areas that have gaps (I like the Hilti stuff but Great Stuff and other brands seem to work as well) .. Not the cheapest solution short term but the best solution long term..
Just for information, the walls that I have that are foam, tested at a tempurature of 66 degrees, while the walls that were insulated with fiberglas were only 49 degrees (this on a 10 below day here in Minnesota ) the thermostat was set at 73 degrees) Do the calculations of area and you'll see how quickly foam will pay back compared to other types of insulation..
Edited 1/26/2005 12:08 pm ET by frenchy