{"items": [{"author": "Michael", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=915436151492", "anchor": "fb-915436151492", "service": "fb", "text": "You said it, \"a large air leak from the rest of the house into the empty space\". There's a lot of hype about insulation, but not enough emphasis about preventing air infiltration, I think mostly because the contractor can show you he's putting in measurable quantity of identifiable insulation, but air infiltration is not so measurable just by looking at the job. I will make one comment though ... It is not necessarily the size of the air leak. It may be a small leak into the empty space from below, and a small leak out of the empty space to above, to vent out the ridge vent, and this allows a continual flow of warm air through that empty space. You want to find and seal the air infiltration from below, to keep warm air out of that empty space. The venting out the top is just fine, it is even desirable, that's why the ridge vent is there.", "timestamp": "1512948578"}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=915436151492&reply_comment_id=915443861042", "anchor": "fb-915436151492_915443861042", "service": "fb", "text": "→ \"that's why the ridge vent is there\"
The top of our roof is insulated along the rafters, so we don't have a ridge vent. It's only this small section that is insulated like a traditional 'cold' attic.", "timestamp": "1512952953"}, {"author": "Michael", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=915438646492", "anchor": "fb-915438646492", "service": "fb", "text": "And also ... There should be a soffit vent or similar venting, to allow a small flow of cold air coming in at the bottom of the empty space, venting the space. The air flow is in the soffit, through the space, and out the ridge vent. And the floor of the empty space should be insulated, if it is not then the contractor failed to notice the obvious, because otherwise you are heating that space from below. If the contractor did not insulate between the joists below that floor, unroll some sort of insulation all across the floor of that space. Make sure the soffit vent air inflow is not blocked by the new insulation you place there.", "timestamp": "1512949902"}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=915438646492&reply_comment_id=915444000762", "anchor": "fb-915438646492_915444000762", "service": "fb", "text": "→ I think the empty area is entirely unvented. I believe the house has no soffit vents (which along most of the roof wouldn't be helpful anyway) and there's no vent at the top of the section.", "timestamp": "1512953031"}, {"author": "Michael", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=915445018722", "anchor": "fb-915445018722", "service": "fb", "text": "In that case, based on info you gave in replies to my two comments above, you have two choices. (1) Insulate well the roof, and end (outside) wall, of that empty space, and allow some ventilation into and out of the empty space by interior house air, and now you have a complete insulated exterior of the house, and the insulation between the living space and the empty space is not being very helpful. (2) Do as I said above, but have a vent in the soffit or side wall of the house which lets cold air in near the floor at the non-outside-wall end of the empty space, and a vent out the outside end wall near the top of the empty space, to allow the empty space to fill with cold air, just like any attic is supposed to fill with cold air. Do not try to mix these two, the empty space should either be done like attic done properly, or done like living space done properly.", "timestamp": "1512953647"}, {"author": "Mac", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=915598106932", "anchor": "fb-915598106932", "service": "fb", "text": "In various circumstances of snow and temperature, I've taken pictures for diagnosis of the heat flow problems. Got any pics?", "timestamp": "1513038655"}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=915598106932&reply_comment_id=915598461222", "anchor": "fb-915598106932_915598461222", "service": "fb", "text": "→ Click through to the post?", "timestamp": "1513038705"}, {"author": "Mac", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=915598106932&reply_comment_id=915598750642", "anchor": "fb-915598106932_915598750642", "service": "fb", "text": "→ Sheepish grin.", "timestamp": "1513038785"}, {"author": "Bil", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=915622782482", "anchor": "fb-915622782482", "service": "fb", "text": "I love your posts like this!", "timestamp": "1513041401"}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=916929758292", "anchor": "fb-916929758292", "service": "fb", "text": "We had the insulation put in through MassSave, so I called them and they scheduled an inspector to come out, which happened this morning. The inspector walked around and checked the walls with an infrared camera. It turns out that the end triangle of the batt area isn't insulated at all, which explains the heat loss. MassSave is goin to pass this along to the contractor who did the work, who will then come back and fix it.", "timestamp": "1513691841"}, {"author": "Michael", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=916929758292&reply_comment_id=916938261252", "anchor": "fb-916929758292_916938261252", "service": "fb", "text": "→ The end triangle which is not insulated ... you mean the interior end of that area, not the outside wall, right?", "timestamp": "1513695709"}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=916929758292&reply_comment_id=916951569582", "anchor": "fb-916929758292_916951569582", "service": "fb", "text": "→ Yes, the interior end. The exterior end is supposed to be external temperature.", "timestamp": "1513699121"}, {"author": "Michael", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=916929758292&reply_comment_id=916955147412", "anchor": "fb-916929758292_916955147412", "service": "fb", "text": "→ They found that the floor of that area is insulated, as it should be?", "timestamp": "1513700745"}, {"author": "Jeff Kaufman", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=916929758292&reply_comment_id=916956579542", "anchor": "fb-916929758292_916956579542", "service": "fb", "text": "→ Yes, the floor and long wall both looked insulated with an infrared camera.", "timestamp": "1513701188"}, {"author": "Michael", "source_link": "https://www.facebook.com/jefftk/posts/915434599602?comment_id=916929758292&reply_comment_id=916960841002", "anchor": "fb-916929758292_916960841002", "service": "fb", "text": "→ The the inside end triangle is all that needs to be insulated, as you said. But you still need to treat it as an attic, which means that you need to have small airflow in near floor (preferably at inside end) as if a soffit vent -- and small airflow out near peak (obviously, on end wall) as if a ridge vent.", "timestamp": "1513703347"}]}