How Much Attic Air Leakage Should I Have

A home energy company has proposed a solution that involves sealing air leaks in the bedroom ceilings attic floor sealing around the chimney weatherizing the attic hatch insulating a few roof areas that the builders missed and adding cellulose to the rest of the attic to bring it up to r 60.

How much attic air leakage should i have.

The attic is the easiest place to add insulation to improve your comfort and the energy efficiency of your home. Of vent for every 300 sq. Energy star states that the most significant air leaks are often hidden in the attic below the insulation. You need to insulate the attic even if you can t easily access it because it s a huge risk for air leaks and potential heat loss.

Most people consider air leaks to be drafts. These areas usually have open stud cavities leading directly into the attic that are huge sources of air leaks photos 1 3. Without exception you should talk to a professional to determine what your home requires. They can disrupt the air flow through the attic when you have gable vents the airflow coming in through the soffit or overhang vents can be disrupted by cross ventilation from the gable vents.

Air leaks also commonly occur at the edge of top plates which normally have a small gap of less than an inch between the plates and drywall. So how much ventilation should you have. Your ventilation system should extract warm air from the attic and replace it with cool dry air via a soffit. By heather hedrick on december 14 2017 11 00 am.

They claim that their work should lower our. Do i have a roof leak or attic condensation. In order to facilitate this exchange of warm and cool air the general rule of thumb suggests installing at least 1 sq. Make note of dropped soffits over kitchen cabinets or bath vanities slanted ceilings over stairways or any other dropped ceiling areas.

Before you crawl into the attic make a quick sketch of the floor plan. If you have a fan pull down stairs or other fixtures in the attic they also need to be. Locating air leaks in the attic. Any small crack or gap in the attic can be a source of.

You need to make sure that ductwork is properly sealed to prevent moisture build up in the attic. Drafts are typically found around windows and doors and while these drafts should be fixed immediately these are not the most substantial air leaks.