(08-29-2023, 11:47 AM)ajkoontz Wrote: I don't have a picture, but something like this. Mine is not even this nice. Instead of foam walls, I used additional 2x framing around my opening. That makes getting into and out of the attic a little harder because it's almost a foot tall. But like your comment said, the walls are going to take a lot of abuse from getting in and out. The 2x framing is attached to the joists and they're not going anywhere. I can get 2" extruded foam scraps at work so I saved 2 pieces and doubled them up for a 4" lid/ cover. I copied this idea from a magazine or somewhere. Before, I had nothing over the stairs. I did this all at once so I can't say for sure how much a difference the cover makes, but seemed worth it to me to do this little extra to prevent basically just 1/4" plywood between my ceiling and roof.

(08-28-2023, 02:58 PM)DogwoodTales Wrote: Alongside my previous thread about ridge venting there is the issue of re-insulating the attic. 
The existing insulation is old and matted, thus little R value - as is indicated by the fact that when it's 90+ outside here in SE Indiana my ceiling is also 90+ degrees (by an infrared thermometer, assuming the emissivity is within proper range) whilst the floor is 70 degrees.
According to the home inspection last year he doesn't think the insulation contains asbestos, but we didn't have it tested either.

Question-
I'm finding two schools of thought, so to speak, on the subject of removing the old insulation before adding more  - one is to remove it and the other is to leave it.
I find both to be fairly compelling in their pros and cons. I'm leaning towards just leaving it only because it's less work, but what would you do/recommend?


On that note, I also read that since the existing insulation has a paper face that additional insulation (on top of the old) should be unfaced. Does that sound right?
Lastly, I'm wondering that if I leave the old insulation should I run the new rolls of insulation between the joists or cross over the joists?
At the moment I'm not considering doing blown in insulation. One reason is because the new vented soffit won't be don't done for quite a while (due to contractor availability) and I need to get this attic re-insulated asap (as soon as it cools down a bit) and I'm thinking it will be exponentially easier to slide baffles up into the eaves from the outside of the house when the old soffit is taken out rather than me trying to crawl under a 4/12 pitch to get the baffle back in there from inside the attic. So with rolled fiberglass I can keep the insulation from blocking up the eaves whereas with blown-in insulation I won't be able to keep it out.

(08-29-2023, 04:37 PM)Snipe Hunter Wrote: If you can show me a pic of the insulation, I could give you pretty accurate odds whether it contains asbestos or not.
Asbestos will usually look like vermiculite because it's mixed with vermiculite. It won't have a paper face. It came in bags and it was dumped in the attic like mulch. 100% asbestos was also used to a lesser degree and it can look a little like cellulose but smaller pieces. Although I've never seen it, ridged asbestos boards were also used. Maybe 20" wide, 4' long and a couple inches thick.

Asbestos/Vermiculite: 

(08-30-2023, 07:52 PM)DogwoodTales Wrote: Snipe - Going by your description I would say I do not have asbestos insulation. Last year the home inspector poked around it for signs if anything white that might indicate the presence of asbestos and he didn't find any.