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Insulating ceiling of my barn/shop? & sealing rim I need advise

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alaskansteve

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I'm getting ready to insulate the ceiling in the barn. There is no ridge vent but the soffits/eaves?? do have vents so what should i do about the insulation. I'm thinking of using 6" thick fiberglass faced w/brown paper betwwen the joists and i'm not going to put up any sheetrock or covering until later this year. So will just stapling the batts to the joists hold it up there or i was thinking of ripping some long laths to help hold the insulation up there. I need advise as to what i'm thinking of doing is right or wrong. All i know for now is that insulating the walls has already made a big difference on how it holds heat from the woodstove.

 

Another question ???

 

The bottom of the plywood siding on the outside of the barn doesn't close the gap on the space between the ground & the siding and i've got spaces that you could throw a cat through that let in a LOT of COLD air, the barn was built on sonna tubes so i've got to figure out how to seal the space between the ground & the siding. ANY IDEAS ??? I was thinking spray foam but i think its too cold to use it & cement or concrete must be to cold for that also. So what are your ideas.

 

looking towards outside walls

 

525

 

looking toward ridge

 

525

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View PostSteve, even if you dont have ridge vent, you still need to put baffles up in each bay to maintain some air space between that plywood roof deck and the insulation. If you staple the heck out of the insulation (paper down) it should stay up well.

 

 

^ Exactly. Put up the baffles (we call it proper vent here) then it looks like R-30 will fit in between the rafters. The R-30 should allow you to fill the space and you should be able to staple the vapor barrier right to the bottom edge of the rafters. You could easily cut in a ridge vent in the spring if you like.

 

In terms of your siding issue it is too cold to do much now so I would just buy bags of sand and stick them in the areas where your voids are. In the spring you can deal with those gaps properly.

 

Good Luck...stay warm!

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proper vents, AKA por-vents are needed for sure

 

air should flow freely from the eaves up and out the ridge somewhere

 

if you don't have them already, some collar ties that will allow an air space above them would be needed if you don't have a ridge vent and only have gable vents

 

and yes, after insulating, strapping is applied over it to provide a fastening surface for interior sheathing

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Thanks guys,

 

do i need to do the baffles all the way to the ridge or just down by the eaves? won't the insulation have a bit of a gap/sag between the plywood and the fiberglass? The joists are 2x10's so if i use 6" insulation won't there be enough gap for airflow?. I was planning on a ridge vent but its a tin roof and its way to cold and windy(blowing 25-40 today) this time of year to be playing on a roof.

 

Here's a pic of the barn i'm only insulating the long low sloped part of the the barn, basicly only half the building.

 

525

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View PostThanks guys,

do i need to do the baffles all the way to the ridge or just down by the eaves? won't the insulation have a bit of a gap/sag between the plywood and the fiberglass? The joists are 2x10's so if i use 6" insulation won't there be enough gap for airflow?. I was planning on a ridge vent but its a tin roof and its way to cold and windy(blowing 25-40 today) this time of year to be playing on a roof.

Here's a pic of the barn i'm only insulating the long low sloped part of the the barn, basicly only half the building.

 

Attachment 206669

Yes Steve, ya need that airflow all the way up to the ridge, or any attic/collar ties you might have. And technically you're right, R-19 (6") wont fill up the bays and will leave room for airflow. What we're suggesting is you put in the baffles/proper vents and then you can get an R-30 in there for much better insulation. Plus, it creates a bit of an actual barrier between the insulation and the plywood. Better for the plywood and roof. The styrofoam baffles go for very short change, and can save you many dollars down the road. The ridge vent can be cut in come springtime smile.gif
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View PostYes Steve, ya need that airflow all the way up to the ridge, or any attic/collar ties you might have. And technically you're right, R-19 (6") wont fill up the bays and will leave room for airflow. What we're suggesting is you put in the baffles/proper vents and then you can get an R-30 in there for much better insulation. Plus, it creates a bit of an actual barrier between the insulation and the plywood. Better for the plywood and roof. The styrofoam baffles go for very short change, and can save you many dollars down the road. The ridge vent can be cut in come springtime smile.gif

 

Again thanks for all the advise guys, i'll look for some baffles when i go for the insulation and plan on doing the ridge vent this spring. Any of you get up here sometime and i owe you some fishing time.

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Steve,

 

If you drill 3/4" holes in the rafters in the 3 1/2" space above the insulation that will help with the air flow. If the soffits are vented you should be okay. Just make sure there are vents in the soffit between most of the rafters! Add a ridge vent when you can!

Time is the best teacher, but unfortunately it will kill it's pupil!
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Hey guys just a update on the insulation job. I got it done last week and have been trying to get stuff back together inside. Its been friggin cold here again but with the woodstove just putting along its been REAL cozy inside. It was 10 below zero today and i had it up around 60 degrees in there in no time at all. Again a big thanks for all the advise.

 

525

 

525

 

525

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Steve,

 

Looks good! Nice "man cave". All this talk of roof ventilation, soffit vents and ridge vents is geared towards prolonging the life of asphalt roof shingles. Your roof is metal, so that should not be a concern. Venting humidity might be an issue, but I don't think you have much humidity there. I would just watch the roof for the rest of the winter, and see how the snow on the roof behaves. If it melts and causes big icicles, go for the ridge vents. If it just lays there, skip it.

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