When a home is fully finished the scales of batt vs.
Attic insulation batts vs blown.
When blown into attics and wall spaces loose fill fiberglass offers an average r 2 5 thermal value per inch the higher the number the greater the insulating effect.
Attic insulation is accomplished with either fiberglass blankets batt or blown in insulation.
When comparing blown in insulation vs.
Current energy standards recommend the installation of a first layer of craft faced moisture barrier fiberglass batt.
Blown in varieties however typically reach a peak of around a 2 8 r factor.
That s because blown insulation is great at filling the gaps and giving you a good complete layer of insulation.
Notice how you don t see any of the ceiling framing down at the ceiling level.
Batts you must also examine the r values.
Batt or rolled insulation or blown loose fill insulation fiberglass or cellulose can be installed on top of old insulation.
You d need a thickness of.
When insulating an attic space many homeowners ask us which is better blown in or batt insulation.
I don t know about that but it s a common insulation material that works much better in the blown form than in batts.
Batt insulation take time to read this column.
We use both blown in and batt insulation depending on the situation at hand.
Depending on the material of the insulation the installation method may vary slightly.
Blown in insulation requires a professional.
On the negative side blown insulation will normally require a professional who has access to the blowing machine that is needed.
Both blown in and batt roll insulation can be installed in different areas of a home including the attic and the walls.
Batt insulation is available at home centers and lumberyards.
Compared to blown in insulation batts can reach a resistance rating r factor of over 3 1.
Fiberglass insulation is available in blown in form and so is cellulose which is referred to as loose fill cellulose.
The photo above shows an attic insulated with blown cellulose.
While the manufacturer will state the actual r value of the insulation that you use according to the department of energy you can expect an r value range between 2 9 and 3 8 per inch of thickness for standard fiberglass batts and between 3 7 and 4 3 for high performance fiberglass batts.
In short there is less chance of error with blown insulation as compared to batts.
Blown in insulation clearly lean toward using blown in insulation.
The answer is it depends.
Any existing batt or roll insulation in the attic should have the facing against the attic drywall floor or no facing at all.
Insulation should be rolled out perpendicular to the joists and unfaced rolls should be used.
You also don t see any gaps that allow you to see all the way down to the ceiling drywall.
Before choosing blown vs.
