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tofu_flavored

help with adding attic insulation/ventilation

tofu_flavored
13 years ago

Hello - I think I need to add insulation to my attic. I live in Atlanta on the second floor of a two-story building; my place is pretty cold/drafty in the winter and hard to cool in the summer. I have looked at many different websites about attic insulation and I think the blown-in cellulose would be beneficial. My attic space is insulated only on the attic floor with R-19 fiberglass batts between the joists. The batts are about level with the top of the joists, about 6 inches. (I hope I'm using this terminology correctly.) The building is older - from the 1950s I think - and I suspect the attic is not sealed well. Shouldn't I look under the batting to check on any leaks, and if that's the case, should I keep that batting or just remove it all and have new cellulose insulation blown in? The current batting doesn't seem to be in bad shape, ie, water damaged or too compacted. The other issue is that I don't think the attic is well ventilated; it gets *extremely* hot in the summer. Do I need to determine this and possibly resolve this issue (adding soffits? etc.) before I add insulation? Do I just need to get someone who knows what they're doing to look at everything?

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