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Insulating Unvented Crawl Spaces
How to Insulate Unvented Crawl Spaces
By: Mark J. Donovan
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If you are tired of having a damp
and humid crawl space and having to open and close crawl space vents that
never really seem to make a difference, then you may want to consider
converting your crawl space into an unvented crawl space. The key components
necessary to convert a vented crawl space into an unvented one is the
introduction of insulation, a vapor barrier, and heat into the crawl space.
Insulating unvented crawl spaces
enables the crawl space to effectively become an extension of a basement, or
effectively a half-height basement. |
Like a basement, an insulated
unvented crawl space is not exposed to the outside air temperatures and
humidity levels. And when insulated and protected from ground moisture
permeation, an unvented crawl space can become a useful and useable space for
storing items.
Insulating Unvented Crawl Space
Materials
Insulating unvented crawl spaces is
a project that most do-it-yourself homeowners can tackle and the materials
required are relatively inexpensive. To insulate an unvented crawl space, you
will need; caulk, faced fiberglass batt or rolled insulation with an R-value of
R-19, a vapor barrier (large sheets of 6 mil polyethylene plastic), duct tape,
and some sand and gravel. In addition, you will also want to dress
appropriately when insulating a crawl space. Make sure to wear clothes that
cover your entire body and wear gloves, goggles and a mask to protect yourself
from the fiberglass insulation.
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Insulating Unvented Crawl Space
Instructions
When insulating unvented crawl spaces
it is better to insulate the crawl space walls versus the crawl space ceiling as
this way there is no need to insulate plumbing pipes and ductwork.
First, caulk around any holes in the
crawl space walls to prevent any air infiltration into the crawl space. |
| Next, apply a vapor barrier to the floor of
the unvented crawl space. The vapor barrier should go up the sides of the
crawl space walls by about 1 foot and should be taped with duct tape along
the length of the wall. Cover the vapor barrier with sand and then gravel
to protect the vapor barrier from being damaged when you crawl or walk on
it. By installing a vapor barrier on the floor of the crawl space the
humidity levels in the crawl space will be dramatically reduced and thus
prevent the insulation from becoming damp and moldy. |
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Next, assuming a portion of the
crawl space has framed knee walls, install the faced fiberglass roll or batt
insulation in-between the wall stud bays by sliding it up snuggly against the
wall sheathing. The faced side of the insulation should face inwards towards
the crawl space. If the crawl space does not have framed knee walls then
install pieces of batt/role insulation into the header and stringer bay areas,
next to the band joists.
For the concrete, or masonry
sections of the crawl space walls install faced batt/rolled insulation, or
rigid foam insulation up against them, again with the faced insulation facing
inwards towards the crawl space room.
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Hold the batt/rolled insulation in
place by nailing a narrow furring strip to the mudsills where the top of the
insulation is sandwiched in-between. Make sure the insulation extends down onto
the floor of the crawl space and overlaps the crawl space floor by a couple of
feet. Use 2x4s to hold the batt/rolled insulation in place up against the wall.
Finally, introduce heat into the crawl space to allow the insulated unvented
crawl space to have some semblance of warmth, similar to a basement.
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Related
Crawl Space Information
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