Attic Tents for Folding Attic Stairs

Insulating Attic Stairs with an Attic Tent

By Mark J. Donovan




Attic tents can save you a small fortune in home heating bills. An attic tent is designed to fit over your folding attic stairs to form a tight seal and insulation barrier between your attic and home living space.

Folding attic stairs are a major culprit in home heating loss. They typically rely on a simple perimeter weather strip to prevent heat loss to the attic. Unfortunately in most cases the weather strip fails to form a tight seal around the entire perimeter of the folding attic stair system.

An attic tent, on the other hand, encases the entire folding attic stair system to form an air tight seal between the attic and home living space. The manufacturer AtticTent advertises that its attic tents have a 3.2 insulation R-value.



Attic tents are designed with heavy duty, non-corrosive zipper systems to open and close them. There are a number of attic tent manufacturers who each offer different size attic tents. To determine the right size attic tent for your folding attic stairs, simply measure the rough opening of the folding attic stair frame and order the correct size attic tent.

Attic tent installation is very simple. All you need is a staple gun, some caulk and about 15 minutes of time. To install an attic tent, simply go up into your attic, unfold it, and run a bead of caulk around the perimeter of your folding attic stair frame. Next staple the attic tent perimeter flanges to the attic floor frame, such that the attic tent flanges align over the bead of caulk.

Staples should be installed every 2 to 3 inches to create a solid seal. And with that, your attic tent is installed. It’s that quick and easy to install.

So save some money on this year’s home heating bills by installing an attic tent over your folding attic stairs. Their well worth the investment and usually pay for themselves in one year. In addition, they are even eligible for a home heating tax credit.


For help on Attic Conversion and Attic Renovation Projects, see HomeAdditionPlus.com’s Attic Conversion Bid Sheet. The Attic Conversion Bid sheet will help to ensure that you hire the right contractor so that your attic conversion project is built correctly, on time and budget.

Related Information


Additional Attic Conversion and Home Remodeling Design Resources


Free Home Addition / Attic Conversion Price Quotes with No Obligation!

Fill out our 3-5 minute quick and easy form, and receive a free price quote on a attic conversion from one of our pre-screened and licensed home remodeling contractors. This process is free and there is no obligation to continue once you receive your attic conversion price estimate.