Blown in Insulation – protection where you need it
Loose fill insulation can be blown into the walls of the house and attic to help increase the efficiency of the house as well as decrease the heating and cooling expenses to a great extent. Blown in insulation may be taken up as an easy do-it-yourself kind of project or the services of a professional insulation contractor may be hired to do the job.
Tools and materials required
The materials required include loose-fill insulation material, expanding foam sealers, paint and dry wall compound. The tools are those that are easily available at any home improvement material suppliers. These include an insulation blower, hole saw drill bit, a stud finder, drill, step ladder, a wide putty knife and a bread knife. A tape measure is also handy and may be used.
Process of installing blown in insulation
The step is to find the right spot to drill and make holes in the walls of the house. Since most of the electrical wiring is found near the floor, it is recommended that drilling for blown in insulation be carried out a few inches below the ceiling. A stud finder will help to find the bay areas in the wall. Using a hole saw, holes can now be drilled into the bays with the diameter of the holes being a little bigger than the nozzle of the insulation blower. After the holes have been drilled, the insulation blower can be used to fill the bays with the loose fill insulation. The holes are then patched using expanding foam sealers. A foam sealer seals the holes completely and when it is dry, the extra flush can be cut away using a bread knife. The walls can now be resurfaced and painted. The insulation is now well in place.
A few dos and don’ts on blown in insulation
When drilling into walls, care is to be taken to avoid wiring and plumbing especially in the kitchen and basement areas. It is also not advisable to use blown in insulation near chimneys or other heat producing objects. Interior paints that absorb moisture may be used on surfaces with blown in insulation