Insulation questions

[paperfist]

What was wrong with your air barrier, that there was so much flow through the insulation?

Well first they had perforated soffits and nothing to channel that to the roof peak.

When they installed the insulation they tore the face paper in a lot of places. It wasn't snug fit at the joints and very sloppy around electrical boxes.

They used 1/4" ply wood as 'dry wall' on the second floor. The heat loss was unbelievable. 10' icicles to the driveway were not uncommon.

 

[NetWareHead]

Exactly. I did the ROXUL sound insulation in my house. Started out with a bread knife like they recommend and it was okay but I switched to the electric based on a coworkers recommendation and I was cutting pieces in half the time.

I haven't worked with the pink stuff so I can't compare but the ROXUL was pretty easy to work with.

Best tip ever thanks. What a difference that made. Went to walmart and found a cheapo electric knife. Made my cuts nice and straight and didnt have to saw at the insulation either so the lines stayed straight; the knife did all the work. Between the sturdiness of the insulation and the precision of the electric knife, I was able to shape most of the leftovers and use them where needed for minimal waste.

Bought a package of roxul unfaced comfortbatt insulation and it was a pleasure to install. Stands up better than the pink stuff. Cuts more precisely and has good "friction" to snugly fit and hold itself up in the stud bays.

It still does itch but not as bad as the pink stuff. Still installed it with a short sleeve shirt and no gloves. Doesnt throw as many fibers in the air either.

Definitely a nice upgrade to the fiberglass I used in the past as least from an installation perspective. It is a little more pricey but the superior fire resistance, water resistance, sound deadening, higher R value, installation ease and mold/vermin resistance, it seems so far a good investment.

Some pics: https://goo.gl/photos/MzNjeU2yC7UJes1A9

There will be a cast iron bathtub installed against this wall. The pipe on the floor is for baseboard radiators; the pipes passes behind the bathtub from one bedroom on its way to another bedroom. Since it is on an outside wall and inaccessible once the tub comes in, I insulated the hell out of it with fiberglass and wrapped in duct tape.

I used Dow Great Stuff spray insulation for the open spaces in the window framing. Used the one specifically for windows so it wont bow the frame and prevent opening the window. Used the rest of the can to seal up any other holes I found. This stuff is so messy to work with and drips all over the place... Highly recommended to wear latex gloves and keep acetone nearby to clean before it hardens. Once it gets on your hands and cures, it is highly persistent and adheres to the skin. Turpentine, paint thinner, min spirits, acetone wont take it off. I even washed my skin with straight gasoline...nothing! The only thing I can think of now to remove it is to apply a ton of vaseline to my hands and put on rubber gloves. Hopefully, after a few hours, I'm hoping it will be softened and removeable. The frame looks messy around the window but Im waiting for it to cure before returning to trim the excess.

Im thinking of buying the roxul soundbatt insulation to put around the shower/bathtub since this bathroom abuts 2 bedrooms to keep the sound down.

 

[NetWareHead]

Sorry meant on the interrior side of outside walls. Would not bother for actual partition walls unless you are trying to seal a room from the rest. Ex: When I do my server room I'll vapour barrier and seal it, and it will have it's own HVAC. I'm doing it mostly for a safety reason (UPS battery hydrogen) as well as a dust mitigation reason. (air will keep going through hepa filters).

I was wonder whether or not to vapor barrier the interior bathroom walls for reasons of humidity. Perhaps the kitchen too...

As far as thermal properties it stops air flow. On an outside wall if you have insulation but no vapour barrier, air can still travel through the drywall or any other cracks or seams in the construction, even the tyvec, The tyvec is a general protective shield in case water gets behind the outside face like the siding or brick but not actually a full barrier, you don't want a full air barrier on that side of the wall, only on the conditioned side.

I dont think there is any house wrap on this structure. When i reside the house at some point, tyvek will go up on the exterior.