Question about insulation for my addition

[Razl]

About 4 months ago, my wife and I decided to add a family room to our house instead of moving.

Not a fan of wall to wall carpeting, we had the rugs pulled out in the existing 1st level of the house and had hardwoods installed, as well as new addition.

We now notice that the 1st level feels colder, almost drafty. I did ntoice that the builder did not add insulation below the flooring as it is in the older part of the home. This would be easy to do since I have a full basement but was not sure if it made sense. The basement is unfinished and does get pretty cold in the winter (I'm in RI).

Would the insulation help? Would I reduce my heating cost?

 

[Amkeer]

I would definitely insulate between the floor joist. Its very easy to do and will reap benefits immediately. It should have been done by the builder, but if it wasn't specified then its your job.

 

[1sttruck]

You need to dinstinguish between air infiltration and insulation, and need to deal with both. If it's an older house it's probably not 'sealed' well, and you need to look at outlets, the floor/ceiling joints, ceiling fixture access holes, etc. The basement should be insulated, and you may want to add some insulation between the basement and 1st floor.

 

[Pablo]

I am here to tell you in colder climates, insulating the floor from underneath makes a big difference.

I can't speak to pay-back and such.

But even with insulation - I like GOOD carpet and GOOD padding on the bottom floor. I just redid the downstairs bathroom (last year) this is the first winter and man, those really expensive Italian tiles are cold....and I even used HardiBacker and that has some insulative value!!

 

[labman]

10 year ago, I installed a new furnace in my crawl space replacing one in the garage. I meticulously caulked every hole and crevice in the band joist and where it contacted the floor above and the foundation. I painted the block inside with the cement based paint that you brush on. I then covered the floor and walls with plastic sheeting, over lapping and gluing with construction adhesive. I ran 4'' fiberglass batts down the wall and across the floor a couple of feet. By that time, I had things so tight, the furnace didn't draw right, and I had to add a vent. I also caulked all the crack in the floor above and in the heating ducts. My crawl space stays warm and dry year around. Go down there in August, and the pipes don't have moisture condensed on them.

Over half my downstairs is tile and hardwood. The floors are fairly warm. Other people with hardwood floors have commented on how warm mine are. It would be quicker and easier insulate the floors, than seal and insulate the side walls. However, count on paying more and more every year for the heat you are losing out the wall. Good acrylic or silicone caulk is $3 a tube, and the instant foam for the big holes is even more expensive. Still, the way prices are going, it has to pay off. I even put a piece of plastic tubing on my caulking tubes to reach back into otherwise inaccessible areas. Insulating the walls or the floor likely would be about the same. This could also could leave the basement a warm work area for the projects you wife won't let you do in the kitchen, and it is too cold in the garage.

The hardwood floor makes cleaning up after the puppies easier.

 

[seotaji]

quote:

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The best solution to keep your tootsies nice and warm would be underfloor heat, although that would be expensive.

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Radiant heating is the best way to heat your house in my opinion. That could be b/c I've grown up using it.

Floors are always warm and there is no need to run a fan to stir up dust. Perfect for me.

 

[Matt_S]

I'm not sure that will help. Carpet will make any room feel warmer. That and the padding provides insulation to your feet. Insulation underneath a hard floor, like wood or tile, won't solve the problem of heat transferring from your feet to the floor and I suspect it'll still feel cold. You might need to get into the habit of wearing slippers. If the basement's completely unheated, though, insulation might help, along with sealing any cracks and gaps you might find. The best solution to keep your tootsies nice and warm would be underfloor heat, although that would be expensive.

 

[gmayer5454375]

The post before is correct. The carpet and padding would act as insulation. Your floor joists should be 16" center to center. A good insulation with a high R factor would help. Have you thought about finishing off the basement? Adding walls and insulation to that would help also. Without heat in the basement, the basement will be a little warmer than the outside temperature, but would also keep your floor cold.

 

[Razl]

Everyone, thanks a ton. I'll take your advise and add the insulation baffles in my floor joists (like the builder should have done!).

It's a newer home with Anderson windows so it's quite tight and warm overall. I can definetly feel the floor colder in the addition compared to the hardwoods in the orginal part of the house.

If I had a little more money, I'd insulate my garage too

 

[Audi Junkie]

Just use some batting insulation around the premiter of the basement for now. Sections between the joists and a long run length-wise.

 

[Ugly3]

quote:

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Originally posted by seotaji:

quote:

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The best solution to keep your tootsies nice and warm would be underfloor heat, although that would be expensive.

---

Radiant heating is the best way to heat your house in my opinion. That could be b/c I've grown up using it.

Floors are always warm and there is no need to run a fan to stir up dust. Perfect for me.

---

I had radiant heat for 30 years and loved every day of it until a pipe broke upstairs and flooded the frontroom.

Have hot air now.

 

[Audi Junkie]

I do radiant flooring in cement pads. I use PEX tubing that bends in one direction without any connectors embedded in the pad. Works nice.

 

[Brett Miller]

Around here it's part of the building code. I would go back to the builder.

 

[Pete C.]

Would the insulation help? Would I reduce my heating cost?

In a word YES. Insulation slows down the temperature migration from heated to unheated (it does not stop that transfer). so unless you have a heated basement your expensive heat on the first floor will migrate/radiate to the cold basement. While you're insulating the basement ceiling pay particular attention to the end of the floor joists where they sit on the sill plate. a lot of new and older builders don't caulk this area and it is like leaving one of the basement windows open when it comes to the amount of air infiltration into the basement. Put as much insulation into the joist space as you can without compressing it. 2x10" joists=10" insulation etc. Have fun, but not too much.
PS put the vapor barrier towards the heated area.

 

[Razl]

Thanks for the advise Pete C. I'm going with R19 and will make sure to do the caulking of the joist because as you guessed, the builder did not do this.

 

[Razl]

Sorry, I know this post is "old", but I wanted to let you guys know I insulated my floor this weekend. What a huge difference

The room heats up much quicker, the "drafty" feeling is gone, and the hardwoods are comfortable, not cold like before.

It only took about an hour and cost under $200 to do. Sure, it may be a 2-3 years to break even on the oil savings, but the enjoyment of the room is immediate! Thanks again to all that encouraged me to do it.

 

[XS650]

A nice fringe benni of good insulation and fixing air leaks is that you will be comfortable at a bit lower air temperature. You may end up dropping your thermostat a degree or two, cuting the loss through the rest of the structure too.

Or, you might just enjoy the extra comfort and the feeling of toasty warmness.