Insulate Old House Floors Without Subfloor

Unfortunately in old homes this is a common place for heat to escape so it s worth thinking about how insulation can make them more thermally efficient hold heat for longer and protect your home from damp.

Insulate old house floors without subfloor.

Such floors can be found in homes with post foundations in rooms over garages and in cantilevered bays. There are two types of crawl spaces ventilated and unventilated and each requires its own form of insulation. Without insulation heat and cool air are easily lost through the floor. According to the 2012 irc the minimum r value for floor assemblies is r 13 in zones 1 and 2 r 19 in zones 3 and 4 r 30 in zones 5 and 6 and r 38 in zones 7 and 9.

Insulation also helps to preserve the air quality and reduce energy costs. Original floors represent a precious link with the past their wonderful undulations. Also insulate 4a any portion of the floor in a room that is cantilevered beyond the exterior wall below. Adding insulation mitigates the problem but there are some considerations to keep in mind.

But keep an eye out for damage in case you need to replace a subfloor sooner. Floors above cold spaces such as vented crawl spaces and unheated garages. In the quest to make our homes warmer and more efficient floor insulation is often overlooked. Although research is needed there are several possible approaches to reduce condensation on the subflooring.

Insulation can actually make the problem worse by keeping the subfloor cool. In many cases these floors are casually insulated with fiberglass batts and covered with osb or plywood. A pier and beam home built on top of sturdy supports typically has an open crawl space between the floor of the house and the earth. Make sure rain drains away from the house on all sides.

An uninsulated floor allows heat to escape making the house less energy efficient. If you want to insulate a floor assembly by leaving the joist bays empty and installing rigid foam on the underside of the joists here are a few things to keep in mind. If the batts aren t thick enough to fill the joist bays they may fall away from the subfloor and rest on the osb below. Your yard should have a 5 slope all around the house.

4b slab floors built directly on the ground. Under normal conditions a subfloor can last as long as the house itself. The goal however is the same. 4c as an alternative to floor insulation foundation walls of unvented crawl spaces.