The owner of this Dewey Beach, DE condo wanted the home to be more comfortable in the summer months. It didn't take Lawson Home Services salesperson, Michael Mendrick, long to figure out why the home was so hot in the summer. Cathedral ceilings, walls, and kneewalls on the second story were found to be inadequately insulated, allowing heat to radiate right through the drywall, turning the upstairs into basically a giant solar collector. The rim band in the crawlspace was also found to be poorly insulated.
Solution
The solution is a bit complex in a home like this. The little triangular attics behind the knee walls are the easiest to insulate since it is easily accessed and there is plenty of room for the workers to install the SilverGlo panels and seal the joints with the orange Zip foam. THe cathedral ceilings and walls are a different story since they cannot be accessed. In these cases it is necessary to drill holes in the drywall into which a special hose and rigid nozzle can be inserted, through which the cellulose insulation is then blown and packed into the spaces between the ceiling rafters and wall studs. Once completed the drywall is repaired. The owner then contracts a painter to have the walls repainted.
Nice condo in Dewey Beach, DE - the construction is attractive but creates several problems when it comes to heating and cooling.
This is the super attic installation. Silver Glo, a radiant heat barrier and rigid foam insulation material, is applied to the walls of the attic. THe pansels are then seals with Zip foam (orange) to stop any air from flowing from one side of the panel to the other.
This is that wall cavity - notice the round places where the drywall has been repaired. These holes had to be drilled in order to blow in cellulose insulation and pack it in the cavity densely.
Thats part of the rim band in the crawlspace. Notice here one of the bays has no insulation at all. The others had only some fiberglass stuffed into them, which is only minimally effective.
This is what the rim band looks like after treatment with specially fitted Silver Glo panels which are sealed in with orange expanding Zip foam
This is the problem area - the upstairs loft bedroom. Notice the short kneewall on the left side of the photo. Behind that area is a small triangular attic space which can be accessed through the little white door. That attic space was treated with Silver Glo and foam.
Inside the kneewall attic, looking up into the hollow cavities between the roof rafters.They had no insulation which meant all the heat in that cavity, which likely reach temperatures cloe to 150 degrees in the summer time, was radiating straight through the ceiling drywall, making this room unbearably hot in the summer time. These cavities were packed with cellulose insulation. This will make a HUGE difference in home comfort next summer.
