How To Build Attic Door Insulation

Despite both of these attic doors being easy to insulate many contractors don t do it.

How to build attic door insulation.

Then add insulation batting to form a pillow and wrap it up like a birthday present as shown. Inspect the weatherstripping gaskets around the attic hatch opening. Staple long pieces of duct tape sticky side up onto the attic scuttle door. I used 1 4 8 with an r value of 3 85.

Even at 1 inch thick there was only 2 inches between the finished top and the rafter. You can check for air leaks with a. Here s how to do it yourself. Apply weather stripping to the perimeter of opening not the attic door cover.

Stone wool insulation. How to insulate a window with sash weights. Cut insulation to fit on the plywood side of the access panel. Always cover the tops of the ceiling joists to make sure the insulation is deep enough to reach your target r value and to prevent thermal bridging the heat loss that occurs through the wood framing.

Add foam insulation tape around the edges to seal the perimeter where it rests in the access hole. There are different ways to accomplish this. Attic hatch scuttle hole the attic hatch or scuttle hole is a removable panel in the dry walled ceiling located in a closet or hallway. If they seem dried out or damaged remove them.

This ensures a tight seal between the door and the opening. Here s one good method. 1 ridged insulation sheet 4 x 8 2 aluminum tape 10 yrds 3 duck tape and 4 self adhesive foam insulation strip i needed 13 feet. This old house general contractor tom silva and host kevin o connor demonstrate the proper way to insulate an attic.

Trim four pieces of 1 by 2 lumber with a circular saw to create a. Cut a piece of 3 8 inch or 3 4 inch plywood about 1 4 inch smaller in width and length than the dimensions of the. Close the gap in your door to stay free from drafts eliminate air leaks and maintain energy efficiency. Work from the perimeter of the attic toward the door or hatch so that you don t trample all over the insulation you just put in.

Fortunately there are kits available to insulate these kind of doors. In this how to video keep out the. In the case of a knee wall door insulate the walls. Check for air leaks and wood stops.

Measure the opening for the attic access hole which is often referred to as a scuttle hole. If i had more space between the rafter and the attic opening i would have used a thicker sheet.