Curious about crawl space insulation? Today, we’ll tackle a few of the most common questions we hear.
How Important Is It?
Crawl space insulation plays a critical role in maintaining the temperature of your home, minimizing drafts, keeping moisture where it belongs and preventing pests from taking up residence. Not only should you ensure an effective and appropriate installation of insulation in your crawlspace, you should make every effort to keep it fully functional and well-maintained for the life of the installation—and replace it when it needs replacing, not when problems start to arise.
In most homes, a significant proportion of the air in the home originates from or passes through the crawlspace, meaning poor insulation directly impact the air quality of your home as well.
How Thick Should It Be?
There’s no single answer for insulation thickness, in part because there are quite a few forms of insulation you might put to work in your crawlspace. In fact, many crawlspace insulation projects will require the use of multiple forms of insulation to achieve greatest possible seal.
- For your standard fiberglass insulation, you’re going to want quite a bit. As with walls and other places you might insulate with fiberglass, you want a foot or more of depth for a modern industry-standard level of insulation. Many older homes have far less than that, meaning you should consider an upgrade even if everything looks intact.
- If you’re using foam boards, it’s not so much a question of thickness but of layers. If at all possible, you’re going to want to set up a double layer insulation.
- The thickness of spray foam will vary greatly depending on the exact foam used. A few inches of thickness should suffice for the most commonly used spray foams, but don’t be afraid to ask a few questions and do a little research on the exact foam being used.
When Should I Replace Crawl Space Insulation?
Insulation kept dry, undamaged, and away from light should be expected to last roughly 20 years or so. But when moisture accumulates due to poor installations or inadequate ventilation, damage occurs due to structural problems or pests, or light gets to exposed panels, you can end up with problems.
You may also need to replace your insulation in order to improve its quality, such as if you’re experiencing regular drafts, have problems with air quality in your home or simply want to bring down your power bill. Older homes frequently have inadequate levels of crawl space insulation, meaning at the very least you’ll want to install more over what currently exists.
Crawl Space and Home Insulation Services in Sacramento
Think it’s about time to update the insulation in your California home or crawl space? Contact the licensed professionals at Gold Star Insulation to get the quality and reliability you deserve! Our team can help you figure out what you need, where you need it and just how to get the job done right.
