Adding extra insulation to the top of your house is one of the easiest and most affordable ways you can reduce the amount of energy your household consumes and help keep your utility bills in check. However, if you’ve never paid much attention to your attic insulation or if you’ve just purchased a new home, you may be uncertain whether you have enough insulation or whether it would benefit you to add more. Fortunately, there are several easy ways to tell how much insulation you need.
How Much Attic Insulation Do I Need?
The best thing to do? Talk to professionals! But a good rule of thumb is that you want your insulation to more than cover the cross beams in your attic. Insulation should be installed in knee walls, floors and more.
Below are just a few ways to tell if you need more attic insulation in your Sacramento area home:
- You can see gaps in the corners and along the perimeter of the attic. If you see space uncovered space around the outer edges of your attic, you likely need more insulation to make sure that conditioned air isn’t lost through those gaps.
- You use your attic for storage. We all do it, but if you store so many items in your attic space and there is no visible insulation, this could be problematic. Ideally, insulation should cover the cross beams of your attic.
- You can see the cross beams when you gaze across the attic floor. As we discussed above, if you can look across the attic and see the floor joists, you probably don’t have enough insulation.
A couple additional signs you may need more attic insulation include an usually warm, stuffy second story and—during the rare severe winter—snow melting too quickly off your roof. You have different options, including reflective insulation like radiant barrier as well as spray foam, fiberglass and cellulose.
Adding More Attic Insulation with Gold Star Insulation
If you need help answering the question, “How much attic insulation do I need” for your Sacramento area home, contact Gold Star Insulation. We’re a part of the Installed Building Products family of companies and have been helping area homeowners like you with their insulation needs for several years! Contact us to schedule an appointment.
