DIY Blown-In Insulation: 7 Tips We Learned While Insulating Our Attic

[@michaelallen7230]

I really like the idea of your walkway in the attic. Look really nice.

[@HammerandaHeadband]

Thanks! It's nice for those times when we need access up there (and especially for this particular project!).

[@Andrewkafp]

I had this in the house we bought. I paid a company to remove it. Can't see my wiring. Can't check for termites. Can crawl around in the roof due to getting it all over you. Can't see the top of walls for adding power outlets.

[@ezakoske]

@@Andrewkafp What did you use to replace it? Fiberglass batts?

[@mattedmonds7830]

This video was REALLY well thought out and produced, Thank you so much! I'm going to use all of your tips in the next few weeks as I insulate my attic. Again, well done! 5 stars.

[@HammerandaHeadband]

Thanks so much! It was a big project but so worth it, especially during this crazy winter weather we've been having lately!

[@julielucas6121]

I don't usually comment on videos but this was so well done and very helpful! Great job. Thank you!

[@billjoat]

I did this very same thing @35 years ago with cellulose fiber. The loader; my wife; kept me loaded up just fine. On your loading , I feel like I would have gone to thirds to facilitate it being loading without so much strain. Looks like a good job. Mine was fine 11 years afterwards when I sold the house. It had settled to the rafters and was still doing well. Great video.

[@randywatson77]

Great tips. I would like to have seen more on how you prepped, especially since you said you spent two months doing so.

[@benfish527]

Great video! Can you please share more details on the walkway? I see hurricane ties to the uprights. How are the uprights on the joists? What direction are the joists?

[@HammerandaHeadband]

Thanks! Here’s what Eric said about building the walkway: “The joists run perpendicular to the walkway, so using the hurricane ties was just a clever way to mount the long 2x6’s that support the walkway. There are little 3-4” risers that I had to cut individually at varying heights to keep the platform level as for some reason the joists weren't all the same height. Then I used hurricane ties to connect those to the joists and mending plates to attach the 2x6’s on top of that with a cross beam every 8’ or so, so the joint between OSB would be on top of it. I used weatherproof OSB sheeting I think 1/2 or 3/8, which is designed to be on the outside of the house before sheathing so it shouldn't be susceptible to mold. I then built a dam out of the scraps of OSB and screwed that to the outside to hold the blown in insulation back. I think it was like 6 to 8” tall. I put regular insulation batts (pink rolls) under the walkway before the blown in, so the walkway surface would be all done ahead of time.”

[@chiefjaspil]

Good Job, I got more out of your shared learning moments than most of all the other 15 or so videos (Company representative stuff basically sales) other DYI videos were not complete as yours, Again, Good job and thanks for sharing.

[@tomunderwood4283]

Well done! Thanks for the tips!

[@HammerandaHeadband]

Thank you!

[@jimmurphy5739]

Great vid. Especially the Shop Vac Reverso move. I was wondering how I'd clear those baffles after having blown a bunch of insulation into them during the job. Also, as you mentioned, you'll lower your heating costs, but another benefit I'm looking forward to is the "evening out" of temperature fluctuations between our 3 levels: basement, main floor, and upstairs. Right now, the basement is an oven in the winter (if you want to NOT freeze upstairs) and a meat locker in the summer (if you don't want to be roasted upstairs.) Actually, the money I'll save in reduced winter heating and summer cooling pales in comparison what I would pay to silence complaints about temperature fluctuations in the house. This will definitely be money well spent!! Thanks for the pointers!!

[@mach1mach1-ug9up]

Very informative and good job

[@HammerandaHeadband]

Thanks! It was a big job but worth the improved energy efficiency.

[@imrikkibobbi]

i'm forced to do this come fall as my insulation is now 20 years old from the new build when I bought it, I really like your direct approach to this video. I'm thinking a little outside the box and exploring the idea of using radiant barrier paint to up the R factor even more so by painting the attic side of the ceiling, see if that happens or not. I think the walkway build is def the way I'm leaning towards as my attic is an insane jungle gym. Thanks for all the hard work putting this together. OH and I live in Central Texas so the heat lasts 6 to 9 months 🥵

[@slappy2825]

Clearing out the rafter baffles with the blower side of the shop vac was a great hack. Leaf blower would work too. Nice.

[@robertog4676]

Nice job both of you!! I’m from San Antonio and have rentals in Ohio. One tenant is complaining that the furnace keeps coming on and it cold. Needless to say I’m going back home to do that house. Estimates we got were from three to $4000.

[@alexandermaciag377]

Thank you. I will be adding more from the R30 that the house already has. I am going to check my ceiling joists support to make sure it can handle the added weight - live load and dead load to avoid damages to the joists and drywall bowing from 24 o/c. Otherwise, your tips will be very useful with safety in mind.

[@justadbeer]

Thanks for all the tips!

[@ChadAmI80]

What are the orange flags? Are they marking electric junction boxes by chance?

[@ALAHOME]

Excellent instruction video!! Have you calculated what roughly % of the summer AC bill is dropped after this great work?

[@HammerandaHeadband]

Thanks! There are some variables (e.g. I think our solar panels have been more productive this summer). But overall our electric bill has been averaging 30% lower year-over-year for the past few months, so the insulation seems to be helping!

[@heyzeuss]

An actual helpful video. Thanks!

[@ntj030885]

Did you notice a difference in the way you house holds heat and air or did your electric bill go down?

[@NikkiVelazquez]

This is extremely helpful! Thank you!

[@GregForLife]

Very helpful video! Thanks

[@scottcorris509]

You just made me add a few things to this already daunting task. My two sons are going to help me next weekend. Today, I'm buying the insulation (10 bales), overalls, masks, goggles, rafter vents, spray foam...and who knows what else! lol I love your bungee cord idea! Luckily for me, I have a bedroom right outside the attic doors, so there's that. I'll need to cover some furniture with a drop cloth, too. Any other ideas?

[@MichaelDuby-ks5iu]

Love the walkway

[@InsuringUrFuture]

How did you know how many bags of insulation to buy

[@paulntraci99]

You mention you've noticed a difference in comfort. How's much did it save you on the electric bill?

[@tcan603]

Nice job, how did you get to your outside walls to air seal ?

[@JimmyBamis]

Do you leave the planks in the attic and just cover them up with insulation?

[@HiVizCamo]

They've built an elevated platform on top of their rafters, leaving enough space underneath to blow in insulation. 0:30

[@JimmyBamis]

@ thanks did they remove them when done insulating?

[@prairie8356]

That definitely looked like a messy job, but well worth it.

[@HammerandaHeadband]

Thanks, Prairie! Yeah, it is nice to have it all done and enjoy the results! The house feels so much warmer.

[@dispatchcustomerservice-gb4977]

How would I do this with my furnace in attic

[@KingJay_the1st]

Call an company

[@robbobcat7286]

did your bills go down?

[@kamilien1]

thanks!

[@AnotherScreenname]

What I Learned: It's diy possible. Also, I'll pay a professional. - Great vid, thanks!

[@sissymurphy9620]

I dids blown in insulation 6 feet of it and went up in the attic this year and it seems to have flown the coop . Put down R30 roll insualtion this time

[@HammerandaHeadband]

Dang! Did you install rafter baffles?

[@planetyeti8284]

@@HammerandaHeadband They did something wrong because I have blown many houses and have went back to those houses years later to fix something that a home owner messed up and the R-value was always unchanged.

[@Joe-hu7di]

Never heard of this machine for rent? I have used the celulose machine with my 7 months of pregnant wife feeding it.

[@jameschuke4104]

He done alot of unnecessary work I done thousands

[@maxdominguez5543]

Like what?

[@planetyeti8284]

You was probably in a big truck with a hopper that also blows air and all the prep work probably got done before you went in. They was doing it all by themselves. I do this for a living also and I've insulated both house and attic so I know. When i insulated the house we also did the prep work for the attic (foaming) holes and cracks. In the attic though nothing but baffles are needed.

[@mohammedrahman308]

Big no no on spray foam. Spray foam is fire hazard

[@SharpestBulbs]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/qGelg4CMbNapm9k

[@dlgray84]

Building a walkway was and is a huge waste of time lol

[@MrLambntunafish]

Tell me you've never worked in an attic without telling me you've never worked in an attic

[@dlgray84]

@@MrLambntunafish I used to build houses, you dumb af, huge waste of time. Amateur hour over here building a walkway in an attic 🤣

[@dlgray84]

@@MrLambntunafish Tell me you've never worked in construction without telling me you've never worked in construction 🤣 dumb af

[@kniko517]

@@MrLambntunafish absolutely a waste of time and overkill if you’re doing one or two attics a day. But for homeowners doing it personally I could see how this is helpful.

[@billymacktexasdetective5827]

​@@MrLambntunafishExactly how much time do homeowners spend in their attic? That walkway is indeed a huge waste of time and money...

[@LloydintheAmericas]

Traditional insulation was invented around 1930. It only resists about 10% 99% pure aluminum multi layer stops 97% of whats trying to pass through it. I will drop your utility bill by 40% or and make the temperature even in the entire house “ The future in insulation Utube, “ask Dale Atlanta news reporter.

[@txbrn512]

great job!

[@HammerandaHeadband]

Thank you!

[@billymacktexasdetective5827]

If you live where it gets cold, consider cellulose instead of fiberglass. Fiberglass loses 40% of its R value in temperatures below 20 degrees Fahrenheit and 50% below 0 degrees... Cellulose doesn't...

[@lhenry1693]

2 months preparing…..lol, damn that would be seriously depressing

[@jdd6447]

Cause he did it by himself all she did was play forman

[@ChadAmI80]

What are the orange flags? Are they marking electric junction boxes by chance?