Blown in insulation in wall

[snow11]

Hi All
New here and looking for some info, Getting ready to do blown in insulation in the wall of are 1950is home have no insulation at all and we are in MAINE very cold in the winter .
So I'm a hand with dyi stuff I went to the big box place got some info on the cellulose and the machine that come with it I was told to drill a 3-4 inch hole to get the hose in is that right ? Or can it be reduce to a smaller size ?
Hoping to get some info from you all that have done this in the past and get some tips .
Thanks

 

[srmofo]

Cellulose settles, if I had to cut and repair holes I would use blown in fiberglass

 

[tcianci]

Cellulose settles, if I had to cut and repair holes I would use blown in fiberglass

Any blown in insulation can possibly settle. I have opened up hundreds of walls over the years with all types of blown in insulation and 95 % of them are filled
just fine.

The reason for the size of the hole is to accommodate the fill hose and vent the cavity while it's being filled. Follow the instructions.

 

[srmofo]

Any blown in insulation can possibly settle. I have opened up hundreds of walls over the years with all types of blown in insulation and 95 % of them are filled
just fine.

The reason for the size of the hole is to accommodate the fill hose and vent the cavity while it's being filled. Follow the instructions.

I dont care how many walls you have opened up. The stuff in my attic settled considerably and with all the trouble of cutting and patching holes why not just spend the few extra bucks for the fiberglass. Its not like you can just spray a little more in there after 2 years to top it back off

 

[Dad Of 5]

We drill a 2-9/16" hole when we do dense pack cellulose insulation and you can purchase wood plugs to fit the opening. However we reduce the diameter of the hose from 3" to 1.5" (every 50' of hose we reduce the diameter)
As a work of caution be careful when you rent a machine as they are usually more suited for doing open blowing in an attic and they do not have enough power to get the material dense / tight enough.

 

[JonnyMac]

In the UK a system of ball bearing sized polystyrene balls is used to blow in to non insulated walls. It falls easily and fills every gap efficiently. Its got a very high insulation rating too.
Might be worth investigation as its a great solution...

 

[Diesel Dan]

Something I've wondered is what happens long term since there is no vapor barrier?

On new construction vapor barrier is considered mandatory on exterior walls. I understand blown in wall insulation has been done for decades and I even helped a buddy do his 100yr old farm house.

 

[Kaizen]

agree with dad of 5 above verify the machine has the sack to move that stuff. the ones for rent around here are just for attic open spaces. are you familiar with the way walls are constructed? how old is your house? if its balloon framed it will be fine but if its old you could have some fire blocking or braceing 2x4s led into the framing both of which will stop it from moving. for an 8 foot wall I'd go in at 4 feet and then at 8 feet or 3 and 7 which allows it to fill up past the hole. you can use spray foam in a can to fill the hole after if you are covering with something like siding.
If you have clapboards remove one course and drill your holes all on that plane so you can replace the piece and it will look good.
recommend getting a fish tape with a no snag head like one taped up and run it up and down in each cavity making sure you don't hit blcking. if you do you'll have to put another hole under the obstruction. fyi they did cellulose in my walls probably 1980 and when I remove it all of it is still there and filled to the brim. take your time and prepare before you get the machine. and don't leave those holes open as birds will be there in days

 

[engineer2]

The problem with cellulose is mice love the stuff. You can use it, but you have to mouse-proof the exterior. They will chew through fiber board to get at it though.

 

[Angelfire]

Something I've wondered is what happens long term since there is no vapor barrier?

On new construction vapor barrier is considered mandatory on exterior walls. I understand blown in wall insulation has been done for decades and I even helped a buddy do his 100yr old farm house.

There are a number of places in the USA that don't require nor need a vapour barrier. On the flipside, there are many that install them when they really shouldn't. So it really depends on your locale and climate.

 

[pcmeiners]

"The problem with cellulose is mice love the stuff" Not with boric acid.

http://www.birdinsulation.com/helpful-info/cellulose-myths-dissolved

 

[tcianci]

Something I've wondered is what happens long term since there is no vapor barrier?

On new construction vapor barrier is considered mandatory on exterior walls. I understand blown in wall insulation has been done for decades and I even helped a buddy do his 100yr old farm house.

Check out the vapor permeability of a couple of coats of plain old wall paint.

 

[tcianci]

"The problem with cellulose is mice love the stuff" Not with boric acid.

http://www.birdinsulation.com/helpful-info/cellulose-myths-dissolved

How dare you muddy the waters with facts!!!

 

[NUTTSGT]

In the UK a system of ball bearing sized polystyrene balls is used to blow in to non insulated walls. It falls easily and fills every gap efficiently. Its got a very high insulation rating too.
Might be worth investigation as its a great solution...

Would that be stuff the size like the filling out of a bean bag chair ?

 

[engineer2]

Not with boric acid.

Must be a recent development. Our 1992 cellulose insulated walls are riddled with mouse tunnels.

 

[pcmeiners]

"How dare you muddy the waters with facts!!! "
Sorry nasty habit of mine. Will try to post with fictitious, useless or just sheer BS information next time, though I am not sure I can do it.

Perhaps I should start my next post with.....
I do not have the foggiest clue as to what the thread's main idea is all about, as I never use any tools other then a pencil (and eraser for mistakes), or any brain cells for that matter, nor would I conceivably spend 3 seconds on Google in learning, but in my opinion....

I insulated my parents home in the late 60's, at that time the cellulose I used had boric acid. There was cellulose insulation manufactured many years ago without fire/insect/rodent protection.

 

[engineer2]

I don't know, maybe our mice are OK with boric acid. Once they get in, they burrow through the cellulose the inside walls leaving tunnels, turds and urine stains. I'll take a handful and see if it burns.

Never knew there were "myths" or dislikes about cellulose. I could care less how our house was insulated. I'm just stating my findings.

 

[pcmeiners]

Engineer2, wasn't goofing on you, there definitely was cellulose produced with/without boric acid , and other strains of cellulose produced with other chemicals. My folks had a major test of their cellulose, had a fire start in the basement due to spontaneous combustion in a pile of drop cloths. Fire stopped at the studs due to the cellulose. In testing, it does burn the very top surface of the stuff, but immediately dies out when flames (such as from blow torch) are removed.

 

[JonnyMac]

Nuttsgt

http://www.nbba.org.uk/



Yep. Its purpose made but it looks similar.

 

[nw3dogs]

Make sure if you have forced air heat to mark where your ducts are so you don't fill them.

Sent from my E6782 using Tapatalk

 

[dfiler2]

We used to do quite a bit of this and the 3-4 inch hole was needed for the equipment we used. What type of wall are you going through, are you doing this from the inside or outside? We used to often do it in conjunction with a re-siding job so the holes were covered by the new siding. If you are patching sheetrock the 3-4 inch hole might be just as easy to patch as a 2-3 inch.

As far as the mice go, treat that as a different problem and seal the house well to keep mice out, there are lots of good ways to make sure you don't get mice.

 

[cowboy73]

When I worked at the lumber yard, we rented blowers that had a small nozzle that would clamp on the hose. The hole only had to be about 1 1/2". Kinda like this only metal:

http://www.lowes.com/pd_335671-2256-NOZZ11801_0__?productId=3387114

 

[Jlbc212]

I served as a firefighter in an old mill city populated with wooden, balloon frame, two, three and some four story tenement houses. Most have metallic sheathed electrical wiring. The combination of old wiring and supposedly "fire retardant" cellulose insulation was a recipe for numerous large loss fires. Initially, the cellulose will slowly smolder, but once it got going, it burned well. The only way to ensure that there was no rekindle, we had to completely remove the cellulose by tearing out ceilings and walls. I tried to get the State Fire Marshall to place a ban on the sale of the cellulose, but the incident data reporting lacks the means to accurately report the problem. Back in the late 70's the local natural gas distribution company opened a facility to recycle newspaper into cellulose insulation. I remember a few weekend afternoons responding to their manufacturing plant yard because the already fire retardant treated and packaged for shipment cellulose was burning in the delivery trailer. The natural gas company soon closed the facility.

 

[PT Doc]

Spoke with an insulation guy mid week. They use blown in fiberglass in 2x6 wall and get r24. I asked about settling and he said it's guaranteed to not settle. I asked about the cellulose and he said it will be guaranteed to settle and said to stay away.

 

[terry603]

my concern is you do not know what bracing or fire stops are in the wall , that will prevent blown in filling the wall

 

[cuby21]

r24 blown in fiberglass? I don't think that's possible.

 

[PT Doc]

http://www.certainteed.com/products/insulation/fiber-glass-insulation/317369

This is what is the standard in the Colorado area for blown in wall insulation. It get packed in nice and full. Should be a great product without settling.

 

[Daniel Dudley]

Yeah. You have to put in enough holes, in the right places. You need a powerful machine, that will pack it in there, so it won't settle. You need holes every 3 to 5 feet vertically in every bay. The machine needs to be industrial strength.

Generally, you want to take down a course of siding at intervals to get your holes in, then replace the siding. If you have T111, that would be a problem.

Insulation pays for itself rapidly, and unless you are running your heater all the time, you will feel a big difference, summer and winter. Worth the time and money times ten. My house is 175 years old. I had to replace most of the timber sills and replace the wiring on teh outer walls before I insulated. It changed my life, and my house was more comfortable on the coldest night on record than it used to be on a normal winter day. Much cooler in the summer as well. Worth the effort.

 

[Jetfixr320]

my concern is you do not know what bracing or fire stops are in the wall , that will prevent blown in filling the wall

We are currently living in a 50's era ranch house in Indianapolis and it has plenty of horizontally placed 2x4's. And now I know why. LOL! Fire stops.
They definitely slow my rewiring of the house down.

Use a stud finder to locate them. That's what I have been doing.