insulating floor in a stilt house

[TrendSetter]

I just bought a stilt home and the floors are open bare wood from the under side. i am in florida so cold isnt an issue but AC is.
can i just spray foam it? my initial concern is it holding moisture against the wood causing rot. there is no plans to close the bottom area in, we like it open as it is.
my other hesitation is covering up the plumbing and stuff thats there for access to do maintenance and modifications in the future.
any info on options is appreciated

 

[bigdav160]

I've never seen one insulated underneath

 

[bluedog225]

I’d worry spray foam will kill the house. It has to dry one side or the other and interior coverings may be impermeable to moisture vapor. Fiberglass batts with chicken wire to keep birds out would work. Or ply with cellulose.

Maybe open cell foam. Maybe.

 

[kaymccampbell]

You could stuff it with rock wool, and screw plywood panels to the bottom. It's what I'd do. Around here insurance won't touch you if the bottom is exposed beams or insulation. You've gotta have that flat smooth surface.

 

[billconner]

I'd recommend metal panels instead of ply or chicken wire. The cellulose and metal panels is appealing.

 

[mepstein]

I’d see what other people had done.

 

[72Anthony]

In the Houston area it is common to see pier and beam homes use 2 inches of closed cell spray foam for the crawl space.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I guess I'm a little lost, you want to insulate it but you want the open look?

 

[mike93lx]

I think he meant leaving it open as in not putting walls up around the stilts

 

[billconner]

Like this?

 

[tdkkart]

Given that it's on stilts, I have to assume it's near water, and since it in Florida I have to assume that it'll be
quite humid more often than not, so I'd be tempted to leave it open and let it stay dry naturally. Problem is, you may make any potential problem worse if you do the insulation job wrong.

 

[dcg9381]

I've never seen one insulated underneath

So I built a garage apartment, enclosed under, but it's the same concept. The garage has marginal bat insulation. We "enclosed" the apartment in foam insulation, including under it... Works great. There were ****-tons of pier and beam homes in Texas during the "great freeze" that got screwed by not having insulation under it. All the drain lines froze, as did the incoming water lines... You want to insulate all the way around.

 

[southalabama]

Along the water enclosing a stilt house they call them blow out walls for a reason.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I think he meant leaving it open as in not putting walls up around the stilts

Well that makes sense, I thought he was referring to the floor joists.