Knee Wall Storage Insulation

Rake walls it s easier to handle than plywood or thermo ply and still gives you an r 19 r121 assembly.

Knee wall storage insulation.

The knee wall storage unit must be insulated similarly to the attic space or the room will suffer from infiltrating air leaks. If you go back and view the illustration above you ll notice there s an enclosed area behind the knee wall. Use a hammer to remove any knee wall studs from the opening. Also be sure to remove any insulation.

Knee walls are among the biggest air leakage and heat loss sources in home in part because they are such a pain in the rear to insulate and air seal properly. Anytime i conduct an energy audit of a cape cod or 3 story colonial or a salt box i know that a good chunk of the homeowner conversation and audit report will deal with the knee walls. Although kneewalls can help turn attics into living space they often present insulation challenges most builders install fiberglass batts between the studs and some type of blown insulation between the floor joists. R402 4 1 1 n1102 4 1 1 air barrier and insulation installation table.

Kneewalls short walls under sloped ceilings are common in story and a half homes and in bonus rooms above garages. Rather than leaving this space empty homeowners can fill it with insulation for additional thermal protection. If the attic is not insulated insulate the attic rafter. While they can be an ideal storage spot knee walls can t do much without being properly insulated fiberglass is layered down on the floor of the knee wall but since fiberglass doesn t stop airflow it doesn t do anything to insulate the area.

Walls the junction of the top plate and top of exterior walls should be sealed. Exterior thermal envelope insulation for framed walls should be installed in. Step 8 install supports photo by geoffrey gross. The sloped roof creates a small space that can hardly be use.

We reduced the air leakage nearly 50 on this house in shaker heights without insulating the walls. Below are the components from the table that are applicable to sealing and insulating attic knee walls. Blown insulation in the knee wall and top attics. Screw two support braces to the attic floor right behind the knee wall.

Build the supports out of 2x4s making sure they re flush with the sill of the cutout. Knee walls also provide pockets for additional insulation in the attic. Step 9 insert dresser photo by. Then cover that same area with an r 8 fsk affixing it using cap nails.

In tight attics or odd shaped wall conditions i e.