When comparing blown in insulation both fiberglass and cellulose are nearly identical in price both costing around 0 70to 0 80per square foot for 6 inches of insulation.
Is my attic insulation is cellulose or fiberglass.
The trapped air molecules in the insulation are pulled up through the insulation into the colder attic air.
The bottom line is that cellulose can burn but fiberglass will not support combustion.
Assuming your current attic insulation is made from fiberglass and has a value of r 13 you d have to add roughly 10 inches of additional fiberglass to hit r 38.
Unless you opt for spray foam then the insulation choices normally come down to cellulose and fibreglass.
Fiberglass batts however are less expensive costing on average 0 30to 0 40a square foot for 6 inches of insulation.
First things first you need to go up into your attic inspect the condition of the insulation and calculate the current level of insulation.
This keeps the air from moving within the insulation and from penetrations between the air conditioned space and the attic.
You can get to the same place with either material.
Inspecting your attic insulation.
Rather than trying to meticulously lay fiberglass insulation over the attic homeowners and builders can simply blow cellulose insulation throughout the attic.
Cellulose forms a dense continuous mat of insulation in your attic.
Cellulose provides better sound insulation than fiberglass i e homes are less noisy with it.
This problem has been successfully solved by installing fiberglass batt insulation over the top of loose fill or blown insulation.
This allows the insulation to get into the small pockets and crevices that fiberglass wouldn t be able to.
Loose fill fiberglass seems to dominate attic insulation in new construction homes and has an r value of approximately 2 5 per inch.
Thus creating a more energy efficient home.
Pros and cons of loose fill fiberglass attic insulation.
Or 7 inches of cellulose.
In addition to its great r value cellulose also provides sounds insulation by providing mass and dampening.
Your attic should have a certain amount of insulation in it and the recommended level of insulation for your attic is dependent on where you live.
The two main least expensive and most commonly used residential insulation materials is cellulose and fibreglass.
Sources many fiberglass installers fluff the fiber with extra air so you don t get as much insulation as you re supposed to.
If you check with the cellulose insulation manufacturers association they ll assure you that cellulose is definitely your best choice for insulation.
Cellulose is more difficult to cheat than fiberglass.
Like cellulose you need a big machine to blow it in.