If you insulate the attic of a private house according to all the rules, you can seriously save heating costs. To do it yourself, you need to understand what the technology of this process is and what material to use.
For many years no one has insulated roofs with straw or blankets. While the attic is no longer the place where various trash is stored in the cold. Today, many private houses are equipped with an attic space, converted into a living room - an attic. It is complemented by a variety of furniture and household appliances. Therefore, the attic, equipped in this way, must be well insulated and protected from moisture. In addition, if you make high-quality thermal insulation, you can prevent heat loss throughout the house.
How to insulate the attic?
In order to figure out how to insulate a cold attic, no additional skills are needed. Now stores provide a wide selection of a wide variety of types of insulation, but consider those that among buyers are considered the most convenient to use and reliable. For example, expanded polystyrene has such qualities,mineral wool, polyurethane foam, and expanded clay. If you make enough effort, you can do the insulation of your attic on your own, without asking for help from the masters in this matter. Before you insulate the attic in the house, you need to choose the perfect material. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages, as well as nuances during installation. We must not forget that before you start insulating the attic, you need to process all the cracks and joints of the roof with lime mortar.
Materials for attic insulation
Many buyers are wondering what is the best way to insulate the attic at home. First of all, the material with which you plan to insulate the attic must be chosen, taking into account what the floor is made of. If it is made of wooden beams, and a wooden floor is laid on top, then you can use light bulk materials, as well as materials that come in rolls and slabs. Thus, it turns out that you can choose from many varieties. But in a situation where the ceiling is made of concrete in the form of a slab, then in order to insulate it, dense materials in slabs or, at worst, bulk materials are useful, but always heavy, because a cement screed can be made on top of them. If you are thinking about the problem, the better to insulate the attic ceiling, then the same bulk, roll and tile materials are suitable for this.
There are different types of materials that help insulate the attic.
Types of insulation materials
- Bulk. These includesawdust, cellulose insulation, algae, foam pellets, glass wool, flax processing waste, straw, etc.
- Roll. The most popular among them: mineral wool, glass wool, algae, linen insulation.
- Tile and matte. Among these materials, foam plastic, straw, algae, mineral wool in slabs can be distinguished.
Before choosing the best way to insulate the attic of a private house, you need to familiarize yourself with the qualities of the thermal insulation of the material, whether it is available in a certain region, whether it can suddenly change properties during temperature changes, whether it is convenient to install and then use, and also, which is also very important, how environmentally friendly or natural the material is. For example, if you build a house out of wood, and use foam plastic as insulation for the attic, then this would be somewhat stupid, since wood is a material that can breathe, but foam plastic just cannot. As a result, dampness will reign in the room, it will be unpleasant to be in it, and wood elements will soon rot and deteriorate. And, of course, you need to choose the material for insulation based on personal capabilities.
Insulation of the attic with bulk materials
The attic has been insulated with backfill materials for many years, this method is recommended and time-tested. Often they are used when the floors are made of wood, then they only fall asleep between the lags.
The technology of how the attic is insulated with such materials is as follows. Craft paper or a layer of any other similar layer is laid on wooden floors.material or overlap is coated with clay, sprinkled on top with a material that has the property of thermal insulation, a layer that is determined taking into account the region in which you live. Next, the boards are spreading, you can already step on them. The hatch leading to the attic should also be insulated.
There is a version that the insulation, carried out on the basis of environmentally friendly materials, will soon be crushed and compacted, but in fact this is not entirely true, this opinion is too exaggerated. Therefore, you can safely choose the one that you like the most and suits the price category.
How to insulate an attic with linen?
Consider how the attic is insulated with linen. If you have skill and minimal knowledge in the field of physics, then you will succeed. First you need to cover up all the cracks in the wooden floor. This can be done with clay, or you can use newer, more innovative materials. On top of the clay layer, you need to lay craft paper or smear the entire floor surface with clay with a layer of at least two centimeters.
Bonfire is a waste material obtained after processing flax. The material is inexpensive in most regions, is resistant to fungi and destructive microorganisms, is quite light and does not rot over time. Mice do not live in such material, because it will not be possible to make a hole in it, it immediately crumbles, closing the passage. The fire becomes caked over time, but it can always be poured on top or replaced with a new one. The indisputable advantage of linen material is that it does notthere are difficulties in disposing of it, you can only scoop it out of the attic surface, and then burn it, but glass wool, for example, is not endowed with such a quality.
We insulate the attic with our own hands with the help of flax, pouring it with a layer of 18-35 centimeters. You don’t need to cover anything on top to make it convenient to move around the attic, you can put wooden boards, but you don’t need to cover the entire surface with them, creating a regular floor, you need to give the fire access to air to release moisture. It is imperative to make ventilation in the attic, consisting of small windows. Periodically, you need to check the fire, if you notice that it is slightly damp, you need to open the windows to dry the linen material and space.
How to insulate with sawdust?
While wondering how to properly insulate the attic, many people decide to use the old but proven method - insulation with sawdust. This method is especially suitable for those places where the woodworking industry is located nearby, because there you can just buy sawdust for a very low price or even, if you're lucky, get them free of charge in unlimited quantities.
First, as in the method of insulation with flax, all floor slots are smeared with clay. You can sprinkle a little sand on top. Its function is to fall asleep in a crack in case the clay layer cracks. Then everything is sprinkled with slaked lime with carbide. This layer will protect against mouse settlements. Sawdust is poured on top with a layer of 20centimeters. Sawdust is a material that is highly flammable, so it is best to sprinkle slag mining on top. Especially in the area near the chimney and other hot elements. In addition to slag, other materials can be used, for example, flame retardant treatment. Nothing needs to be laid on top of the sawdust, except for boards, on which it will be possible to move in the future.
How to insulate with straw?
To understand how an attic is insulated with straw, the process can be compared to insulation with sawdust. Under its layer, you also need to lay craft paper or something similar to it, you can also smear the floor with a clay layer up to five centimeters thick. Then you need to pour straw on top with a layer of 20-50 centimeters, it all depends on the region of residence and the temperature in winter. To reduce the level of combustibility of straw, it can be smeared over again with a clay layer a couple of centimeters thick. To prevent the appearance of mice, you can use the same method as in the sawdust method, or any other folk proven method.
How to insulate the attic of a private house using roll materials
Rolled materials are well suited for insulating the attic, because they can be placed between lags up to 18-20 centimeters high. Most often, materials are used that are easy to cut and also take the desired shape.
How to insulate with mineral wool?
Mineral wool is a modern material,used to create thermal insulation, it is quite widespread. It is often insulated in attics because it does not ignite, does not rot, is not subject to the spread of microorganisms and mice, and also moisture.
A vapor barrier film should always be laid on the bottom of the wood flooring, its joints are usually glued with specialized adhesive tape, because cotton wool tends to absorb moisture, but almost does not release it back.
It is already possible to lay mineral wool rolls on top of the film. In the process of carrying out this process, it is necessary to prudently dress in such clothes with which the mineral wool will not get on the skin. Vata takes its full dimensions for a period of about 15-20 minutes. It does not require anything to be covered over it, however, wood planks can be laid out to move around the room. The material, which has the property of waterproofing, in order to protect mineral wool from leaks, spreads only under the roof itself.
How to insulate with algae ladders?
Algae drains are ideal for insulating attics. Due to the addition of sea s alt and iodine to the composition, rodents will not appear in this material, and rotting and damage by microorganisms will not occur. Traps are mats made from zostera sea grass. In terms of its thermal insulation, such material is no worse than modern, but unnatural heaters. One of the main advantages of such a warming material is the environmental component, as well as the fact that the ladderspractically do not ignite, they can only smolder a little, but nothing toxic and dangerous to he alth is released from them.
Let's take a closer look at how the attic is insulated with sea grass. Algae is not affected by moisture, so it is not necessary to vaporize the floor surface, you can lay ladders directly on the ceiling with a layer of about 20 centimeters or more thick. On top, you can organize a wooden floor surface or lay boards for moving around the attic.
Using sea grass as a thermal insulation material is harmless to the he alth of the inhabitants of the house, because they provide excellent climatic conditions in the room, and also release useful iodine into the air.
Using linen insulation material
Modern linen insulation materials are made in rolls, the same as mineral wool. Only their advantage over this material is that linen insulation is absolutely environmentally friendly. Linen is a suitable solution for insulating the attic of a house made of wood or other natural materials.
Before laying linen rolls, you need to seal all the cracks in the floor surface with clay, no other vapor barrier layer is required. Linen insulation is laid on top, it is joined with care so that there are no gaps.
