More and more owners are thinking hard to turn an empty attic of his home in a comfortable room. First of all it is necessary to reliably warm. Do it with your own hands is not difficult, having studied the technology works and the properties of insulation materials.
General requirements for the thermal insulation system
For efficient operation of insulation you need the following:
- Insulation must cover all surfaces without gaps, a continuous "carpet".
- The insulation material is protected from ingress of condensate formed under the roof by the interaction of warm moist air from inside and outside of the cold air.
- The resulting condensate must be removed through ventilation ducts.
- Insulation must be completed windscreen layer, which prevents it from blowing out heat.
- The material selected must comply with all sanitary and building codes.
The choice of material
Consider the most popular varieties of the attic insulation of walls with his own hands from the inside:
- Mineral wool. Inexpensive material, convenient for work. Good soundproof rooms, do not accumulate moisture during operation. For laying it between the rafters are cut into sheets by 1-2 cm wider distance therebetween. The material inserted into the gaps rafter and due to the elastic tightly held therein.
- Styrofoam. This insulation relates to budget and practical methods of insulation. It is safe for health, does not rot and does not decompose. But the complete absence of paroprovodimosti and vulnerability to rodents reduces its effectiveness. Also adversely affect the safety of the heat leaky joints between slabs.
- Polyurethane foam. Insulation, easily applied by spraying on any surface using the portable unit. Applied layer has no gaps and pores, which positively affects the quality of the insulation. Material insufficiently resistant to high temperatures.
- Ecowool. Cellulose-based material is applied using sputter or manually, which provides a seamless coating on the entire surface. It requires protection of the resulting surface from moisture steam insulating material.
- Foil materials. In relation to the traditional insulation, these heaters have superior properties by applying to them the mirror layer. This layer reflects the heat emitted from the room back, increasing its thermal protection. Due to the small thickness creates savings in the amount of space occupied.
What is the proper insulation?
Properly made heat insulation of the walls of the attic floor should consist of several layers (in order):
- Windproof vapor barrier. It secured under the roof covering over the rafters by means of slats.
- Kontrobreshetka. You need to create a ventilated space between the roofing and waterproofing and the removal of condensate accumulating there.
- Waterproofing, preventing the wetting of the insulation, in order to avoid the loss of its thermal insulating properties.
- Insulation. Material and fixed between the rafters is the main element "constructive cake". Between him and the waterproofing film, leave a ventilation gap.
- Lathing. Stuffed across the rafters rails hold insulation and serve as a basis for fixing the vapor barrier.
- Vapor barrier. The membrane film is fixed with a gap overlap of 10-15 cm. All portions are fastened together with adhesive tape, to form an integral coating without cracks.
- Inner trim - drywall, OSB, gypsum fiber boards, etc.
The procedure works with mineral wool insulation
acquisition of material
The first step is to clean up all the nodes truss system, since it would be impossible, after warming to him to approach.
Then it is necessary to measure the dimensions of the roof, walls and floor, and calculate the required amount of insulation. The calculated coverage area to be increased by 10%, which will allow it to compress slightly during installation and will protect in case of a small error in the calculations.
Mineral wool is manufactured in the form of mats or rolls, and a thickness of 5 to 10 cm. Effective insulation of external walls and the roof must be at least 15 cm, starting from this value and the need to purchase a heater.
Mineral wool in rolls is preferable to work in the sense that it can help to create a coating with a minimum of joints, reduce the possibility of heat loss.
cutting insulation
Cut sheets of mineral wool is necessary each time a pre-measuring the distance between the rafters or lags, where it should be placed. Under construction is not always possible to keep these distances are strictly identical, and the heater should be placed there with a slight effort.
For this purpose the width of the mat do pledged 1-2 cm wider than the distance between the rafters. Many builders take into account the need for insulation of the attic, and immediately put the rafters at the desired distance from each other.
See also - attic insulation mineral wool technology.
installation of insulation
At this stage, the cut sheets are inserted between the rafters. If step rafters and large width of the sheets to be increased, then the desired size can be obtained by their extension. In addition to the standard mat is cut additional insert, which is fixed by means of dowels, fungi, or thin tack.
Such hardware can be made of standard nails yourself using manually pre-cut washers galvanized, aluminum profiles or thick plastic. From washers do not require compliance with strict forms, as long as they are well kept loose insulation.
Sundries are driven through the insulation into the crate. At this point, should be closely monitored to nails are not punched rail through and not damage the waterproofing. Firmly urge the mats can not, washers must only maintain insulation in place, not allowing him to move.
The mats should be stacked close to each other without gaps and crevices. If the scheduled insulation layer of two layers of mineral wool, the seams of layers should not be superposed and arranged with overlap.
Mineral wool is easily compressed, so it is impossible to stack a continuous layer above 2.5-3 m. In this case it is necessary to place between the rafters, wooden bridge on which it is based.
Many manufacturers produce mineral wool mats, in which on the one hand rough and smooth on the other. This indicates that the smooth layer has water repellency and the installation should be turned toward the roof.
installation of the vapor barrier
The next phase of work - fixing the vapor barrier. To prevent the dew point inside the insulation layer it is necessary to close the vapor barrier film. Dew point is the place of condensation of water vapor inevitably occurs at the interface of contact of cold and warm spaces, i.e. street and rooms.
The appearance of moisture in the insulation dramatically decreases its insulating characteristics and can lead to mildew and rot inside and truss system.
Rows isolating film attached to the rafters parallel to the floor upwards. For installation using staple gun. When fixing is necessary to observe an overlap of film is not less than 10 cm. All seams are glued tightly with tape to form a single-piece surface.
Attaching furring
On top of the vapor barrier mounted rails for mounting interior trim. This can be rack size of 20 × 50, or inexpensive boards of the same thickness. Step battens depends on the material, which will be carried out interior. Thick OSB or plywood is rarely needed fixing - by 50-60 cm, for gypsum boards need more frequent crate - 20-30 cm.
The procedure works with insulation foam
The thickness of the foam is chosen based on the temperature conditions in the place of residence. For national average conditions sufficient thickness of 15 cm.
Mounting foam sheet can be carried out in two ways:
- Nails with wide hats;
- Construction foam.
nailing technology similar to that used for installation of mineral wool.
Mounting on foam costs more but produces better results. To use it you need a fastening tool for professional foam. It is not necessary to purchase cheap household foam. Included with it is a plastic tube for feeding foam to use that to fill the rather narrow slits very uncomfortable. The tube is bent, it is necessary to direct his free hand, and as a result the adhesive joint gives a very poor quality. If the container is not reached, the foam solidifies in the tube, making it unsuitable for further use. Professional foam gun does not have these disadvantages.
Besides, the professional foam material of a higher quality than that of the household.
cutting foam
The distance between the rafters and transferred to the sheet of foam. For each measurement of the sheet are held in place. When cutting is necessary to increase the dimensions of the preform 1-2 mm, this will increase the strength of its pressing to the rafters.
To work comfortably use manual hacksaw or knife stationery. With a large amount of work you can make a special cutter of nichrome wire.
A detailed article - how to cut foam knife or use the machine.
Application of adhesive layer
With the gun in place of adjacency to the rafters and the adjacent sheets to apply a continuous layer of foam. For better adhesion foam need to dry for 3-5 minutes.
Laying insulation
The prepared foam sheet is inserted in place. Insulation should be placed in such a way that he never touched the waterproof film. In such areas could gather dew and drain to the wooden elements of the roof. The foam of the sheet perimeter propenivaetsya further if necessary.
installation parozaschity
After solidification the excess foam spoke cut and covered with a vapor retarding film heater. Its principle of stacking the same as in the mineral wool insulation - gradual build surface from the bottom up with full sealing all joints.
Attaching furring.
On top of a vapor retarding film attached bars crates for subsequent installation of interior decoration.
Warming of the pediment
Installation of insulation on the gable walls is different from its attachment to the side wall or roof. For the protection must be made out of boards partition measuring 5 × 150 mm. Their locations should resemble the structure of the roof system:
- It has the same thickness of insulation.
- The distance between them should ensure retention sheet tight thermal protection.
floor Warming
Thermal insulation of attic floor along the same lines as the wall insulation, with one exception - the vapor barrier film placed underneath the insulation, and waterproofing is stacked.
basic errors
All the positive sides of the insulation can be offset by errors in their assembly:
- Carrying out work at low temperatures. This leads to inadequate drying and a loss of adhesive strength insulating layer.
- Wrong choice of material thickness. Insulation insufficient thickness will not give the desired effect, and a too thick layer would lead to unnecessary material costs.
- Slipping due to insufficient insulation attachment. This leads to unprotected places and intensive penetration of cold through them.
- Lack of steam and water proofing. In this case, the heater will get wet, absorbing moisture and rapidly lose their properties.
- Installation of steam and waterproof film sagging. These materials must be fixed with a little tension.
- Lack of ventilation. In a non-ventilated loft on the walls and within the condensate formed spoiling heater.
Through the work of the attic insulation yourself, you must take responsibility for all stages - from design to mount finishing. In this case, the room created by his own hands will enjoy the comfort of the owners for a long time.
