In addition insulation baffles must be installed at the point where the attic floor meets the roofline to prevent the attic insulation from migrating into the cavities and restricting the airflow from the soffit vents.
Proper insulating from soffit to attic.
Blown insulation may require an additional block to prevent insulation from being blown into the soffit.
To meet all three goals insulating your finished attic ventilating the roof and maximizing headroom use a combination of dense batt insulation rigid foam sheeting and air chutes.
So with cold weather.
Once they are in place you can then place the batts or blankets or blow insulation right out to the very edge of the attic floor.
For the same reason insulation shouldn t touch the roof s underside.
In some instances they even block soffit vents.
If your attic is well insulated the insulation might be plugging the spaces between rafters just above exterior walls.
The soffit vents allow convective air movement from the soffits of the residence to the ridge vent.
The soffit vents are now installed but you still need to make sure there s no insulation blocking the new vents.
That means air can t flow from the soffit vents to the roof vents.
The solution is to add baffles which allow air to flow past the insulation photo 9.
The airflow from the soffits to the ridge vent keeps the roof cool and prevents ice dams and the material will block that flow.
The answer is rafter venting.
Rafter vents or insulation baffles install in any rafter space to create narrow gaps that direct fresh air from the soffit vents to the peak of the roof.
Although installing insulation in an unheated attic is usually a fairly straightforward job a variety of pitfalls await the unwary.
If you re finishing your attic insulating it to the proper r value can cause a dramatic loss of headroom if you limit yourself to fiberglass batts.
A guide to proper attic insulation.
If there s blown in insulation like ours rake back the fluffy stuff with a 3 or 4 ft long 1 x 6 or use a garden rake or hoe.
A piece of rigid foam board placed on the outer edge of the top plate works very well for this.
Baffles are available at home centers.