[Attic Insulation]  [Friction Fit]  [Drill, Blow & Patch]

 [Ventilation]  [Removals]  [Draft Proofing]

ATTIC INSULATION

For  any retrofit insulation company, this is the meat and potatoes of the business.   Simply put, we blow loose fill insulation through a long hose up into your attic hatch, and install it according to the manufacturers specifications in your attic space.  The process involves a 3 or 5 ton truck that houses the special machinery and material required to do the job.

For the average attic, the job will take approximately an hour depending on which truck and what type of equipment is dispatched to your job.  The installers will lay down 2 mil poly (plastic) on the floor from the front door to the attic hatch.  In many instances they will be able to feed the hose through a window close to your attic hatch, and minimize the disturbance to your home.  When complete, they simply roll up the poly with any loose insulation that may have fallen out of the hatch, and remove it from your home.

Hatch Work

• In all our retro-fit jobs, we include what is called the "hatch work".  If required, we will build a cardboard border around your attic hatch opening.  This will hold back the insulation so you don't get a face full every time you go into you attic.  We will also install a batt of insulation to the top of your attic hatch and weather strip the perimeter of your hatch (if required/possible).  This whole process gives your access hatch a tight seal, ensuring that your added insulation isn't going to be wasted by a "drafty" hatch.  Don't pay extra for your hatch work (as many contractors charge extra).  It's a necessary part of the job, and should be quoted in the price.

Air Chutes

• Also included in our pricing are up to 6 insulation air chutes installed at the edge of your attic, to aid in the air flow of outside air if you have soffit venting installed.  Many older homes do not have soffit venting installed.  If you don't have soffit venting installed, then air chutes are not required, and you should discuss other options such as intake roof vents with your contractor.  Bear in mind that some attics are of such a low slope, that its not always possible to reach the soffit and install the chutes.

Watch Out For "Add On's"

• One of the things you should watch out for, is some insulation contractors will try to sell you air chutes when they are not required.  They are on of those "add on's" that they can make money on.  If you have continuous soffit venting all along your eaves, and have cardboard insulation stops installed, then air chutes are not required. 
• If you have no soffit venting installed, then air chutes are not required.  If you do not have any soffit venting installed, you should discuss your options with your contractor.  To ensure proper air flow it is important to install some type of intake venting.  One of the options is to drill in new vents into your soffits.  Another, popular solution, is to install several roof vents low on the slope of your roof, so they will act as intake vents.  This solution works excellent in combination with a turbine at the peak of your roof.
• If you have, as most older homes, individual intake vents drilled into your soffits, then you should install air chutes in each truss space where those are present.  This is why we include six, as this is the average we see in most attics.  We can install additional ones, for a nominal charge.

WALL INSULATION

Friction fit batt insulation is simply the installation of traditional fiberglass batts into the wall studs of your home.  If you are building a new home, we can quote you on the entire insulation "package".   This package will include the wall batts, vapor barrier, caulking, and attic insulation required to prepare your home for the drywall stage.

Since we have a significant number of new home construction builders and drywall companies as customers, we are in a position to give you a very accurate, and competitive quote. 

We can either quote your home from your construction blueprints, or with an on-site estimate (if your house is already framed).  On-site is always more accurate, and gives you the best price.

Because we are a company on the leading edge of technology, we are also able to process and quote your insulation needs on the basis of electronic blueprints.  If you have them in PDF or CAD format, feel free to email them.  We were the first insulation company in Calgary to use the power of the internet to help service our customers, and email inquiries and discussions are welcome.  We realize that the internet can allow you to ask questions when its convenient for you !

DRILL, BLOW, AND PATCH

Older homes, mostly built prior to the 1920's, are likely to have no insulation in the walls at all, unless they have already been upgraded.  These homes will have a 2" X 4" rough framed exterior wall, often balloon framed, and are perfect candidates for what we call the "Drill, Blow, and Patch".

Essentially, we can drill holes at the top of each wall cavity, and blow cellulose insulation into the wall cavity with a special portable machine.  Once the cavity is blown full, we seal the holes with a type of all purpose acrylic wall patch.  This can be sanded by yourself or your painter, and finished ready for paint.  We don't do the interior decorating, but we will get you started with warmer wall cavities.

Common Questions

• How do you know your not missing any areas ?  We try to be as thorough as possible.  Because we have literally done thousands of these kinds of jobs, you get to know the framing styles from that era.  We will also drill one row of holes along the top of your wall, but a second row of holes may be required if there is "blocking" midway between the walls.  This is usually discovered by dropping a plumb bob on a string into the top hole, or drilling a pilot hole at the bottom of one of the cavities.  Ultimately there is a chance of a small area being missed if it has a "unique" framing oddity.  Don't be afraid to watch our guys work, and don't be afraid to ask questions.  Because we guarantee our workmanship, we will always come back, no questions asked, if you have a concern.

• Do you do this from the inside or outside ?  The answer is both.  It depends on your preference.  Because you are responsible for the re-decoration, you have to weigh the pro's and con's.  If you are, or plan to in the near future, re-doing your outside siding, then doing it from the outside is best.  Doing it from the outside will expose your home to less commotion, and less dust and possible mess.  If your planning on re-painting and patching your home's interior (most of these older homes will have well worth lath and plaster walls), then doing it through the drywall or plaster might be the best way to go.  Many times a home owner will cover the patched holes by installing a nice wall paper border at the top of the walls.  This can kill two birds with one stone.

• Why do you use cellulose insulation if you recommend fiberglass for attics ?  We use cellulose because in this particular application, its much better.  In your wall cavity, the cellulose is not subject to wide moisture fluctuations like it is in the attic.  It is also more likely to settle into every nook and cranny, and have a higher density when installation is complete.  This will give you as much R-Value as possible in your wall cavity.

• Will this be a messy process ?  Unfortunately, that is one of the other drawbacks of cellulose, it is a dusty product to work with.  Our installers will sweep up as best as possible after they are done, but you can expect to give your home a thorough vacuum about 1 hour after we are done (this will give any dust time to settle).  We have lots of tricks to avoid blowing insulation all over your house, but you are being misled by any contractor that tells you there will be no dust.  Cellulose, because its recycled newspaper, is a relatively inert substance.

AIR VENTILATION

Ensuring proper ventilation in your attic is paramount to maximizing the life of all the construction elements in your roof/ceiling.   Moist hot air can damage your roof shingles, it can cause ice damming, it can damage your insulation, promote the growth of mould, and even damage the roof truss framing members themselves.

To ensure proper air flow, you need intake somewhere low on the roof line, and exhaust somewhere near the peak.  This can be achieved in many ways, depending on the age of your home and the style that was employed in framing the roof system.

Ideally, you want outside air to enter at your soffits (see above diagram) and travel along the underside of your roof sheathing, and exit near the peak of your roof, through a roof vent.  For the vast majority of older homes that we encounter, there is a solid plywood soffit, with no intake vents, and a single roof vent.  This is a dangerous situation.  Discuss the options with your contractor. 

One of our favorite solutions is to install several roof vents, on each side of the roof, low on the roof line.  Then install one or two whirlybird turbines at the peak of the attic.  This will create the ideal convective process whereby air is drawn in, heats up (because your attic can be as much as 55 C in August), then is expelled through the turbine at high speed (this is actually what makes the turbine spin -- not wind).

Note: Supplied and installed products may differ from the images below (for reference purposes only)

Whirlybird Turbines

Galvanized whirlybird turbines are a very effective way of expelling hot, moist air from your attic.  They work on a convective process where hot air is drawn from your intake, and expelled out the peak, through the turbine, at high speed.  When your turbine is spinning, you know air is being exhausted from your attic.

Make sure you don't cheap out on your turbine, and get one (such as the whirlybird brand) that has ball bearings instead of a plastic sleeve.  They last longer, and are less likely to make noise and get off balance.

Soffit Air Chutes

Air Chutes can be effective if installed under the right circumstances.  If you have under eave intake venting, and no insulation stops (the cardboard variety), then you should install Styrofoam air chutes. 

Another situation would be if you had a very low slope roof, and the insulation stops were not sufficiently long to keep your new insulation levels from plugging your intake vents.  This is very rare, but it does occur.

Air chutes are installed on the inside of the attic, over the roof truss framing members.  They sit right down against the top plate of your exterior wall.  They form a protected air flow zone between your roof sheathing, and the chute itself.  This protected zone allows fresh intake air to flow in through your intake vent, and rise up to the roof line, and out your vents or turbine.

Roof Vents

Roof vents are pretty much standard on just about every home.  They allow warm moist air to escape out of the top of your roof.  They are entirely necessary and every home should have them.  The exception would be homes with sufficient gable vents (on the wall of your attic at either or both ends) or specialty venting such as continuous ridge venting.

Bear in mind that the effectiveness of the roof vent, will be dependant on your attic having enough air intake, either lower on your roof line, or preferably at the underside of your eaves.

Cornice Intake Vents

If your home has a plywood eave with absolutely no air intake at all, then installing cornice intake vents may be the solution for you.  We simply drill a number of holes between the roof trusses, under your eave, and snap them into place.

They should be accompanied by a correlating air chute or insulation stop inside the attic to allow free flow of air up under the roof sheathing.

Soffit Intake Vents

Similar in purpose to the cornice intake vents, square and rectangular vents perform the same function.  They allow greater intake per vent.  Some times its a cosmetic choice.  Some soffits simply don't have enough room to install a larger rectangular vent.  It may depend on how wide your houses overhang is, and how it is framed on the attic side.

Solar Powered Vent

In recent years, the costs of solar powered consumer equipment has come down considerably.  We at Affordable Home Insulators Ltd. are proud to be one of the first companies to be sourcing out independent solar powered roof vents.  They offer all the cosmetic advantages of a 110V powered vent, without all the additional wiring and the hiring of an electrician.

The come on at sunrise when the sun activates the solar panel, and they gently push warm air out of your attic all day long, until the sun sets again.  They are effortless and quiet.  They are perfect for those who do not like the look of a turbine, and want a lower profile look to their roof.

INSULATION REMOVALS

Our company is the home of the "General".  The "General" is the biggest, nastiest insulation removal machine in the city.  It is trailer mounted, and vacuums insulation through a 12" diameter hose.  Because we are Calgary's largest insulation removal company, we have a need to get it done fast, clean, and efficiently.

We remove insulation for some of the city's largest insurance companies, restoration companies, and renovation contractors.  Because we do a high volume, and have the trained personnel, we can offer this service at a very competitive price, and ensure that we always know what we are doing, and will get your removal job done right, the first time.

Why remove insulation ?

Insulation removal is not for everyone.  Other contractors will sell you a removal, just to pad their business with you.  Normally, its not necessary, and can be very expensive.  If you have old wood chips, rock wool, or cellulose in your attic and you want to add insulation, just place a nice blanket of fiberglass loosefill over top.  The old insulation still has an R-value that you can utilize.  Ask us for a bundled price, as we will give a discount for a combined removal, and re-blow of your attic space.  Some of the reasons to remove your insulation include:

• Renovation of rooms beneath requiring removal of your ceiling drywall

• Complete re-wiring of your house including your attic space

• Adding a second story onto a bungalow

• Restoration after there has been a fire or other disaster

• Allergy related problems with existing insulation

DRAFT PROOFING

Draft proofing your home is probably the second most effective way of saving energy, after you have upgraded your attic insulation.

Essentially, once you have upgraded your attic insulation, the warm air in your home will need to find another way out -- it will take the path of least resistance. 

Normally we like to encourage our customers to partake in many draft proofing exercises themselves.  The options are many and we prefer to advise, rather than to make a buck off things that the average home owner can do themselves.

Some of the services we do offer, for those who are not inclined, are things such as installing exterior door weather-stripping, and electrical cover plate gaskets.

The options for draft proofing your home are almost endless.  To help the consumer, we have produced a small handy booklet that will help you navigate the bevy of available upgrades, and help you do them yourself.  We include this booklet free of charge to anyone who has booked an attic upgrade or other service, when you ask for it.  Its just one of the little things we like to do, to help build bridges with our customers.  Of course if you are intimidated by any of the upgrades,