Comparing the facts no matter what the building challenge. You can also get loosefill fiberglass, which it suitable for blowing into a. Fiberglass batts, on the other hand, are typically used to insulate between wall studs, floor and ceiling joists, and roof rafters. Diy basement wall crack repair that even novices can do.
How to insulate a basement wall greenbuildingadvisor. Eps, xps and mineral wool are unharmed by moisture, and perhaps most. In fact, one side of the basement already has the foam insulation. Hello, i am wondering if i can mix roxul wool with fiberglass. Dec 02, 2017 brief discussion on the merrits of both types of insulation. There are several common types of diagonal cracks in basement walls. Hi shannon, i would like to insulate my basement with roxul products, comfort board followed by comfort batt. So, im thinking, roxul for the whole basement ceiling, double drywall with green glue under the bedroom area, and putting in a soundproof door leading into the basement, as well as insulating the stairwell wall.
Top 5 reasons pros choose rockwool over fiberglass. Fiberglass insulation is probably the single biggest cause of moldy basements today. I hate fiberglass and the old batts were poorly installed. What is the difference between rockwool and owens corning. If you dont do this correctly youll be exposing your family to dangerous mold. It keeps the basement warm in winter and cool and dry in summer. So, i was wonder if i can first lay a r in in the fill it.
The fiberglass is in direct contact with the concrete. The locker was stuffed with foam insulation the next. For more information, see installing fiberglass right. White mold poses similar negative health effects, or problems, to those of black molds. Its not uncommon to see fiberglass basement insulation in direct contact with foundation walls. Im planning to build a home office in my basement, which will take up about x16 of my 24x36 basement.
Using fiberglass batts in conjunction with the spray foam and with a water vapor barrier, you. Roxul vs fiberglass batts specifically for sound insulation. Its held in place by metal fasteners that are driven into the concrete. As i have began doing this, i am seeing that the fiberglass is so fluffy that throwing on the 1. Not exactly the most pleasant site for the locker owner. The basement wall repair products you use will depend mainly upon the type of damage your wall has sustained. For exterior walls, attics, basement headers, ceiling and floor frames. If youre ready to insulate the rim joists in your basement or.
Choosing the best products for your basement wall repair project. This fix usually lasts about two years before it fails and allows water into the basement or crawl space again. Jan 04, 20 my house is 18 years old with a poured concrete basement. Fast forward to finding roxul comfortbatt finally easily available on their website for special order pro desk at home depot can get it as.
More details if you care but suffice it to say this is the time to replace the wall insulation. The five reasons i picked roxul rock wool over the pick fiberglass insulation. Epoxy crack injections sometimes, contactors will inject epoxy or even grout into a foundation wall crack to seal it. To ensure that humid indoor air wont reach the cold rim joist, the crack at the perimeter of each piece. Also considering going diy and using foil faced board and r 15 roxul on walls foil board and r23 roxul on under exposed floors. Diy spray foam insulation plus two additional insulation tips. Check out which material is best for your project, whether its attic and loft insulation, wall insulation or another area of your home. Better r value, fire and water resistant, nice sound barrier, easier to work with. Basement and stud wall fiberglass insulation installation. By doing this, i was able to see that a tiny trickle of water. Unfortunately, roxul is closed for the holidays but i based on your experience we are moving ahead with the afb product.
It comes it 3x4 sheets,and you can cut with a kitchen knife,just like a cake. Likewise, fiberglass batt insulation is a bad idea for insulating an attic, which requires a very thick layer of insulation at least 16 inches. Diagnosing cracks in your basement and foundation walls. They might think because the temperature below the frost line stays pretty constant, you have to worry only about insulating the top half of the basement walls. Why is roxul insulation such a good sound and fire barrier.
Preventing mold when you insulate your basement ecohome. Fiberglass this pink stuff is all i knew of when i started. Owens corning ecotouch r 40sq ft single faced fiberglass roll insulation with with sound barrier. When properly installed, closed cell foam spray or board provides two benefits. Fiberglass and rock wool absorb less than 1 percent of their weight, whereas cellulose absorbs 520. These cracks will staircase up and down the foundation walls near the ends of the wall. Green curmudgeons, architects, and outlawing batt insulation. One of the most common is when the crack begins at the top of the. Whats worse is if these cracks get water in them that freezes in the winter. Roxul vs rigid foam im getting so many conflicting views and suggestions with how to insulate my basement. If you dont do this correctly youll be exposing your family to dangerous mold exposure.
One of the most common is when the crack begins at the top of the concrete basement wall and moves diagonally down to a corner. Roxul is safer than pink or fiberglass insulation, and a few pieces against your windows will be quite safe but not beautiful. Though its higher rvalue insulation rating is desirable for rvers who spend time in hotter or colder temperature zones, fiberglass insulation has the notorious drawback of having a much shorter lifespan than other forms of insulation. I would like to insulate the basement walls completely from the weather. Cracks in a basement foundation or crawl space wall can allow water into your home. These seals are powerful and can even make the basement wall stronger. For example, rigid foam is commonly used for basement wall insulation because it resists the moisture given off by basement masonry walls. I dont have water issues, but i do get some moisture down there who doesnt. There are basically two brands of insulation on the market. With mineral wool batts and better fiberglass products, is that really. What causes horizontal cracks in concrete block foundations. Sometimes, the soil pressure may shear the first course of concrete block above the basement floor slab and the wall slides inward.
Compare the depth with an rvalue map and chart to determine how much. Jan 25, 2017 fiberglass insulation is the most common type of rv insulation. Its easy to build a basement better, or to finish an existing basement. In this article ill show you how to insulate basement walls properly.
Now do i do the floors next with the same r igid boards, plywood on top then my studded walls. Mar 06, 2011 mixing roxul wool with fiberglass posted in home theaters. The ultimate guide to rv insulation which rv insulation is best for you. Radonseal doityourself foundation crack repair kits. He developed a crack and because the spray foam was on all the outside walls, they could not find the source and had to take down all the walls and chip and scrape all the foam off. When it comes how to do insulation for a basement, there are several insulating options. In fact, improperly insulated basement walls are one of the biggest reasons for mold in homes. Jul 15, 2016 in fact, one side of the basement already has the foam insulation. So, i was wonder if i can first lay a r in in the fill it up with roxul wool. The ultimate guide to rv insulation rving planet blog. I have insulated my basement so far with closed cell rgid boards 1. Although the roxul instructions and their video instruct you to install the comfort board directly on the wall, if you look closely in their video, they are installing it on top of a material called flex guard aspire.
If any of the cracks are growing, or if they always seem to re crack, contact a professional to help. They have to be hung and stapled into place or they will slump and leave gaps. Basement and stud wall fiberglass insulation installation instructions. In my opinion it is better than the typical pink fiberglass stuff. Designing with mold and mildew resistant insulation rockwool. Jan 02, 2015 my first introduction to diy spray foam insulation was in high school. Structurally, by checking for cracks, crumbling of the concrete, and so on. Cracks in your foundation and basement walls come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. Roxul safensound is r22, has an stc of 45, an nrc rating of 1. Building envelope design by roxul 8 8 8 8 8 6 5 4 basement wall comfortboard is 1.
Roxul vs fiberglass insulation for soundproofing better. When cracks become large enough, water leaks in and makes them bigger over time. There are a several techniques for fixing cracks in basement walls. Basement wall insulation with roxul home improvement forum. Mineral wool insulation isnt like fiberglass greenbuildingadvisor. I like roxul better than fiberglass as it stops air movement better and its much less annoying to install. But before you invest in roxul, find out how much it would cost to insulate your walls with densepacked cellulose a much better choice for an 8inchthick wall. I ran down to the basement many times to see if and when the puddle appeared. In that house, it was installed just for soundproofing between the basement and the. Im replacing the insulation in my partial height basement stud walls concrete to 42, 2x6 to 92. Learn why 5inches of flameretardant insulation wont do much to help if your home is on fire. You can insulate the exterior wall with roxul, no vapor barrier.
Roxul is denser than fiberglass, and may be worth the upcharge for a variety of reasons. The methods of using foam board or roxul or fiberglass are also hope for the best but your needing greater hope and even. Sep 06, 2015 got a quote of 1200 for closed cell foam 3 inched on walls and 4 inches under floor. I have done several basement renovations and prefer roxul with a 6ml vapour barrier. All mice need is a little crack in a wall or foundation to get. First, tyvek or similar against the concrete basement wall, then 1 14 roxul comfort board for a thermal break, then a stud wall filled with roxul batts sheetrock. Fiberglass insulation is cheap and readily available and often used in poorly insulated basements. The first and easiest is to scrape the debris from inside the crack using a chisel or similar tool. The sound control and roxuls normal insulation are actually the same product but the sound control is ratedcertified for sound insulation and the other has been ratedcertified for insulating. Every time it rained, whether lightly, mediumly, or heavily, i ran down to the basement many times to see if and when the puddle appeared.
They did not use any fiberglass on the foundation walls. Sound insulation in basement ceiling im about to put in a suspended ceiling, and im wondering if its best to put the soundattenuating fibreglass between the floor joists above, get specialized ceiling tiles, both, or something else. Apr 07, 2017 i insulated with roxul r15 comfort batt. The contractor used fiberglass insulation with a plastic barrier on the interior side. Dec 16, 20 im replacing the insulation in my partial height basement stud walls concrete to 42, 2x6 to 92. Regular fiberglass will hold water for a long time, slowly collecting at the bottom and causing mildew and rot on the surrounding walls. To keep mice out, cover holes with metal flashing or pack every crack, crevice and hole with steel wool, and then caulk or cement over it. Insulation by location not all insulation is the same. Basement insulation is far more complicated than insulating regular wood framed walls. Roxul comfortbatt helps keep the outside, outside and to keep your home warm in the winter and cool in the. Not only is that wrong, its a sure way to create moisture problems.
When i moved in i installed a sante fe dehumidifer that keeps the whole space under 40% humidity. The primary reason is that fiberglass gets on your skin and and becomes very irritable. For an unfinished basement where you dont want or need finished walls and want to leave insulation exposed, a good choice might be a blanket insulation that is covered with a white flameresistant polypropylene facing, such as certainteeds basement insulation. The methods of using foam board or roxul or fiberglass are also hope for the best but your needing greater hope and even better luck, fiberglass holds water well and will create mold quickly, roxul is hydrophobic, but the water still has to go somewhere and foamboard will keep the water on whichever side it came from but does not deal with it. I would be insulating the walls from the back side hence why im using foam board vs regular vapor barrier. Rigid foam andor fiberglass for finished basement in ma. Feb 06, 2017 comfortboard vs rigid foam insulation. And we found one long vertical crack on a poured foundation wall.
I spoke to someone at the roxul company the other day who recommended the following basement insulation. However, if we focus on two similar and popular sound control products from each insulation type, a comparison works better. Id heard from contractor friends that roxul was better and that made me curious enough to try it. The timehonored practice of insulating rim joists with fiberglass batts is no. However, if your basement walls are not insulated, i doubt putting roxul in the windows will make any perceivable difference to your basement temp in general. A friend threw a punctured can of great stuff into his buddys locker. In either case, id seal the hole through wall with expanding foam.
Using the radonseal foundation crack repair kits makes the repair of cracks in poured concrete walls easy and inexpensive. Nov 19, 2018 the specific type of rock used to make rockwool insulation is basalt, a volcanic rock that melts at approximately 3,000 degrees fahrenheit. Jun 29, 2012 roxul vs rigid foam im getting so many conflicting views and suggestions with how to insulate my basement. The frozen water expands increasing the damage to your foundation and making the crack worse. Whether you stress that you will trouble others with the loud sounds in your home or the other way around, roxul insulation gives all the acoustic. Make the crack wider at the top than at the bottom to keep the mortar in place.
Insulating concrete foundations from inside the basement. Its sold in precut batts and long blankets that fit between wall studs and ceiling joists. Compared to most insulation materials, roxul is more fireproof. This is bad stuff to breathe in, but the continuous roll version, for use in walls, comes lined with paper that makes it cleaner. I use it in walls, floor and ceilings definitely works. Plus, i learned that there are some greener options that are very low voc and. The sound control and roxul s normal insulation are actually the same product but the sound control is ratedcertified for sound insulation and the other has been ratedcertified for insulating.
Tap insulation vs fiberglass insulation the money pit. For optimal acoustic performance when it comes to soundproofing, you need to look into soundproofing insulation. The fiberglass insulation that i have in my basement is only on 10. Alternatively, if using fibreglass blownin insulation, fill all cavities to the. Whilst cracking open a window if your basement has them is fine if the. This type of movement will have horizontal cracks that may occur near the center of the wall or nearer to the top of the wall. Got a quote of 1200 for closed cell foam 3 inched on walls and 4 inches under floor. Today, the installers arrived with bails of roxul afb and i was expecting the comfortbatts. I went through a similar purchase process for insulating my basement. Comparing roxul or rockwool with fiberglass insulation for soundproofing isnt quite like comparing apples to oranges. Basement and stud wall fiberglass insulation installation instructions for finished basements its best to install traditional faced or unfaced batt insulation between studs in a framed wall. Basement insulation how to insulate basement foundation walls.
Slag, a steel manufacturing byproduct, is mixed with the liquidhot basalt, and the resulting. For example, blown fiberglass insulation, which is a great idea for insulating an attic, should not be considered at all in a basement environment. Fiberglass is the most commonly used type of insulation in garages just as its the most popular type in homes. The specific type of rock used to make rockwool insulation is basalt, a volcanic rock that melts at approximately 3,000 degrees fahrenheit.
Shop a variety of products including batt, blownin. These primary types are fiberglass insulation and foam insulation, though foam insulation comes in multiple forms. Choosing the best products for your basement wall repair. Mixing roxul wool with fiberglass posted in home theaters. It is much denser than fiberglass, has a higher iic ratinginch thickness than fiberglass, and also a higher fire resistance rating. If you ever experience a leak you want the water to. Keep searching until you find a contractor that understands the situation with foam vs fiberglass. If any of the cracks are growing, or if they always seem to recrack, contact a professional to help. Brief discussion on the merrits of both types of insulation. It is a special type of soundproofing material because it works by creating an acoustic barrier that prevents sound from traveling any further. This is a popular company that manufactures fibreglass for the insulation of. The thermal resistance of insulation is measured by whats commonly known as the rvalue, and the higher the rvalue, the better. Finishing my basement roxul insulation and ready for. Rigid foam insulation provides a good floor to ceiling insulation.
Roxul does not give me a rash with fiberglass insulation you have to cover complete up gloves, long sleeves, etc. The windows and about 5 feet of the walls are above ground. Find out why you should skip the pestresistant, flameretardant tap insulation and just add more fiberglass insulation to your attic if thats what you already have. My ceiling is kinda deep and it will cost me more money to cover it will roxul wool.
Fiberglass insulation is nothing more than a ready and willing sponge that will soak up every ounce of water in your basement and promote the growth of mold and. An alternative to the batten insulation is rockwool acoustic insulation 80. Slag, a steel manufacturing byproduct, is mixed with the liquidhot basalt, and the resulting combination gets spun into threads and pressed into standardsize insulation batts. Rockwool cant stop a pipe from bursting in the wall, but it can help with what comes after. A modern california home wrapped in rockwool insulation for. Building envelope design by roxul general insulation. How to compare rock wool and fiberglass insulation home. So you can see roxul beats the pink insulation, and total blows away the spray foam insulation polyurethane and.