attic insulation

Can you put too much insulation in your attic?

The need for attic insulation

The purpose of insulation in the attic is to keep the rooms below it warm in the winters and cool in the summers. Insulating the attic includes lagging the floor, walls, and roof of the space. The amount of insulation needed by a house depends on its structure. The main idea in insulating a home apart from maintaining temperature is to allow the roof to breathe. In doing this, air can ventilate adequately, keeping the ceiling at an appropriate temperature in the winters to keep the house warm, but the roof cold, so ice dams do not form within the roof, eventually damaging it. Ventilation in a roof can be provided by installing individual rafter vents to ensure the movement of air. All these works need skill and knowledge that is why even attic insulation in Los Angeles where winters are not cold at all is usually made by professionals.

Benefits of insulation

The right amount of padding goes a long way. It reduces the electricity bills, with the average homeowner saving about $800 annually and improves the level of comfort, depending on the conditions, throughout the year. It provides a safer home structure by preventing any damage caused by heat and moisture over time. Adding insulation to a home is a great idea, as it ensures comfort. Heat innately flows from a hotter object to a cooler one, so even houses with proper heating or cooling systems can face problems if they are under-insulated. Due to this, homes become hot or cold faster based on the external temperature changes. So, rooms on the upper floor of a house have a slightly different temperature than that of lower levels. If this difference is too much, then home is under-insulated. However, if there is little to no difference, the house may be over-lagged.

The focal point, however, is the right amount of insulation as if a house is not suitably insulated, it can also increase bills and the amount of discomfort.

attic insulation

The drawbacks of over-insulation

Over-insulating a house can lead to too much moisture being trapped inside the roof and walls of a home. This can cause the development of mold and, eventually, a lower indoor air quality. Over-insulation can also make the attic warmer than it otherwise would be, in the summer, or contrast, colder than regular in the winters.

Over-insulation can lead to problems if the house ever needs maintenance. You do not want to deal with these problems as the costs and time consumption will be too much. Hence, it would be best if you were careful about the level of insulation you choose. Extreme lagging would embed the wiring, duct channels, and plumbing pipes deep into the structure of the house, making it difficult to access for any maintenance work. All in all, too much insulation will have adverse effects that may not show instantly but will eventually damage the house. To ensure that this doesn’t happen, it is best to hire certified and qualified professionals who can make sure any such undesired outcomes are avoided.