BASC Search | Building America Solution Center

Conceptual insulation at cape-style roof - ceiling and knee wall cavity insulation

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Air Sealing and Insulating Walls to Reduce Heat Gain

Information Guide

Information guide listing Building America Solution Center guides that describe ways to air-seal and insulate a new or existing home's walls to resist heat gain.

Right – The knee wall is properly insulated and air sealed.

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Key elements of a wall system clad with insulated vinyl siding

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Rigid Foam Board Interior Insulation for Existing Foundation Walls

Guide

Guide describing how to insulate closed crawlspace walls and band joist areas with rigid foam board insulation.

Install an air barrier on the exterior of attic knee wall insulation.

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Right – The backing on this knee wall was air sealed prior to insulation.

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Rigid Foam Insulation Installed Between Existing House and Garage Walls

Guide

Guide describing how to upgrade walls that separate the garage from the house by providing a continuous air control layer on the garage side of the wall and adding rigid foam insulation.

Insulating sheathing is installed on exterior of an existing framed wall with water control between existing sheathing and insulating sheathing

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Right – Rigid backing was installed prior to insulating the attic knee walls.

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Wrong – The backing on this knee wall was not air sealed prior to adding insulation.

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Raised heel energy trusses extend past the exterior wall and are deeper at the wall allowing room for full insulation coverage over the top plate of the exterior walls.

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Air sealing wall between a porch roof and attic with 1 inch of rigid insulation

CAD File

Wrong - Wall cavities behind shower are not completely filled with insulation and are lacking the solid interior air barrier.

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Right – This attic knee wall and the floor joist cavity openings beneath it are being sealed and insulated with spray foam.

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Wrong – The batt insulation on this knee wall is not properly supported and there is no air sealed rigid backing to provide a solid air barrier.

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The attic knee walls were constructed from 2x6s and insulated with R-19 batt, backed with 1 inch of XPS foam board with taped joints to provide a solid air barrier over the insulated surfaces.

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Windows are installed as “outies” in this wall assembly using a self-adhered membrane water and air control layer with continuous exterior insulation

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The builder in this very cold climate installed three layers of unfaced mineral wool batt in the double wall with a code-required vapor barrier between the middle and inner layers of wall insulation that is taped to barriers in the ceiling and floor.

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Right - These attic knee walls are insulated with rigid foam and sealed with spray foam to form a continuous air barrier at the gable end of this cathedral ceiling.

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Right - Closed-cell spray foam is installed as a skim coat to provide air tightness to an exterior wall cavity before installing batt or blown cavity insulation.

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To ensure a complete air barrier between the garage and the house, the wall between the garage and the house was insulated and air-sealed with four inches of high-density spray foam.

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Conceptual insulation at cape-style roof - roof cavity insulation with rigid insulation closure

CAD File

Air Sealed, Insulated Basements

Guide

Guide describing how to insulate a basement to improve the overall thermal performance of the building and provide more dry, usable conditioned space for home occupants and HVAC equipment.

Existing band joist insulation retrofit with 1 1/2 inch rigid insulation

CAD File

Insulated Concrete Forms (ICFs)

Video

Video describing insulated concrete forms.

Skylight Shaft Walls

Guide

Guide describing insulation techniques for skylight shaft walls.

Attic Knee Walls

Guide

Guide describing how to insulate and air-seal attic knee walls and floor joist cavities under knee walls.

Walls Adjoining Porch Roof

Guide

This guide describes how to install a rigid air barrier to separate the porch attic from the conditioned space.

Double-Wall Architectural Feature

Guide

Guide describing air barrier installation, insulation installation, and air-sealing for double walls (half or full walls included in a home design as an architectural feature that provides a more dimensional appearance).