Check Your Walls
A quick way to determine if the walls in your home have enough insulation is to do the touch test. The interior ceilings, walls and floors in your home should feel warm and dry. When drywall and paneling inside a home feels damp or cold, there is not enough insulation. Alternatively, when touching an exterior wall, it should feel cold because insulation is keeping warm air inside a home.
For a more detailed check, you can check the insulation levels around the outlets. Make sure the electricity is turned off before you start your check. Remove the outlet cover and shine a flashlight into the crack around the outlet box. You should be able to see if there is insulation and how thick it is. Check outlets on all floors, even new parts of your home. Just because there is insulation in one wall, it doesn’t mean the whole home is insulated properly, especially if there are newer additions to your home.
Check the Attic
To check the insulation in your attic, you need to inspect the condition of the insulation, and calculate the current level of insulation. Your attic should have a certain amount of insulation in it, and the recommended level of insulation for your attic is dependent on where you live. For Mid-Missouri, the recommended insulation level should be at 4.
Check to see if the insulation levels are at or below the attic floor joists. If so, you may need to add more insulation. If you cannot see any of the floor joist because the insulation is well above them, you probably have enough insulation and adding more will not be cost-effective. It is also important that the insulation is evenly distributed. Sometimes there is enough insulation in the middle, but the edges have very little. You can also measure the insulation levels. Either read the R-value printed on the batts of your existing insulation or use a measuring tape to measure the depth of the insulation.
Check Your Basement/Crawlspace
Many crawlspaces were designed with ventilation in order to prevent the buildup of moisture and, therefore, mold and mildew growth. This type of crawlspace foundation should be insulated with fiberglass. Insulation should be placed between the floor joists underneath the subfloor.
For crawlspace foundations that are not ventilated, the walls of the area should be completely insulated. This prevents pipes and ductwork from requiring their own insulation to improve energy efficiency or to prevent freezing since they will lie within the insulated crawlspace foundation area.
To determine whether your home's crawlspace has been properly insulated or not, take a peek underneath your home. If you see damp or loosely hanging insulation, this means the crawlspace insulation is either outdated or wasn’t installed properly in the first place.
Request a Free Quote from A B Pest Control
The easiest and most efficient way to ensure that your home has the proper insulation levels is to call a professional. A B Pest Control and Insulation can evaluate your home and make the proper recommendations for the best insulation to meet your needs. With proper insulation, your home can easily stay cool when it’s hot outside. Your Lake of the Ozarks insulation company has team members with many years of experience in the insulation business, so you can trust that we will get the job done right at a fair price.
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