A Look At How Fiberglass Batt Wall Insulation Is Installed

If you're renovating your old home and having new drywall put up, you might want to have new wall insulation added, too. You can choose between batt insulation, spray, and blown insulation. Fiberglass batt is an affordable option that goes in quickly and is easy to install, so installation costs are low, too. Here's how fiberglass batt wall insulation is installed.

Open The Walls

Batt insulation is installed on open walls. Have the drywall contractor remove the old drywall and then wait until the insulation is installed before hanging the new drywall. Once the walls are open, the insulation contractor has the room to push the batt insulation in wall cavities and position the insulation around pipes and electrical boxes.

Remove Old Insulation

You can place new fiberglass batt insulation over old insulation, but if the old insulation is compacted or ripped up by pests, you'll probably want to remove it. Plus, the layer of insulation can't be too thick, so a new piece of insulation is probably all you'll need.

The contractor can pull out the old insulation and dispose of it so you don't have to come in contact with it. Fiberglass sheds fibers as you work with it, so the crew wears protective gear while installing the wall insulation to keep from inhaling fibers and getting itchy skin.

Cut The Insulation To Size And Install It

Batt insulation is easy to trim to size so it is an exact fit for the wall cavities. If the insulation is too narrow, there will be air gaps at the sides. So the contractor makes sure the insulation is so wide that it has to be pressed in along the sides. This also helps the insulation stay in place.

The insulation may need to be adjusted in certain places. For instance, the insulation should be against the exterior wall rather than the interior wall when it is near pipes. This helps protect the pipes from freezing. The insulation may also need to be adjusted around wiring, cables, or electrical boxes so these parts are easy to access in case they need to be serviced in the future.

Fiberglass batt insulation usually comes on a big roll so the length can be cut to size as well as the width. The insulation often comes with a vapor barrier already attached, but if not, the last step in the installation is to cover the insulation with a vapor barrier to keep moisture out of your house and to help the insulation be the most effective. Once the insulation is in place, you can have the drywall installation completed and proceed with painting your new walls.

Contact a local wall insulation service to learn more.

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