"Mark Modrall" wrote in message
...
Hi...

We're having some remodeling done that involves pulling off some
drywall here and there. The house is not very well insulated, and we
were thinking of re-insulating at least the parts that get exposed.

The contractor told me that r-19 is as high as you should go in walls
and that taking a thicker bat of higher r-value would just get
compressed in the wall and lose its efficacy.

It just sounded odd that we haven't improved the r-value of wall
insulation in 30+ years.

What's the best you can do for wall insulation these days?

Thanks
Mark

He's mostly right with 2 x 4 framing. There are some foam sheets that can
top that, but they are very expensive by comparison. Fiberglass batts are at
about the limit of technology for that material. If you add framing to make
a 2 x 6 equivalent you can add more insulation.

Insulation depends on air to do the work and compressing thicker batts will
reduce the amount of insulating value.