caledon wrote:
Hi, I need advice on insulating my old house (105 yrs. old). There is
virtually NO insulation in the attic at all. Between the joists you
can see the lathe and plaster. There are scatterings of insulation
here and there that is basically usless and likely should be removed
(since critters have used it as a urinal).

My question is, if I put down batts of insulation, should I FIRST be
putting plastic down as a vapour barrier. I think I read that some
types of insulation comes with a built in vapour barrier on one side.

I thought that I would remove the old rotted insulation that is
currently there, put in batts of fresh insulation then blow in more on
top. Any suggestions

thanks
Janet

I agree about removing what is there under those conditions. However I
don't recommend batts for this use. Blown in insulation will provide some
vapor barrier and will help seal air leaks that are likely to be plenty. I
would not use plastic as I have heard of too many situations in these old
homes that doing so ended up trapping moisture where it caused problems.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit