Hi,

I'm back again, this time it's insulation. My house is 103 years old
and never has been insulated. So I got a quote from a local company
and I didn't realize it would be so expensive. If they blow it in from
the outside, it costs $2300 but if they do it from the inside it's
$1750. But then I have to pay a drywaller to fix the gazillion holes
they will make because they only do the initial rough patch after they
blow in the insulation. We're talking about a LOT of holes.

Then there's the attic. I got a quote for the recycled denim
insulation up there and it was over $1,000. So I asked what it would
cost to use the normal stuff (fiberglass pink stuff) and he said they
don't use that because it's way less efficient than the recycled denim
and plus it's not healthy to have around.

So I'm not just writing to whine. I have two questions.

1. Is it true that fiberglass is much less efficient than the recycled
denim?

2. Someone told me that blown-in cellulose will settle in a few years
and then I'll be right back where I started. The contractor said he'd
give me a 15 year warranty, but he doesn't have one in writing--it's
just his good word since "it's a family business".
Could I have some comments on cellulose insulation in general and
whether this is something I really need to just DO and stop whining
about?

Thanks again in advance. This group is really helpful for me.

Best,

Lesley

id go with the fiberglass in the attic, it will keep suspended
better i think,,and wont burn. fiberglass is bad for your lungs so a
mask is needed when working around it.. i had my 100 year old home walls
blown in from the outside, they blew in fiberglass with a spray of latex
at the nozzle to keep it from settleing .im in the louisville ky area
and the co is innovations in insulation.it cost 480.00 but was 10 years
ago ... look, what good is blowing something into your walls or attic
that will settle ,,,or burn,,,or be food for some insect....in my mind
its a waste of money. lucas

Lesley wrote:
Hi,

I'm back again, this time it's insulation. My house is 103 years old
and never has been insulated. So I got a quote from a local company
and I didn't realize it would be so expensive. If they blow it in from
the outside, it costs $2300 but if they do it from the inside it's
$1750. But then I have to pay a drywaller to fix the gazillion holes
they will make because they only do the initial rough patch after they
blow in the insulation. We're talking about a LOT of holes.

Then there's the attic. I got a quote for the recycled denim
insulation up there and it was over $1,000. So I asked what it would
cost to use the normal stuff (fiberglass pink stuff) and he said they
don't use that because it's way less efficient than the recycled denim
and plus it's not healthy to have around.

So I'm not just writing to whine. I have two questions.

1. Is it true that fiberglass is much less efficient than the recycled
denim?

2. Someone told me that blown-in cellulose will settle in a few years
and then I'll be right back where I started. The contractor said he'd
give me a 15 year warranty, but he doesn't have one in writing--it's
just his good word since "it's a family business".
Could I have some comments on cellulose insulation in general and
whether this is something I really need to just DO and stop whining
about?

Thanks again in advance. This group is really helpful for me.

Best,

Lesley


Have you been here yet:
http://www.cellulose.org/

Did you GOOGLE: "cellulose settling" ?


Jim

"Lesley" wrote in message
ups.com...
Hi,

I'm back again, this time it's insulation. My house is 103 years old
and never has been insulated. So I got a quote from a local company
and I didn't realize it would be so expensive. If they blow it in from
the outside, it costs $2300 but if they do it from the inside it's
$1750.

Wow, t hat is a great investment. Think how fat the payback will be. Over
the life of the house, it would have paid for hte house many times already.
At 2 bucks a gallon for oil, you can't do any better at a casino or the
stock market. I'd jump on that NOW.



But then I have to pay a drywaller to fix the gazillion holes
they will make because they only do the initial rough patch after they
blow in the insulation. We're talking about a LOT of holes.

Learn to do it yourself. It is really not a hard job at all. Spread some
pre-mixed stuff from a can, sand, put on a primer. If you are plainning to
paint or paper, not a big deal. If you just finished painting, it would be
a PITA.



1. Is it true that fiberglass is much less efficient than the recycled
denim?

I don't know about denim at all. Fiberglass is now thought to have some
microscopc fibers getting loose udner cartain circunstances and could pose a
health hazard. This is mostly a concern with hot air heat where it can be
circulated.

Lesley,

1) As Edwin said, it would be wise to learn to do the drywall repairs
yourself. With tax, you should be saving about $600, which covers
a lot of drywall patch and sandpaper. I'd rather have the repaired
holes on the inside of the house than on the outside. Is there any
chance that the holes could be cover in some rooms in the house by
installing crown molding? That is an easy and attractive way to cover
the holes and it gives you access to the holes years from now if you
want to examine the insulation or "top it off."

2) While you are at it, you could consider drilling those inside holes
yourself and shooting in the insulation. I've never researched it,
but I've always been under the impression that those who sell the
blown-in insulation retail will generally loan you the equipment
for blowing it in. The insulation itself is supposed to be fairly
economical.

3) I'm guessing that you already know without asking what the value of
a verbal guarantee is. Why would any contractor offer a guarantee
but refuse to put it in writing? Yep - so that he can weasle out
if there are problems later.

4) Regarding the attic. I have not done much current reading on
insulation types. How about insulating it yourself? If you are
really frugal, you can always collect the tons of styrofoam out
on the curb each trash day, run it through a neighbors chipper
shredder and toss it in your attic.
Seriously, I've been tossing free styrofoam on top of the existing
attic insulation for years. It is basically the same as the sheet-
styrofoam insulation that wraps my home under my siding. But free.

Getting more conventional - the cost of the labor is considerable when
paying to insulate the attic. Also, if you do it yourself, then you can
do the super-caulking that should be done before tossing in the
insulation. Few installers do this, and those that do it don't do an
adequate job.

Good luck,
Gideon

=======

Lesley wrote:

I'm back again, this time it's insulation. My house is 103 years old
and never has been insulated. So I got a quote from a local company
and I didn't realize it would be so expensive. If they blow it in from
the outside, it costs $2300 but if they do it from the inside it's
$1750. But then I have to pay a drywaller to fix the gazillion holes
they will make because they only do the initial rough patch after they
blow in the insulation. We're talking about a LOT of holes.

Then there's the attic. I got a quote for the recycled denim
insulation up there and it was over $1,000. So I asked what it would
cost to use the normal stuff (fiberglass pink stuff) and he said they
don't use that because it's way less efficient than the recycled denim
and plus it's not healthy to have around.

So I'm not just writing to whine. I have two questions.

1. Is it true that fiberglass is much less efficient than the recycled
denim?

2. Someone told me that blown-in cellulose will settle in a few years
and then I'll be right back where I started. The contractor said he'd
give me a 15 year warranty, but he doesn't have one in writing--it's
just his good word since "it's a family business".
Could I have some comments on cellulose insulation in general and
whether this is something I really need to just DO and stop whining
about?

Thanks again in advance. This group is really helpful for me.

Best,

Lesley

Lesley wrote:

I'm back again, this time it's insulation. My house is 103 years old
and never has been insulated. So I got a quote from a local company
and I didn't realize it would be so expensive. If they blow it in from
the outside, it costs $2300 but if they do it from the inside it's
$1750. But then I have to pay a drywaller to fix the gazillion holes
they will make because they only do the initial rough patch after they
blow in the insulation. We're talking about a LOT of holes.

Then there's the attic. I got a quote for the recycled denim
insulation up there and it was over $1,000. So I asked what it would
cost to use the normal stuff (fiberglass pink stuff) and he said they
don't use that because it's way less efficient than the recycled denim
and plus it's not healthy to have around.

So I'm not just writing to whine. I have two questions.

1. Is it true that fiberglass is much less efficient than the recycled
denim?

2. Someone told me that blown-in cellulose will settle in a few years
and then I'll be right back where I started. The contractor said he'd
give me a 15 year warranty, but he doesn't have one in writing--it's
just his good word since "it's a family business".
Could I have some comments on cellulose insulation in general and
whether this is something I really need to just DO and stop whining
about?

Thanks again in advance. This group is really helpful for me.

Best,

Lesley

I was an observer when a friend of mine did this same thing on an old house
in Louisiana.

One hundred years ago, or even fifty, there were very few standards. There
wasn't any inspections. People built things like they wanted, and there was
little uniformity. They just did the best they could. Sometimes they were
craftsmen, and sometimes, just DIYers with limited resources.

They removed MANY boards from the outside of the house. I guess you could
best describe it as siding. When they did, they revealed many things that
would have been invisible had they not removed the boards. They used
different types of insulation. Pink stuff. Blown stuff that adhered to
itself, then was trimmed off flush with the surface. This is so it would
not fall down and compact. Blown in was used in the attic space.

Like horizontal cripples. The short boards that go inbetween studs. Where
there is a cripple, if you make a hole above it, the insulation only fills
only down to where the cripple is, then you have a hollow space. There were
places that no amount of drilling of holes either inside or outside would
have exposed what needed to be seen, properly accessed, and properly
insulated. There are all sorts of pipes, and wires, and "stuff" that would
keep blown in insulation from falling into just the right configuration to
fill the space.

If you are going to spend $$$ to insulate your house, do it right. Remove
the boards, or do whatever you need to do to be 102% sure that you insulate
all the spaces. Leaving blank spots will leave you with a very poor job.
And, without pulling a LOT of boards, leaving blank spots will be very easy.
And for you as an owner to see those missed portions will be IMPOSSIBLE.
You won't know how good a job you will be getting because you won't be able
to see much of it.

You'll never know if you have gaps or not unless you can see in there.

Just MHO.

Steve

What kind fo attic do you have? If you can do that yourself first,
then do it. Then fix door seals and get double pane windows. Then
insulate hot water pipes. After all of that is done, then decide if
you really want to do the walls. The walls are the last thing you
shoudl do because you might not need to do them, depending upon where
you live. I live in Baltimore and have uninsulated walls, and it
hardly makes any difference. Insulating the attic made a big
difference. If you live someplace much colder than where I live then
insulating the walls will make a difference, buy you didn't say where
this house is.

When blown-in cellulose was a new thing, there were settling issues.
They have since been solved, and settling shouldn't be a problem if
the people putting the stuff in are at all competent.

*MY* biggest issue with it is that it's dusty, and it appears to
KEEP producing dust more or less forever. Possibly your insulation
contractor has a satisfactory answer for that problem. My house
was done by hacks, before I bought it. *I* think they ought to
spray some sort of foam-compound in a layer all over the attic first,
to seal the area, then blow in the cellulose, and finally spray
something over the top of the cellulose to encapsulate it, but I
don't know of anyone that does that.

If the people drilling the holes from the inside are careful about
going in a straight line, you can cover most of the holes
with crown or picture molding. *AFTER* plugging them.

If batt-insulation is just thrown into the attic space in a hurry,
it will leave voids and gaps that seriously compromise it's
effectiveness. If you're careful when you put it in, you can
prevent/fill those voids and gaps, but that takes longer, and
therefore isn't cost effective if you're paying for the labor.
blown-in tends to fill nooks and crannies by itself, which means
it goes a GREAT deal faster, and hence is cheaper.

My father's house was built in the 50's. He hired guys to blow in
insulation under his attic floor. Afterwards he pulled up blanks and found
tons of empty spaces due to blocking. He made them come back and pick up
most of the floor and do the job right. Fortunately it was a deal thru the
utility company so they could not get out of it.


"SteveB" wrote in message
news:x_1je.3$pq.2@fed1read03...

Lesley wrote:

I'm back again, this time it's insulation. My house is 103 years old
and never has been insulated. So I got a quote from a local company
and I didn't realize it would be so expensive. If they blow it in from
the outside, it costs $2300 but if they do it from the inside it's
$1750. But then I have to pay a drywaller to fix the gazillion holes
they will make because they only do the initial rough patch after they
blow in the insulation. We're talking about a LOT of holes.

Then there's the attic. I got a quote for the recycled denim
insulation up there and it was over $1,000. So I asked what it would
cost to use the normal stuff (fiberglass pink stuff) and he said they
don't use that because it's way less efficient than the recycled denim
and plus it's not healthy to have around.

So I'm not just writing to whine. I have two questions.

1. Is it true that fiberglass is much less efficient than the recycled
denim?

2. Someone told me that blown-in cellulose will settle in a few years
and then I'll be right back where I started. The contractor said he'd
give me a 15 year warranty, but he doesn't have one in writing--it's
just his good word since "it's a family business".
Could I have some comments on cellulose insulation in general and
whether this is something I really need to just DO and stop whining
about?

Thanks again in advance. This group is really helpful for me.

Best,

Lesley

I was an observer when a friend of mine did this same thing on an old
house in Louisiana.

One hundred years ago, or even fifty, there were very few standards.
There wasn't any inspections. People built things like they wanted, and
there was little uniformity. They just did the best they could.
Sometimes they were craftsmen, and sometimes, just DIYers with limited
resources.

They removed MANY boards from the outside of the house. I guess you could
best describe it as siding. When they did, they revealed many things that
would have been invisible had they not removed the boards. They used
different types of insulation. Pink stuff. Blown stuff that adhered to
itself, then was trimmed off flush with the surface. This is so it would
not fall down and compact. Blown in was used in the attic space.

Like horizontal cripples. The short boards that go inbetween studs.
Where there is a cripple, if you make a hole above it, the insulation only
fills only down to where the cripple is, then you have a hollow space.
There were places that no amount of drilling of holes either inside or
outside would have exposed what needed to be seen, properly accessed, and
properly insulated. There are all sorts of pipes, and wires, and "stuff"
that would keep blown in insulation from falling into just the right
configuration to fill the space.

If you are going to spend $$$ to insulate your house, do it right. Remove
the boards, or do whatever you need to do to be 102% sure that you
insulate all the spaces. Leaving blank spots will leave you with a very
poor job. And, without pulling a LOT of boards, leaving blank spots will
be very easy. And for you as an owner to see those missed portions will be
IMPOSSIBLE. You won't know how good a job you will be getting because you
won't be able to see much of it.

You'll never know if you have gaps or not unless you can see in there.

Just MHO.

Steve

My understanding of blown in cellulose is a bit different. There is
the plain old run-of-the-mill cellulose without any binder in it that
*will* settle if you blow it into a wall cavity. This is the type of
insulation that is recommended for attic floors, because when it
settles, you just lose a little overall R-value due to the thinner
layer of insulation. That's different than when it settles in a wall
and then leaves a portion of wall uninsulated. Remeber that insulation
is performing two tasks, one is that is reduces conduction (as measured
by R-value), but to a certain extent it is also an air barrier, as it
slows down air currents that carry away your expensively heated indoor
air.

The other type of blown in cellulose that I am aware of has a binder
mixed in that you add water as it is sprayed in to activate the binder,
and it basically glues the whole mess to the walls and to itself, so
there is no settling issue. This works well for new construction where
it can be sprayed into open wall cavities, then you let it dry, and
then you can go ahead and put up drywall or whatever. The problem for
existing construction is that if you spray the wet mess into a wall
cavity, it never dries out and you get mold, the wall rots, etc. So my
understanding is that this is not recommended for retrofit. Which if
this is all true, then leaves out blown in cellulose as a good retrofit
wall insulation. Of course an insulation contractor will tell you that
it's no problem, he does it all the time and its no problem. I'm not
sure about denim, but I believe cellulose has a slightly higher R-value
than fiberglass.

Ken

"Goedjn" wrote

If you're careful when you put it in, you can
prevent/fill those voids and gaps, but that takes longer, and
therefore isn't cost effective if you're paying for the labor.
blown-in tends to fill nooks and crannies by itself, which means
it goes a GREAT deal faster, and hence is cheaper.




I have trouble with your statement:

blown-in tends to fill nooks and crannies by itself,

"tends"

Does that mean it gets 90% of the nooks and crannies?

80%?

From what I saw of the job being done, if the siding hadn't been taken off,
it would have "tended" go fill about 60% of the nooks and crannies.

If I'm paying for it, and want it done right, 100% is the only acceptable
number.

STeve

If your house is 103 years old, you will not have drywall to fix. If
you install the insulation from the inside, you will be repairing the
plaster and lath. I cannot imagine how they will make "holes" in the
plaster to blow the insulation into the walls, and then repair the
holes.

In our old house, I opened one or two lath strips of plaster from
near the top of walls, and then looked into the wall with a small mirror
and light to see what kind of blockages were there. Then I used old
loose-fill and new cellulose, dropped into the channels, periodically
tamping it with a small piece of pipe on a string, and finally when it
got to within reach, I used fiberglas to finish it off AND to block the
areas above my hole which extended out into the ceilings.

The specifics varied depending on the walls and ceiling joist
orientations, whether there were windows above/below involved, and many
other things.

Subsequent work around window areas has revealed areas there which
needed filling, and it also showed that after ten years or so there does
not seem to be any settling. But the plaster/lath with keying probably
holds the insulation in place.

I have learned to do fairly nice plaster work (with Gypsum and diamond
white plasters in a two coat procedure). And I would note that doing
WALLS makes a LOT of difference in both heating and noise!!

Lesley wrote:

I'm back again, this time it's insulation. My house is 103 years old
and never has been insulated. So I got a quote from a local company
and I didn't realize it would be so expensive. If they blow it in from
the outside, it costs $2300 but if they do it from the inside it's
$1750. But then I have to pay a drywaller to fix the gazillion holes
they will make because they only do the initial rough patch after they
blow in the insulation. We're talking about a LOT of holes.

Then there's the attic. I got a quote for the recycled denim
insulation up there and it was over $1,000. So I asked what it would
cost to use the normal stuff (fiberglass pink stuff) and he said they
don't use that because it's way less efficient than the recycled denim
and plus it's not healthy to have around.

So I'm not just writing to whine. I have two questions.

1. Is it true that fiberglass is much less efficient than the recycled
denim?

2. Someone told me that blown-in cellulose will settle in a few years
and then I'll be right back where I started. The contractor said he'd
give me a 15 year warranty, but he doesn't have one in writing--it's
just his good word since "it's a family business".
Could I have some comments on cellulose insulation in general and
whether this is something I really need to just DO and stop whining
about?

Thanks again in advance. This group is really helpful for me.

Best,

Lesley

--
Phil Munro Dept of Electrical & Computer Engin
Youngstown State University
Youngstown, Ohio 44555

The fiberglass stuff is only dangerous if you're in contact with it and you
don't wear a breather mask. And, if you need to be in INTIMATE contact with
it, like moving it out of the way to run wires or something, you should plan
on dumping your clothes into the washing machine with COLD WATER immediately
afterward. Don't go laying around on the furniture in those clothes.

But, properly selected and installed, it's not a problem.

Thanks everyone for all of your responses. It's a lot of information
to take in. I have a lot to think about.

Lesley

why can't they do it from the attic and drill down they should be able to do
this for most areas except the bottom of windows?

You could do the attic yourself with blown cellulose the big box stores sell
the stuff and rent you the blower for free?

Check with your energy company see if they have any grants or rebates for
insulating your home?

you don't mention the size of the home 1 vs. 2 stories etc?

Wayne

"Lesley" wrote in message
ups.com...
Hi,

I'm back again, this time it's insulation. My house is 103 years old
and never has been insulated. So I got a quote from a local company
and I didn't realize it would be so expensive. If they blow it in from
the outside, it costs $2300 but if they do it from the inside it's
$1750. But then I have to pay a drywaller to fix the gazillion holes
they will make because they only do the initial rough patch after they
blow in the insulation. We're talking about a LOT of holes.

Then there's the attic. I got a quote for the recycled denim
insulation up there and it was over $1,000. So I asked what it would
cost to use the normal stuff (fiberglass pink stuff) and he said they
don't use that because it's way less efficient than the recycled denim
and plus it's not healthy to have around.

So I'm not just writing to whine. I have two questions.

1. Is it true that fiberglass is much less efficient than the recycled
denim?

2. Someone told me that blown-in cellulose will settle in a few years
and then I'll be right back where I started. The contractor said he'd
give me a 15 year warranty, but he doesn't have one in writing--it's
just his good word since "it's a family business".
Could I have some comments on cellulose insulation in general and
whether this is something I really need to just DO and stop whining
about?

Thanks again in advance. This group is really helpful for me.

Best,

Lesley

wayne wrote:

why can't they do it from the attic and drill down they should be able to do
this for most areas except the bottom of windows?

Access to wall plate may be quite limited, for one. Primary reason
would probably be that the wall cavities in these old houses tend to be
full of blocking and who knows what else....of course, that's a
potential problem as someone else has pointed out even w/ only one or
two holes/cavity.

I've thought if one were stuck w/ such a problem, one way to attack it
might be to do the initial fill, then use an infrared camera to find the
large heat sink path areas and then attack them...

....
Check with your energy company see if they have any grants or rebates for
insulating your home?
....

This is a most excellent suggestion!

"SteveB" wrote on 19 May 2005:

Like horizontal cripples. The short boards that go inbetween
studs. Where there is a cripple, if you make a hole above it,
the insulation only fills only down to where the cripple is,
then you have a hollow space.

Not to be picky, Steve, but there is no such thing as a horizontal
cripple. A cripple stud is a vertical that goes between the window
or door header and the top plate (upper cripple) or bottom plate
and the window sill (lower cripple).

What you correctly describe as being a problem for insulating is
called "fire blocking" or "nogging."

--
Doug Boulter

To reply by e-mail, remove the obvious word from the e-mail address

"Lesley" wrote on 19 May 2005:

Is it true that fiberglass is much less efficient than the
recycled denim?

If you're talking about blown-in fiberglass, there were some
studies a few years back that suggested that loose fiberglass lost
most of its insulating properties due to air movement ("convective
heat loss" Do a web search). Blown-in denim/cotton has about the
same insulating value as blown-in cellulose, better than fiberglass
by up to 30%.

If you're talking about properly fitted fiberglass batts, the
answer is no, denim is not much more efficient.

--
Doug Boulter

To reply by e-mail, remove the obvious word from the e-mail address

"Doug Boulter" wrote in message
. 142...
"SteveB" wrote on 19 May 2005:

Like horizontal cripples. The short boards that go inbetween
studs. Where there is a cripple, if you make a hole above it,
the insulation only fills only down to where the cripple is,
then you have a hollow space.

Not to be picky, Steve, but there is no such thing as a horizontal
cripple. A cripple stud is a vertical that goes between the window
or door header and the top plate (upper cripple) or bottom plate
and the window sill (lower cripple).

What you correctly describe as being a problem for insulating is
called "fire blocking" or "nogging."

--
Doug Boulter



Thanks for the heads up. I am not a carpenter. That is why I included the
description of horizontal boards that go inbetween studs.

Now, if it has to do with welding, I could probably give you the correct
term.

Steve

Some of what you're mulling over involves which material to use, while other
questions involve marginal differences. However, adding a second "method" in
addition to internal insulation can make the benefits add up to more than
the sum of its parts. Not really in terms of insulation factors, since that
would defy the laws of physics, but in terms of comfort and peace of mind.
So....have you considered new siding, and adding Tyvek underneath it? That's
the silver stuff you see houses covered with before the siding goes on. Do
that, along with whatever insulation you choose, and you're gonna have one
snug house.

I WAS talking about "properly fitted fiberglass". I got a quote of
$1,050 to put recycled denim insulation in the attic rafters. When I
asked him to quote me for the same job using fiberglass, he said it was
so much less efficient that they (their company) didn't use it. . .

So you're saying that Denim *is* more efficient, but "not much more"?
So would you recommend getting a quote from another company--one that
does use fiberglass?

Lesley

Lesley wrote:

I WAS talking about "properly fitted fiberglass". I got a quote of
$1,050 to put recycled denim insulation in the attic rafters. When I
asked him to quote me for the same job using fiberglass, he said it was
so much less efficient that they (their company) didn't use it. . .

So you're saying that Denim *is* more efficient, but "not much more"?
So would you recommend getting a quote from another company--one that
does use fiberglass?

I don't know anything about denim as an insulating material--never seen
it used so have no data. I'd think it would be possible to Google for
detailed specs on it and any other materials and get real data, not just
speculation.

I would also get at least one other quote just on general
principles....

According to Lesley :
I WAS talking about "properly fitted fiberglass". I got a quote of
$1,050 to put recycled denim insulation in the attic rafters. When I
asked him to quote me for the same job using fiberglass, he said it was
so much less efficient that they (their company) didn't use it. . .

So you're saying that Denim *is* more efficient, but "not much more"?
So would you recommend getting a quote from another company--one that
does use fiberglass?

It might be that denim is slightly more efficient than fiberglass.
Cellulose is. But both denim and loose blown cellulose have more
drastic drawbacks (packdown or soakdown or both).

If you're that concerned, look for someone who can do Rockwool and
get a quote.

Rockwool is only a trifle more expensive than fiberglass, is a bit
more efficient than fiberglass, and is better than fiberglass
in most of the other issues with fiberglass.

Better sound control too.

See www.roxul.com for one brand.
--
Chris Lewis, Una confibula non set est
It's not just anyone who gets a Starship Cruiser class named after them.

They even have it now encased in plastic. Its not too bad at all.

Tom

"Lesley" wrote on 20 May 2005:

I got a quote of
$1,050 to put recycled denim insulation in the attic rafters.

Denim batts, or blown-in denim?

Denim batts and fiberglass batts have about equal R-values. Cotton
blown-in and cellulose blown-in have about equal R-values.

The real work in insulating an attic is putting in the styrofoam,
cardboard, or plastic eave vent chutes. If you have no soffit
vents (or no soffits), the installer may still have to block off
the point where the rafters intersect the top plate to keep blown-
in insulation from escaping there. Usually they'll stuff under the
chutes or at that point with fiberglass batting. It's not a
pleasant job. You lay on your back or stomach on a board in a very
tight space.

Once that work is done, laying batts or blowing in the insulation
is a piece of cake.

I'm presuming that you already have insulation in the attic. Have
you considered just rolling out unfaced fiberglass batts on top of
it?

--
Doug Boulter

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