Hi, guys. I'm looking for some advice about insulating. My
question is a long one so I'll break it down. I have a finnished
attic with a knee'ed interieor wall. This creates a a storage space
on each side of the house facing the gutters and a small space above
where the peak is. LOng story short i get bad ice damming on the
side that gets no sun during the winter time and i have very little
insulation at thei time. MY house is 60 years old and it has tar
paper backed insulation of some sort which is now about 2 inches
thick on the walls and the ceiling joists in the storage space. I
have peak and roof vents but these are above the knee of the
interieor wall and this basically creates a dead air space in the
strage areas. Also I have no overhangs and there fore no soffets
for vents. My roof ends flush with the walls. I plan to use batting
on the ceiling of the peak space but here's my questions
1. guy from lowes recomended this. scab rafters with 2x4s and
insulate the rafters and side walls with highest r value fiberglass
then cover with 6 mil plastic as a vapor barrier thus making the
storage space a "warm" space... treat it like an interior space sort
of though unheated. I planned to use r19 then on interior walls
ceiling joists for added insulation.
2. My original plan was to scab wall studs and ceiling joists with
2x4s and insulate with highest r value possible. to increse air
circulation I was going to cut holes into exterior side walls and
install vents... probably ones used for shed peak vents. I would
keep this a cold space with this plan and not insulate the rafters.

Which plan do you guys think I should use? other important
information. The side that i plan on insulating this year has
ceilings for the 2 hottest rooms of the house... kitchen and
bathroom. I wanna keep it as a storage room and therefore i will be
keeping some form of decking in there. also, the chimney runs
through this and is another source of heat for the space.

Thanks in advance for the help

phil