Okay, this current cold snap has my feet freezing, and my (thankfully
high-efficency) furnace working overtime. The insulation in this 1960
ranch+1978 addition is sub-par. Eventually, I'll find a contractor to add
another six inches in attic(since I don't fit up there), but I also have a
lot of exposed foundation in this raised ranch. (I'm too cheap to think
about walls and new windows, but might also make plexi interior storms.)

Since I only use the basement for storage at this point, would I gain
anything from hanging sheets of foil-face 3/4" or 1" foam from the sill
plates in the former garage bay (now buried) in the original part of the
house basement, the long basement wall on the prevailing wind side, and in
the crawl under the addition? The former garage has a lot of foundation
showing above-grade, and it is cold as hell in there, on the far side of an
insulated wall. The bedrooms right above have cold floors, in spite of the
fiberglass in the floor. The crawl is insulated (badly) in floor, but not on
walls, and is unheated except by leakage from the fresh fiberglax flexi
ducts that run through there. (I removed wall furnace from addition, and
added a duct trunk and return with the new furnace.) I don't wanna do
anything permanent at this point, to leave future basement options open,
plus there is some history of water seepage, so I don't want to block quick
access to the concrete. I was thinking, just hang the styro sheets like a
curtain from sill plate, using 3/4x2 lath and drywall or deck screws pasted
into sill plate. Sheets would be tightly butted together, and maybe the
joints could get taped. In southern MI, how far down the wall would I need
to go- 36" below grade, or all the way to floor? (All the way to floor would
be least labor, and no more material, unless I could get 2 panels from each
sheet.) Note that I don't want to actively heat the old garage, since it is
uninsulated to the outside, and gas is expensive. Basement heat comes mainly
from the furnace being down there, but stays at least 50 degrees in the rest
of the basement.

Is foil-face foam legal for an app like this, w/o a drywall fire break over
it? Would it make any difference in heat loss? I know in a perfect world,
foundation should be insulated on outside, but that would be way too
expensive for this cookie cutter, and wouldn't pay on resale. The
inter-joist spaces on the rim joist do appear to be insulated, but I haven't
pushed drop ceiling out of the way to check all of them. I already have 3/4
foil-face foam plugs in all the basement windows, which helped some, as did
adding a layer of the same foam above the attic hatch.

aem sends...

On Feb 5, 11:06 pm, wrote:
Okay, this current cold snap has my feet freezing, and my (thankfully
high-efficency) furnace working overtime. The insulation in this 1960
ranch+1978 addition is sub-par. Eventually, I'll find a contractor to add
another six inches in attic(since I don't fit up there), but I also have a
lot of exposed foundation in this raised ranch. (I'm too cheap to think
about walls and new windows, but might also make plexi interior storms.)

Since I only use the basement for storage at this point, would I gain
anything from hanging sheets of foil-face 3/4" or 1" foam from the sill
plates in the former garage bay (now buried) in the original part of the
house basement, the long basement wall on the prevailing wind side, and in
the crawl under the addition? The former garage has a lot of foundation
showing above-grade, and it is cold as hell in there, on the far side of an
insulated wall. The bedrooms right above have cold floors, in spite of the
fiberglass in the floor. The crawl is insulated (badly) in floor, but not on
walls, and is unheated except by leakage from the fresh fiberglax flexi
ducts that run through there. (I removed wall furnace from addition, and
added a duct trunk and return with the new furnace.) I don't wanna do
anything permanent at this point, to leave future basement options open,
plus there is some history of water seepage, so I don't want to block quick
access to the concrete. I was thinking, just hang the styro sheets like a
curtain from sill plate, using 3/4x2 lath and drywall or deck screws pasted
into sill plate. Sheets would be tightly butted together, and maybe the
joints could get taped. In southern MI, how far down the wall would I need
to go- 36" below grade, or all the way to floor? (All the way to floor would
be least labor, and no more material, unless I could get 2 panels from each
sheet.) Note that I don't want to actively heat the old garage, since it is
uninsulated to the outside, and gas is expensive. Basement heat comes mainly
from the furnace being down there, but stays at least 50 degrees in the rest
of the basement.

Is foil-face foam legal for an app like this, w/o a drywall fire break over
it? Would it make any difference in heat loss? I know in a perfect world,
foundation should be insulated on outside, but that would be way too
expensive for this cookie cutter, and wouldn't pay on resale. The
inter-joist spaces on the rim joist do appear to be insulated, but I haven't
pushed drop ceiling out of the way to check all of them. I already have 3/4
foil-face foam plugs in all the basement windows, which helped some, as did
adding a layer of the same foam above the attic hatch.

aem sends...

before i look at the insulation manufacturers' websites, i would start
he
http://www.buildingscience.com/resou...r_Renovate.pdf

Since I only use the basement for storage at this point, would I gain
anything from hanging sheets of foil-face 3/4" or 1" foam from the sill
plates in the former garage bay (now buried) in the original part of the
house basement, the long basement wall on the prevailing wind side, and in
the crawl under the addition? The former garage has a lot of foundation

Yes, but you'd get more benefit per square foot of insulation with
(more) insulation the underside of the floor. Only insulate the
part you're trying to keep warm. Don't forget the stairwell and
cellar door.