Heat Loss Through Attic

Small holes and framing members make a difference when calculating the heat flow through building assemblies like walls floors and roofs.

Heat loss through attic.

3 of your home s lost heat is through doors. Even if an attic is already insulated there may still be an opportunity to improve the energy efficiency and soundness of the house through air sealing. Insulation resists the flow of heat in either direction helping you save energy costs for both space heating and air conditioning. Attic hatches can be huge air leaks and sources of radiant heat loss and they are rarely addressed.

Work from the perimeter of the attic toward the door or hatch so that you don t trample all over the insulation you just put in. Always cover the tops of the ceiling joists to make sure the insulation is deep enough to reach your target r value and to prevent thermal bridging the heat loss that occurs through the wood framing. Home heat loss attic. Many times the door itself isn t insulated properly because it needs to be accessible.

Many attics have hatch access doors that are uninsulated. However there are many diy options that homeowners can do to prevent additional heat loss through their attic access door. The importance of air sealing cannot be overstated. If you ve caulked your window and door frames as mentioned earlier you can take your sealing efforts a step further and apply weather.

You can lose as much as 10 percent of heat through uninsulated floors. Prevent heat loss through the attic door or hatch. Storm panels reduce winter heat loss by as much as 50 percent. A poorly insulated attic can result in 25 heat loss in fall and winter that s 25 percent of your average heating costs going toward energy that won t even heat your home.

In cold weather a large percentage of the home s heat loss occurs through the attic and in summer the attic is one of the greatest sources of heat gain. Allison bailes aka the energy vanguard explains the difference between series and parallel heat flow. The attic hatch is a big energy loss area. This article will address how to insulate an attic hatch.

Hot air rises just like your energy bill will do if your attic is poorly insulated. Heat that flows through layers of an assembly and heat that flows through different paths of the assembly. Air leaks into the attic can account for substantial heat loss and can lead to a variety of moisture related problems. Cracks or holes in an attic along with improperly placed vents allow for much heat loss through the attic space.

An estimated 25 of all heat loss occurs through the attic or roof of a home.