Homeowners living in Ashburn, VA had an uncomfortable top floor. It was always too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter. The rooms above the garage were especially cold in the winter.
Solution
To make the home more comfortable upstairs year round we air sealed and insulated the garage ceiling, air sealed and insulated the attic, sealed the chimney chase, installed can light covers, and encapsulated the duct system. This created a building envelope that was better sealed and more secure, allowing less air flow into the house, and keeping the conditioned air inside the house for much longer. Now that the garage ceiling was insulated, the rooms above it stayed much more comfortable.
Project Summary
Evaluator: Pedro Guillen
All accessible penetrations and top plates are air sealed with expanding polyurethane foam and new soffit baffles are installed.
Condensation forms when the water vapor in the air drops out of suspension and condenses into a liquid form. The colder the air, the more likely it is that water will condense. Condensation forms when warm, humid air comes into contact with a colder surface like your air conditioner's ductwork. This can then cause mold to grow.
We encapsulated the duct system in the attic with polyurethane spray foam and replaced the register boots.
TiteShell Recessed Light Fixture Covers were installed over top of can lights and sealed with Zypfoam polyurethane foam around the edge and any holes made for electrical wires.
Blow in TruSoft cellulose insulation was installed to an R value of 49 (15 inches).