new house,i think the skimped on insulation

[yourkiddin]

im wanting to go around cutting holes in the drywall. but then im left with alot of work. i took the electrical covers off but coulnt see much of anthing. seems like i can get it warm for a very short period of time then its cold again.i also have laminated hardwood floors in large sitting room,living room and kitchen. although very nice. i think it contributes to the chill we feel. also large bathroom and large closet. both cold and covered with marble tile. i bought an ir gun and can tell this temp changes from room to room. this is a very nice to look at house, about 1800 to 2000 sq ft. is this just the charactoristics of a bigger home. or should i dig deeper? all the doors see to seal well. so do the windows. double pain storm even. any advice would help. this house just built 2005

 

[triumphrick]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

Where is this house located? And you didn't say anything about the insulation in the attic. There is over 14" in ours. Somewhat of an overkill for Florida, but the previous owner had her nephew do it. Were glad he did. Even with the really cold winter we have had in this 1800 sf house built in the 70's the electric bills have been livable.
Attic insulation is needed to keep that warm rising air from heading out the soffits and up up and away...

 

[chicknwing]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

Same thing in our home 2200sf. Laminated hard woods and a large closet and bathroom all cold. Cannot keep the bathroom heated. I have chalked mine up to being a slab house. Concrete is always cooler than the outside temps. My gas logs keep the living area nice and toasty but man don't I hate that bathroom.

TC

 

[eaglejim]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

Only your outside walls and ceiling get insulation and having hard surface flooring will seen to be colder i.e laminate and tile you might check into your heater it my be undersized,can't tell by your post but if you have big ceilings their is a lot of dead air space that still has to be heated.

 

[Mike Robinson]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

May I suggest having an energy asessment done on your house? Amongst other things they will do a suction test to see how well your house is sealed. In Canada the government offers rebates if you have an asessment done and do the improvements suggested by the assessor.

 

[cbavier]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

yourkidden. Go up a step stool or step up carefully on a stable chair and see if the temp is much warmer near the ceiling. If it is, ceiling fans reversed will circulate and drive the heat down and throughout the house/room. I had a new home built in 2000 and I put ceiling fans in it because all the heat went up and it was cold sitting in the house. Bingo fixed the problem. Of course I have 19 inches of insulation in the attic and 6 inches in the side walls. keeps it warm now and comfortable now. It's -5 here now and the wind chill is -12 BRrrrrr we still have a foot- three feet of snow on the ground. Will the snow ever melt and will it ever warm up? I hope soon.

 

[triumphrick]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

One more thing...I built my first new house in 1989, and installed Nutone heat-a-vents in the bathrooms. Since that home, I have installed them in the other three houses I have owned.
They have a small heat strip and a three way switch that will replace your wall switch for the fart fan. You will need another wire, but so far I was able to put it in those houses, replacing the fart fan unit. Just takes a little cutting of the sheetrock.
Usually use them in the AM when showering. Makes it nice and toasty when getting out into the usually cold bathroom. Here's a link...

http://www.nutone.com/product-detail.asp?ProductID=10150

 

[cbavier]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

Yourkiddin you don't say in your profile where you are located. You should be able to feel cold air drafts around any electrical outlets if there is no or poor insulation in the sidewalls. One other thing. Before you go cutting a bunch of holes in the wall. Look around for ONE inconspiculos place in the wall like inside a closet and if your going to cut a hole do it there. If it has 3 1/2 or more inches of insulation in that place the rest off the side walls will probably have the same. You may then be able to cover your patch job up with a stand, dresser or some other item of furniture. If you can access your attic see how much insulation is up there. Where we are. The min is 15 inches R-19.

 

[Tim Frank]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

Where is this house located? And you didn't say anything about the insulation in the attic. There is over 14" in ours. Somewhat of an overkill for Florida, but the previous owner had her nephew do it. Were glad he did. Even with the really cold winter we have had in this 1800 sf house built in the 70's the electric bills have been livable.
Attic insulation is needed to keep that warm rising air from heading out the soffits and up up and away...

Insulation is just as necessary in A/C situations as for heating....just reverses the place you want to keep the heat....i.e. outside!...

Youkiddin, before you go punching any holes in walls, you might want to have an IR photo taken of the outside of the house. That will give you a good idea of the relative heat loss with out "invasive surgery"

 

[v1_0]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

im wanting to go around cutting holes in the drywall. but then im left with alot of work. i took the electrical covers off but coulnt see much of anthing. seems like i can get it warm for a very short period of time then its cold again.i also have laminated hardwood floors in large sitting room,living room and kitchen. although very nice. i think it contributes to the chill we feel. also large bathroom and large closet. both cold and covered with marble tile. i bought an ir gun and can tell this temp changes from room to room. this is a very nice to look at house, about 1800 to 2000 sq ft. is this just the charactoristics of a bigger home. or should i dig deeper? all the doors see to seal well. so do the windows. double pain storm even. any advice would help. this house just built 2005

No. Go outside.

Seriously, you have an IR gun. eek Go outside when it is cold and IR your house... That should show you your hot spots (less insulation, etc.).

Then, go to a neighbor's/friends house that is comfortable and IR the outside of that. Compare.

 

[Bass Man Bruce]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

Some states have an energy code, you could also call your local building dept and ask if they did an insulation inspection prior to drywalling.

 

[yourkiddin]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

thanks for all the advice and comments. i have also purchaced small energy effecient heater to help with this issue.

 

[mthieme]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

I'm in MD. I bought an old summer house (vintage - late -20's) 20 years ago. These structures were thrown up without insulation, predate plywood, etc. They typically sit on piers (blocks) as mine does. Fortunately mine has a block skirt. The floors are T&G Southern yellow pine. This also acts as the sub-flooring. The roof is 1x6 pine. Air gaps are everywhere.
I've expended much effort tightening her up...adding subfloors, insulating, etc.
It's made a big difference over the years but still have much to do - if I live long enough!
Although I prefer hardwood floors and have them in all but one bedroom (which has not had the floor redone yet), carpeting definitely acts as an insulator. Even then I prefer rugs on the hardwood just for protection (growing number of toddler grandchildren).
I spend more on electric in the summer cooling than winter heating. This is largely due to window rattlers and oak wilt disease which has been eating away at my shade.

There are people who can come out and shoot foam insulation in the walls from the outside. Walls are only 4-6 R. It's more important that they are airtight. Most of your heat loss is going to be vertical than horizontal.

 

[Tim Frank]

Re: new house,i think the skimped on insulation

seems like i can get it warm for a very short period of time then its cold again.

You don't say what type of heating system you have, or where you are, but you may need to adjust your thermostat. There is usually an adjustment that can loosen or tighten the operating temperature range....called "anticipator" on older thermostats, the newer ones have a few different terms.
Also, try running the fan full time...most systems have a switch for this...it doesn't cost that much in electrical $$ but will yield much more even temperatures.

.....i bought an ir gun and can tell this temp changes from room to room.

Sounds like your heating system may never have been properly balanced (is it forced air?)....it is usually one of the most skimped-on items in new construction. Not really a DIY job to do it properly, but you could try a few adjustments yourself and see if you can improve things somewhat.