Crawl Space Insulation Before & After Photos

Vents and other leaks to the outside were sealed, using our insulated vent covers. Walls were insulated with SilverGlo.

This homeowner in Jewett City, CT called us hoping to get his three season room insulated. Some homes or additions are designed with floors that have the outside air under them. Other times a home or addition was originally used as a summer home or “three season room”, and was converted to all season heated space later. When the outside air flows under a floor it feels very cold and uncomfortable in the winter - especially with ceramic tile, linoleum or laminate floors. Since the floor is the surface of the room we are in contact with most, it’s very important to fix, in order to be comfortable. There are two issues - air leakage through the floor, and conductive heat loss through the floor, because heat moves from more to less through solid materials. Even if there is fiberglass batt insulation in the floor, because it sags down away from the sub floor, the same outside air gets over it (“thermal bypass”) rendering it useless. Mold on the floor joists and sub floor is also a concern. Results - cold floors, drafts, uncomfortable rooms, greater overall home air leakage rate, higher fuel and electric bills.

We had the perfect solution for this customer. In this solution, SilverGlo™ foam insulation board is installed across the bottom of the floor joists with special long screws and 3” washers, SilverGlo™ is expanded polystyrene foam with graphite infused into the foam, which bumps up the insulation (“R”) value by 24% over standard EPS foam. Further, SilverGlo™ has a radiant barrier to reflect heat, so the insulation isn’t doing all the work by itself. All seams are sealed. If necessary a skirt board can be installed around the perimeter of the insulation so the edge is not visible. The skirt board may require painting after we are complete. Result - Much warmer floors, less drafts and more comfortable rooms, quieter home, lower fuel and electric bills.

These homeowners in Woodstock, CT had issues with their home being cold. One of the main issues was cold air coming up through their open crawlspace. There was batt insulation in the crawlspace ceiling, but as often happens with batts, it was beginning to sag, leaving space for cold air to get up into the floors and up through the home. This issue would only get worse over time if left unchecked and the cycle will only continue if batt insulation is reinstalled.

We began by pulling out the batted insulation. We then installed our SilverGlo insulation foam across the bottom of the floor joists, or some may call the crawlspace ceiling. The foam is rigid and will not sag or pull away from the joists, there is also a radiant barrier facing on the SilverGlo which will stop conductive heat loss by keeping the warm air inside the home in. The SilverGlo is fastened into place with special long screws and any spaces between them are sealed with expanding foam.

Thanks Dr. Energy Saver by Eco Energy, this home is far more comfortable.

This homeowner in Farmington, CT had called us out to see if we could make his floor warmer in the winter.  In this basement, there was a large concrete crawlspace just feet away from his first level floors. By having this only feet from your conditioned space, all the cold from in the crawlspace makes your floors extremely cold.

When we saw his basement we knew exactly what we had to do to accomplish what he wanted. To fix this issue, we have to encapsulate this crawlspace. First step to completing this project is to lay down our dimple drainage mat. This allow any moisture that wicks through the concrete to collect in the dimples of the mat and properly evaporate without letting humidity into your home. The next step is to lay down our terrablock insulation boards. This gives some much needed R- value to protect your home from the harsh temperature of the ground in the winter. We then put our 2" silverglo on the walls to help insulate the space from the cold temperature of the concrete. One of the last things to do is to lay out our 20mil thick cleanspace anti-microbial vapor barrier. This will stop moisture from effecting your living space. The last thing we do is spray the rim-joist in the crawlspace to stop the cold, convective air from entering the home and making the floors cold. now this home owner has no more cold floors!

This home owner in Hebron, CT called us out because she had cold floors. When our building science specialist got to the home, they noticed a large crawlspace under the home. Crawlspaces are very cold in the winter and very hot and humid in the summer. To stop these outdoor elements from effecting the temperature in the home we have to encapsulate the crawlspace. To do this the first thing we must do is clean out the space. Once we've done this, we will lay down our drainage mat. This mat will collect the moisture that comes up from the dirt and let it properly evaporate. Then we lay down our Terra-block insulation for some much needed R-value. Then we put Silverglo EPS foam board on the walls to stop the conduction properly. After that, we lay our Cleanspace vapor barrier that is 20mil thick on the floor and walls. This will really help keep the crawlspace clean and block the elements from the dirt floor from effecting the space. The last thing we do is Sprayfoam the rim joist to make the entire space air tight. Now that we have completed this project, this home owner will not have to worry about cold floors again!