This is an old townhouse with a newly finished fourth level - insulation anyone?
The all-brick townhouse now has everything - new kitchen, new floors, new shape inside, new bathrooms, new electrical, lots of new plumbing, new HVAC, new windows, new roof - you name it. And all done with a permit!
And a new fourth level! I love fourth levels. Otherwise all you have up there is dead attic space.
When there is enough height the roof comes off, a new truss system is put in to accommodate room(s) and you go to town.
This fourth level has a large room with a dormer window, and a full bathroom. It's a great space!
Going into the large room I noticed something - it was uncomfortably warm! And the day was not very hot outside, only about 80F.
There were two HVAC registers in the big room. But no return. I think every level should have at least one return. Return air is very important to the comfort of any level, and particularly a fourth.
But the insulation is important too! Even though the temperature difference between inside and out was only about 12F (ideally you want to see a 17F difference), given that the ceiling was so close to the roof I thought it would probably give off a pretty good thermal signature anyway.
Facing the dormer window in the center of the room, and looking to the left and then to the right with a thermal camera, this is what you see! I use this palette because it is very forthcoming.
On each image I took a couple of temperature measurements to distinguish where there appears to be proper insulation, and where there appears to be poorly-installed or loose insulation.
Imagine how stark a contrast these two images would show on a very hot, or very cold, day!
And, therefore, how uncomfortable this room will be.
When permits are closed, meaning approved and signed off on, insulation is not a part of the jurisdictional authority's final inspection. And this jurisdiction does not inspect insulation prior to drywall.
My recommendation: insulation is permanent. Once there, well done or poorly done, that is what you get. I had a comment from a Realtor the other day stating that thermal images make the "inspection too intense." Well, who is being served by the inspection?
Comments(18)