Even insulated spots can have problems Part 1
Update: The customer had us back out to help with insulating the rim joists check out Part 2 of this customers results here. Fast and easy money and energy savings were found.
During a consultation near the end of 2019 the customer had expressed that their basement felt colder than they felt it should. Now this customer also had a nice sized wood stove in their basement along with half of it being finished. It would be easy to just assume that due to the nature of wood heat in a home that some areas will be colder than others. Or one could make another assumption that just because half of the basement is finished that the unfinished half would naturally feel different. These assumptions are fair. However, there are tools that can help prove whether these assumptions are indeed just the nature of the customers basement, or if there is something else going on.
This customer has a rancher style home built in 1985. Single story with a partially finished basement, half completely finished and half with wrapped insulation. The basement also had insulation stuffed into some rim joist spots in the areas that the ceiling wasn’t complete and the joist bays were exposed.
A few quick looks with a thermal imaging camera showed some glaring problems.
Even with insulation in next to the rim joist it’s still quite cold in there. This joist area was stuffed with insulation and still had 44 degree temps. After the insulation was removed it was discovered that the PVC pipe went all the way outside and the hole that was cut for that pipe was much larger than needed and never sealed. The entire time its bringing in outside air. Cold air in the winter and hot moist air in the summer. That is a huge problem.
That wasn’t the only issue that found down there. A similar issue on the other side of the basement where a radon vent was installed and not sealed. This time there was only insulation stuffed on top of the piping and nothing next to or below. You could see daylight shining in. You wouldn’t leave a window cracked open in the winter time, so why would this be acceptable to have?
This is a shot of the radon fan piping and how you can see daylight along the left side of the piping.
Three more rim joists with penetrations to the outside were found. Also two corners with seam leaks were discovered. One had some insulation but it was damaged. The thermal camera picked it up right away that within the damaged insulation there were some cold areas, absorbing heat from the home in the winter time, and adding heat to the home in the summer time. Heat moves from areas with more heat to areas of less heat and without something to slow that transfer down, it can make a house uncomfortable and increase energy costs to try to make it comfortable.
This bare corner had air leaks at the wood seams that were never sealed as well as no insulation. Look at that 43 degree surface temperature. That is cold. The air temperature coming in was even colder. It is no surprise the customer felt uncomfortable in this area of the house with the holes in the rim joists and missing insulation.
With several items found, it was time to discuss with the customer the best way to go about fixing these issues. How would you fix these problems? If you don’t know, SIY does. Feel free to drop an email to info@siy.biz or fill out the form in our Contact Us section and schedule a consultation. We will provide you with the information and guidance to tackle your project in a cost effective manner for both your wallet and your energy savings.
