How To Insulate Attic Doors

Despite both of these attic doors being easy to insulate many contractors don t do it.

How to insulate attic doors.

Apply weather stripping to the perimeter of opening not the attic door cover. Then add insulation batting to form a pillow and wrap it up like a birthday present as shown. Step 1 apply weather stripping. Several layers should be applied.

As you can see using the flame test the door is a little crooked which leaves a gap at the top and the bottom which allows cold air to flow into our closet. You can check for air leaks with a. Here s one good method. First install foam weather stripping on the inside of the trim or directly onto the hatch.

In the case of a knee wall door insulate the walls. Add foam insulation tape around the edges to seal the perimeter where it rests in the access hole. The access door is in our closet which is fine except the fact that the crawl space has very little insulation and neither does the door. Attach foil insulation board to the back of the attic hatch panel.

Fortunately there are kits available to insulate these kind of doors. Always cover the tops of the ceiling joists to make sure the insulation is deep enough to reach your target r value and. Once you have the materials you can begin to seal and insulate the knee wall access door through these steps. To insulate an attic hatch you need weather stripping rigid foam board and fiberglass batt insulation.

Check for air leaks and wood stops. Inspect the weatherstripping gaskets around the attic hatch opening. If they seem dried out or damaged remove them. Staple long pieces of duct tape sticky side up onto the attic scuttle door.

More insulation installation tricks and tips work from the perimeter of the attic toward the door or hatch so that you don t trample all over the insulation you just. From inside the attic check for any openings holes or fenestrations into the knee wall surrounding area. Highly sticky foam tape is a great weather proofing alternative to doors that may be slightly warped and don t have a true and snug fit. This ensures a tight seal between the door and the opening.

There are different ways to accomplish this. Here s how to do it yourself. Apply weather stripping to the door to create a seal. Cut out two pieces of rigid foam board that are 1 4 inch smaller than the hatch so homeowners can slide the attic access panel open easily.