Attic Storage Over Insulation

Attic insulation between roof trusses.

Attic storage over insulation.

Place flooring over insulation to make your attic space functional. If you re considering turning your attic into conditioned storage or living space it s worth changing tactics to insulate between the rafters and wall joists instead of the floor. Very easy to install. By adding the boards you increase storage space for items not needed often allowing you to move those items out of the main house and reduce clutter.

To give yourself enough space to ensure adequate insulation under the flooring construct a riser of 2 x 4 s in the attic over the existing joists. Attics are great for storage but flooring directly over the attic floor joists doesn t provide room for the recommended 12 to 16 of attic insulation needed to keep your house cool in the summer and warm in the winter. This will make the installation of these new joists easier while spreading the weight across several joists. You can use rigid foam panels or do as tom silva does with nearly all houses these days.

Walk to one end of the attic by carefully stepping only on the wooden ceiling joists. Some attic floors that already have a layer of insulation could benefit from an additional application over the existing layer. If blown in insulation is used control the height or thickness of the layers so boards can by laid over top without having to compact the filler. The insulation should be at least 12 deep.

But once you have got all that insulation you cannot use the attic for storage anymore and you cannot see where to step safely. However if you keep the storage weight to a minimum you may be able to build a storage platform above the insulation by attaching supporting beams to the sides of the trusses. Now we have attic storage over the garage and it s a whole different way of storing. Place a 2 inch by 3 inch board directly on top of the joist nearest to the edge of the attic with its largest.

Hire a pro to install spray foam insulation. If your attic joists won t bear the weight necessary to finish out a living space but the engineer cleared them to support floor decking for light storage you can install inch plywood or. Can t store anything that won t be able to take extreme temps living in michigan we get extreme hot and cold in attics that aren t climate controlled. Do not put flooring or boxes directly on top of your insulation as squashing insulation halves its effectiveness.

Attics are generally covered in batting or blown insulation. The extra batting increases r values so it further slows warm air. A place for storage a place to decorate in a fun way a place to work out and for the kids to play. The joists for this riser should run perpendicular to the existing ceiling joists.