Welcome to Insulwise’s case study pages! Creating case studies for specific types of homes is not only unique to Pittsburgh, but the insulation industry in general. What gives us the confidence that we can achieve these types of results? Two things: The experience that comes with having insulated over 5,000 homes in the area since 2008. Our use of applied building science principles that comes from the owner, Andrew Haak’s, background as an energy auditor and credentialed building performance analyst (from the Building Performance Institute, BPI). Why a Separate Page for Cape Cod Homes? Because if you own one than you know that they’re special. With few exceptions there is no other home type that is more consistently cold during the winter and hot during the summer. The reason for this is their unique construction. The upper floor knee-wall and sloped ceiling design promotes high levels of air leakage and intense heat transfer from the roof to the rooms inside. Fortunately, Insulwise Energy and Comfort Solutions is the unsurpassed expert at improving the efficiency and comfort of these homes. Why is Mine so Darned Uncomfortable?! Knee walls and sloped ceilings in the third floor of a two and half story home The biggest reason is that these homes were built during an era when insulation and air sealing measures were poorly understood. The second biggest reason is that their design, specifically the use of knee walls, sloped ceilings, and tiny attic compartments actually promotes the loss of conditioned air from the home (air leakage) as well as radiant heat transfer from hot areas like the roof. The third reason is that Capes are difficult and labor intensive to insulate properly. Most insulators fail to understand the importance that air movement plays in these homes and do a poor job of retrofitting them. Why Insulwise Energy & Comfort Solutions Does it Better When we work on these types of homes, the first and perhaps most critical thing we do is air seal the floor joist gaps that are below the knee walls with foam insulation. This important step dramatically reduces the ability for cold air to penetrate beneath the floor during cold weather as well as hot air enveloping the top floor rooms during hot weather. It also keeps warm air from escaping into the knee wall spaces during winter months and contributing to ice dams and high heating bills. Blowing insulation into this gap alone will not stop the air flow (despite what most ‘professional’ insulators think). Want to See a Video of Our Exact Process for Cape Cod Homes? Click here to see our short video detailing how we re-insulate Cape Cod style homes. Next we air seal all of the wire holes, outlet boxes, and other air leaks with foam to eliminate drafts and keep the conditioned air in your home. Then we install thick, fluffy, R-19 fiberglass insulation batting into the knee wall bays themselves. Finally we cover the fiberglass insulation with Tyvek air barrier paper to enhance its insulating efficiency and durability. For the last step we insulate all access hatches with heavy duty foam insulation board, dense pack the sloped ceilings with cellulose insulation, and blow in enough cellulose to achieve an R-49 in all of the flat spaces. In the attic shown here a raised storage pad was built for the home owners, and the pink foam insulation board functions as a light, sturdy, and perfectly air sealed attic access hatch. Done! Whether you own a Cape Cod or 2 ½ story home, Insulwise Energy and Comfort Solutions can make it forever more comfortable and at the same time much easier on your pocketbook to heat and cool! But Wait, Don’t All Insulation Companies Do This? The short answer is NO. In over 15 years of re-insulating Cape Cod and Three Story homes in Pittsburgh, we have had to unfortunately redo the work of our competitors multiple times. The reason is that these homes are complicated and when basic building science principles are poorly applied — or in many cases not applied at all — the outcome is thousands of dollars spent and still having a home that doesn’t stay cool in the summer, or is constantly still cold during the winter. Click here to see a short video of what one of our competitors did to a Cape Cod style home in Monroeville, and what Insulwise had to do so that it finally heated and cooled efficiently.
