Attic Insulation Barrier On Top Of Kraft

Except in hot coastal regions insulation should be installed with the kraft paper or plastic vapor barrier on the interior side of the wall.

Attic insulation barrier on top of kraft.

A radiant barrier can lower heat transfer from attics to the building below keep the attic space cooler and lower cooling costs by up to 17 in warmer climates. Kraft paper and its underlying asphalt adhesive are flammable and should always be covered with drywall or other fire resistant material. Radiant barriers consist of a highly reflective material usually aluminum foil which is applied to one or both sides of a number of substrate materials such as kraft paper plastic films cardboard oriented strand board and air infiltration barrier material. Radiant barriers are utilized to reduce summer heat gain in attics and help to improve the efficiency of green building envelopes.

For this reason faced insulation is typically installed on the. Kraft faced insulation should be installed in exterior walls exterior basement walls and attic ceilings by pressing the product into the wall cavity with the paper side. This barrier is meant to keep moisture from getting to the insulation in the walls and ceilings and it is required by building codes when insulating most houses. In any case the vapor barrier must point to the warm side.

Any new batt or roll insulation installed over existing insulation in the attic needs to be without a vapor retarder face. If you do there is a chance that moisture that has slipped by the first vapor barrier will become trapped by the second vapor barrier decreasing the value of your insulation. Some products are fiber reinforced to increase durability and ease of handling. The facing on kraft faced insulation is made of kraft paper with an asphalt coating that makes the paper impermeable to water vapor.

However stapling insulation in this manner creates and improper seating of the drywall during installation. The two staple tabs of insulation paper laid on top of each other to the nailing surface of the stud would seem to be an imperceptible discrepancy perhaps a 1 16 or less. Unfaced means the insulation lacks a vapor retarder paper or plastic facing. The paper creates a vapor barrier that helps keep the water vapor in the warm moist heated indoor air from migrating outward into the wall or other structure.

Vapor barriers are sheets of plastic or other material placed on one side of insulation sheets. The purpose of insulation facing. Kraft faced insulation includes a paper vapor retarder which helps prevent mold and mildew. The vapor retarder on top of or between layers of insulation can trap moisture.