New guy, where to start!?

willy2763

Hope this is the appropriate forum for this discussion...I live in Middle TN in a 70 year old house. It is well built with 1x6 T&G on all interior walls floor to ceiling, hardwood floors, old windows and doors, limestone patchwork for exterior with wood and siding on the gables. About 1300 sq ft. Only about 12" of crawlspace if that. I'm too fat to fit under there.
So my electrical panel was causing problems and I replaced it and upgraded the whole thing to 200 amp. Actually I ripped out all the old wiring as it was the old school cloth and leather clad wires. In the process, I removed the old trashy drywall and paneling in the whole house and want to replace all of it. I figured if the entire electric system was being replaced, might as well do the wall covering at the same time. Of course by now you may realize I have torn the place up thoroughly and had a good time doing it! It's down to the bare wood walls. I have many challenges ahead but need to prioritize the entire project. Electric part is under control as I have the required experience with that. Insulation and drywall not so much. I'm considering other wall coverings as well.
I discovered the outside walls have no insulation at all and the attic has some sort of blown in insulation. The exterior walls consist of heavy limestone about 2" thick over felt on 1x6 sheathing. On the inside is the tongue and groove 1x6s over the studs.
I guess my question is: Is it advisable to put insulation in the exterior walls at this point? Is it possible I don't need insulation in there? Or do I finish the walls and blow in insulation later? Any insight into this would be appreciated. I would like to redo a ton of things in this house even though I realize there are limitations to what can be done to a 70 year old house. I just want to get the order right and prioritize so I don't cause too many problems down the road. Thanks in advance.

TarheelTerp

yeah!
Look into the two part expanding too but regular batt is fine.

Even if the local codes don't require it...
think about making those walls thicker.

joecaption

http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?...sulation_table

willy2763

I think I would have to go with the blow in kind since the wall is covered with 1x6 boards inside and out. I will do a little research and see if I can blow this in myself. I definitely like the idea of adding insulation but wasn't sure about it. I guess it would be better to do it before I put up the new drywall then. I like having the wood over the studs but it causes it's own set of unique problems sometimes. Thanks for the replies so far guys.

md2lgyk

With a house of that age, I think it'd be much more effective to tear off all the interior 1x6 boards and pay somebody to spray foam the walls. That'll pretty much stop any air infiltration as well as provide a higher R-value than batts.

Canarywood1

I agree with blown in,more economical than foam and it doesn't get as cold like further north does, so foam is kinda like overkill and yes blow in before sheetrock.

willy2763

Interesting. Is there any down side to taking out the interior 1x6s? They are really causing a ton of extra work and I'm not sure they are doing anything for me except being able to hang a picture anywhere I want. Maybe I should go with regular batt insulation if I take them off and the foam is too expensive?

TarheelTerp

My earlier comment was based in the assumption that you're comments said the space was clear to be insulated.

remove them carefully as they may have other use later.

Canarywood1

"Is there any down side to taking out the interior 1x6s?"


Just the extra labor in removing them,sure hope they aren't in your ceiling also.

willy2763

The ceiling is actually old 3" beadboard painted white. It looks pretty cool but I may end up putting something back over it. It currently has drywall over it but it doesn't look too good. Not sure if I can make the beadboard look good enough without tons of work. I'd like to keep it though.
I'm liking the idea of taking the 1x6s off, it would make my renovation 10X easier I think. I was concerned with thin walls but I may go the Roxul route. Taking the wood off would make insulating and running the rest of the electric much much less of a hassle. Thanks for the ideas.

lateracer

I've heard that blown in insulation in older homes can cause big problems due to moisture retention. I have a house that's similar in age. Would like to do foam, but it's probably cost prohibitive...and overkill here in Atlanta. Trying to get a better understanding for what exterior wall insulation options are.

willy2763

Me too. I am leaning back towards keeping the 1x6s now as it really makes for a strong house. I really want to insulate the exterior walls with the drywall down though. I wonder what moisture issues would be caused with the blow in? and can they be remedied easily?

willy2763

Maybe I should have started this in the insulation forum...

lateracer

I was all ready to get the blown in materials and blower from Home Depot when I read this post.

As I understand from reading there, and a few other places, the problem is the lack of a vapor barrier allowing condensation to collect near the bottom of walls. Since yours are open, I'm assuming that putting in a vapor barrier wouldn't be a problem.

Canarywood1

Here's a link that may interest you.


http://bobyapp.com/blog/2009/06/myth...ld-house-walls