i did/am doing that. i think its worth it = every little bit helps = especially when you don't have much in the first place.

 

Questions:

• What climate zone are you in (i.e. what part of NJ)
• What is the current wall framing (i.e. thickness)
• Is there sheathing on the home under the asbestos
• What does the interior wall consist of (i.e. finishes and vapor permeance ratings)

Perfect time to do it is in conjunction with the roof. You will need to thicken up the rake boards to accommodate the thickness of the foam but that is cheap and easy when you are already doing the roof.



I would respectfully disagree with your brother-in-law here as foam board and the resultant average R-Value improvement in the wall can make a huge difference in the performance of the home.



Make sure you detail out the walls when you have them open (i.e. putty pads on the electrical boxes, seal up the ribbon boards, spray foam all the gaps, etc.) and get that wall airtight on the outside.

 

WELCOME to the forum!

To inspect the board sheathing, I would remove all tar paper. If no poly on the inside; http://www.buildingscience.com/docu...s-and-manuals/irc-faqs/irc-faq-insulating-sheathing-vapor-retarder-requirements That will give you no condensation risk. Your video didn't work for me... find your county/Zone for foam required; https://www.energycodes.gov/adoption/states

http://energycode.pnl.gov/EnergyCodeReqs/index.jsp?state=New Jersey Check with local AHJ...

Gary

 

I would take your brother-in-law's advice......

 

IF you add 1" XPS foam to exterior;

1. reduce your wall condensation potential from 4 winter months to just 2 months- and from a risk for condensation at 33*F to 40*F, if plaster/lath original walls; pp.16/30; http://www.buildingscience.com/documents/guides-and-manuals/gm-guide-insulating-sheathing

2. eliminate the thermal bridging from the studs/plates at 25%= R-10.5 for R-13 about R-8.4 for your wall with R-11 in it; http://web.ornl.gov/sci/roofs+walls/research/detailed_papers/thermal_frame/
pp.39; http://www.buildingscienceconsultin...ting.com/presentations/documents/2010-03-10_When_R-Value_Doesn t_Measure_Up.pdf

3. cavity RH is now part of the conditioned space (same as room); pp.3; http://www2.dupont.com/Tyvek_Weathe...echnical Bulletins/Tyvek with Exterior Insulation Building Science Bulletin.pdf

4. Which means your R-11 batts will stop their convective looping- inherent with low density FG batt- up to a decrease of 25-50%; Fig.1B; http://www.buildingscience.com/documents/information-sheets/installation-of-cavity-insulation/

http://www.diychatroom.com/f98/biggest-loser-fiberglass-insulation-90438/

pp.45-48; http://www.buildingscienceconsultin...ting.com/presentations/documents/2010-03-10_When_R-Value_Doesn t_Measure_Up.pdf

Adding 3/4" F.B. would take you from 4 months to less than one month condensation potential, Fig.2; http://www.buildingscience.com/docu...cuments/digests/bsd-controlling-cold-weather-condensation-using-insulation/view

Gary

 

Just do like I did and go with Alsides Prodigy line. The only problem is if that J channel on the windows is not deep enough for the insulated siding.

 

Sorry Greg, your insulated siding doesn't hold a candle to insulated sheathing and siding. Not in any of the points I mentioned in previous post #6. Insulated vinyl has minimal benefits at 50% more cost; https://www2.buildinggreen.com/blogs/insulated-vinyl-siding-worth-extra-cost

I still never got the name of your siding (not post #13) that doesn't require a separate WRB, the Prodigy line requires it.... http://www.diychatroom.com/f9/new-siding-going-up-269441/index2/

Gary

 

Yes it does Gary.

 

I gave you the name of who manufacturers the Siding that was used. Once again it is Alside.

No the siding I used, does not require any extra material for it to go up.

 

Using the foam will complicate some things like the gable walls since it will bring the entire profile out past the roof. The good news is that I'm also getting a new roof (paying someone to do that part) so I don't think that will be a major issue. I do have two doors in the house that I'll need to build out or do something creative to compensate for the extra thickness. Windows should not be a problem since I'll be installing them new like the video shows.

You are already doing new windows, new siding, and a new roof. It is not a difficult task to build out a gable wall fascia with some 2 x lumber and wrap it with alum. Which new wrap normally would be done anyway with a whole house outside makeover. Same for the doors, you only need thicker brick mold, and maybe a wrapped board below the threshold or a PVC board would be better.

If the foam is in the budget, I would use it and not be deterred from what seems like a lot of additional work. It isn't. Adding the foam on the outside of the house will help seal the envelope, which is the best place to do it. (IMHO)

 

I'll send you a PM, Greg.

Gary

 

Looks like you don't accept private messages, Greg. . The main reason I wouldn't suggest your product to the OP of this thread is he needs at least R5-7.5 (minimum) in foam to control condensation. Prodigy gives an R-2 which doesn't do anything of worth to my previous answer. It doesn't meet any of the points and the foam is mainly there to stiffen the vinyl, which it does well.

Gary

 

Gary again you are pulling up the wrong info on what was used on my house. As for the OP, just slapping the foam board up there, without knowing how much insulation is in the walls, can cause more problems. Also the foam that was used, is not to stiffen the siding. It is a Monowall when installed, because of the S channel that each section locks into at the top & bottom.

The 1-1/2" gives a R-5 rating for the siding. Since it has been installed. I can keep the thermostat now at 73, not at 70 or 71 as I used to. Also while I was fixing the garage electric. My wife could not hear me as I was trying to yell through the wall where I was trying to test fit a piece of conduit.

Also since the attic vents on my house have been put in the correct places on the sides of the house. The attic is no longer getting as hot as it did. It is also cooling off faster, once the Sun goes down.

We all know that not everyone is going to rush out and buy the most expensive product out there, unless they are like my wife & I, who plan on staying here until our 70's or 80's. The biggest issue I have, is when people go cheap and end up with having the ripples along the wall, wind pulling the panels away. The last one is that the person installing the siding and Foam Board, can cause the house to not breathe as it should.

I only receive PM's from mods. I turned it off a long time ago, because of some that felt that they could not keep the discussion in public. I go by a Open Door Policy.

 

Gary again you are pulling up the wrong info on what was used on my house.-------------- Sorry, I was using Alside siding answer under "Is vinyl siding resistant to moisture? Yes. Vinyl siding offers exceptional rain-screening performance that decreases the build-up of water that can penetrate the underlying water-resistant barrier." from; http://www.alside.com/support/faqs/


As for the OP, just slapping the foam board up there, without knowing how much insulation is in the walls, can cause more problems. Also the foam that was used, is not to stiffen the siding. It is a Monowall when installed, because of the S channel that each section locks into at the top & bottom.------------- but if installed over existing lap siding, you lose most of the R-3 (averaged- if that much) because of the horizontal air channels created as the new flat surface is resting on the tips of old siding. You have moving air robbing your wall of heat, granted- better than before!

The 1-1/2" gives a R-5 rating for the siding.-------- where it is 1-1/2" thick- look at the profile view! Anything thinner is less R-value, see how that works? Since it has been installed. I can keep the thermostat now at 73, not at 70 or 71 as I used to. Also while I was fixing the garage electric. My wife could not hear me as I was trying to yell through the wall where I was trying to test fit a piece of conduit.--------- it is high-density EPS- used to be low-density EPS but too many water problems, it is not closed-cell foam, but open-cell, big difference; http://allthumbsdiy.com/references/spray-polyurethane-foam/open-vs-closed-cell-foam-insulation

Also since the attic vents on my house have been put in the correct places on the sides of the house. The attic is no longer getting as hot as it did. It is also cooling off faster, once the Sun goes down.

We all know that not everyone is going to rush out and buy the most expensive product out there, unless they are like my wife & I, who plan on staying here until our 70's or 80's. The biggest issue I have, is when people go cheap and end up with having the ripples along the wall, wind pulling the panels away. The last one is that the person installing the siding and Foam Board, can cause the house to not breathe as it should.------------ http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/musings/walls-need-breathe-and-9-other-green-building-myths

I only receive PM's from mods. I turned it off a long time ago, because of some that felt that they could not keep the discussion in public. I go by a Open Door Policy.

Check my answers/corrections in green... Gary

 

Thanks so much for all the info. Sorry I haven't replied in a while. My real jub has been unrelenting and I just got back to starting my home project.

Here are a few more details that where asked for:

The house is located in south/central Jersey in Ocean County.
The house it sheathed with 1/2 in plywood under that asbestos
The walls are 2x4 construction
As for the existing insulation, It's difficult to say, but I believe they are all filled with standard fiberglass bats installed in 1975. I'm not sure what R-value they are. From some of the rooms where I redid the sheetrock, I did note that some of the insulation was sagging and not filling the entire cavity.
I'm pretty sure there is not poly in the walls.

So it seems that the general consensus it so to use the 1 in XPS. I am a little concerned about condensation after trying to read some of the stuff Gary posted. Some of it was difficult to understand though. I'm still going through those links.

Seems I should remove the tar paper though.

Thanks for all your advice. I really appreciate it.

 

The biggest issue is that those old Asbestos parts will end up breaking when you start nailing into them. As for moisture levels. Every house outside covering will always change moisture levels, depending on outside weather.

The problem with using the 1" XPS. Will be that you would end up the finished siding sticking out way past the trims.

With the product that I had installed. The noise level has gone down, the air can still move between the siding and old clapboards, because it is a Mono-wall construction.

I have not had any issues with moisture. Even with the interior walls having no form of insulation within them.

With all of this rain that we have had of late. The house is showing proper Relative Humidity levels.

 

Gary there is no horizontal air movement. The corners also have insulation in them. If you are going to post something. At least do your homework, before bashing people for their choices. Especially when they know what they did is correct per what the manufacturer information states about it.

All I ever see you do, is pull up the same links and post them to every post regarding anything dealing with a structure. To me, that shows that you have no real information to back up your own viewpoint. All you can do is link, link, link, incorrect information for the most part. But the whole Green build movement does not fit into the category that the majority of us are looking for.

No matter how many times I have told you where to find the information on the siding that was used. You stick by your guns with ancient links and ancient information.

 

As for your comment about me having PM turned off. That is because I did it, so people were not using it as a way to bully or attack me in private. It is so that a person's true colors show, when they decide to keep doing what you are doing.

I do not doubt that there is some good information in those links. The problem is that they will not work for the majority with those of us that have older homes, with Asbestos in the products that were used when the home was built, along with Lead Paint on any wood siding from that time period.

 

Sorry, I don't mean to "bash" you, just trying to get accurate information to unwary homeowners/DIY'ers on this forum. I'm very surprised my same links are used repeatedly and do not pertain to my answer.... perhaps your take on them is from not reading them in full. Eg. the link; http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com...isor.com/blogs/dept/musings/walls-need-breathe-and-9-other-green-building-myths -- has nothing to do with asbestos siding/lead paint, none of the nine myths. Read the second one (#2) on houses (not) needing to breathe, as you stated.

Mark, if you follow my first link in post #4, it shows the correct thickness foamboard /amount of wall thickness; http://www.buildingscience.com/docu...s-and-manuals/irc-faqs/irc-faq-insulating-sheathing-vapor-retarder-requirements

Gary