For walls, r13 insulation is a good choice in most instances, and because your basement is below the ground, there's some natural protection from the earth around it.
R13 insulation provides excellent thermal resistance, making it ideal for basement walls. It helps keep the space warm in winter and cool in summer, ultimately lowering your energy bills. Additionally, it acts as a sound barrier, reducing noise between floors.
Depending on where you live and the part of your home you're insulating (walls, crawlspace, attic, etc.), you'll need a different R-Value. Typical recommendations for exterior walls are R-13 to R-23, while R-30, R-38 and R-49 are common for ceilings and attic spaces.
Known for its sound reduction and easy installation, R-13 batts serve as a thermal barrier, keeping your home comfortable by resisting heat flow. Perfect for modern framing, they ensure minimal obstruction from electrical or plumbing work.
R13 batt insulation is typically used to attenuate sound in interior wall cavities. It is akin to a large blanket, designed specifically to fill a wall, floor, or ceiling cavity.
R-value is used to judge thermal insulation performance and the higher the number, the better the product's insulating ability. So R19 has better insulating ability than R13. Now R-Value ranges widely across products and home applications. Indeed you will see R60 in some places and R13 in others.
It is possible to over-insulate your house so much that it can't breathe. The whole point of home insulation is to tightly seal your home's interior. But if it becomes too tightly sealed with too many layers of insulation, moisture can get trapped inside those layers. That's when mold starts to grow.
For most regions, a minimum R-value of R-19 is recommended for basement ceilings, but in colder climates, higher R-values may be necessary.
R13 insulation is commonly used in ceilings in moderate climates. It helps to prevent heat loss in the winter and heat gain in the summer, which can improve energy efficiency and comfort. R15 insulation is used in ceilings in colder climates or buildings with high energy usage.
Common types of insulation used as interior basement insulation include batt or blanket, glass fibre loose fill, polyurethane spray and rigid plastic board.
R15 insulation offers slightly better thermal insulative properties than R13. Some of its formats are a fraction of an inch thicker than R13, making it more effective at helping with energy efficiency. However, the difference is minimal. R15 is slightly thicker than R13 for spray foam and blown-in cellulose.
We recommend a minimum of 1 inch of XPS up to a maximum of approximately 2 inches. that is trapped in place by the additional wood frame wall. Pho- tograph 2 shows a basement wall with 2 inches of extruded polysty- rene, joint sealed with tape and held in place by furring strips.
A home requires air circulation, so if it is too tightly sealed and over-insulated, moisture can build up that causes mold. With too many layers of insulation, mold can even grow in between the layers. Mold in the home can cause allergy flare-ups, allergic reactions, and breathing issues.
The cheapest method overall is to use a roll-blanket, power-nailed to the concrete wall, which doesn't require you to 'finish' the space, but can give you good energy savings. 2. If you plan to finish the space, the cheapest method is to use metal studs.
Changes in 2021 IECC Basement R-Value Insulation Code
The 2018 IECC permitted R-15 continuous insulation on either the interior or exterior or R-19 cavity on the interior. In addition, the changes allow builders to use 2×4 framing for the exterior basement walls instead of 2×6 studs.
Ceiling insulation does not need to be faced because it does not experience moisture like the rest of the basement. If you have already purchased faced batt insulation, you can install it in your basement ceiling. However, you don't need to purchase faced insulation for your basement ceiling intentionally.
Does a basement ceiling need a vapour barrier? Installing a vapour barrier is optional when utilising ROCKWOOL solutions, as stone wool insulation is water repellent. However, adding a vapour barrier can help to prevent additional moisture coming through the ceiling space.
Adding two R-13, 3.5” batts to a 2”x6” (5.5”) wood stud cavity will not provide an R-26. The total of 7” of insulation is reduced in thickness to 5.5” thereby losing the R-value associated with its full thickness.
The optimal R-value for most homes is 30, but you can go as high as 38 if you live in a tropical climate. Anything higher than 38 indicates an over-insulated space. While you might think that too much insulation can't be bad, there are some significant consequences to consider.
Never place insulation close to water heaters, oil burners or anything hot. The backing is especially flammable and will be a major fire hazard for your home.
While r13 insulation is a good baseline to aim for in most instances, you should think about the space that adding more insulation will take up. This all adds to the cost of your project while reducing what you can do there.
Fiberglass and rock wool batts—2x4 walls can hold R-13 or R-15 batts; 2x6 walls can have R-19 or R-21 products.
R13 insulation provides moderate sound dampening by restricting airflow and adding fiberglass density inside cavities to absorb noise when correctly installed.