The Problem
If you have a room over an exposed crawlspace instead of an enclosed basement, you probably have a cold floor in the winter. Customer complaints about cold floors over crawlspaces are common. Cold floors are uncomfortable to the touch and rob the entire room of heat.
The Reason
When installing batt insulation, technicians push it up into the cavity so that the insulation is in contact with the floor above as it should be. Problem is, over time the insulation succumbs to gravity and falls away from the floor and ends up hanging down or completely falls to the dirt floor below. Now it is no longer in touch with the underside of the finished floor above as it was meant to be and therefore no longer doing its job as intended. Making things even worse, most crawlspaces do not properly block cold air from blowing under thus robbing even more comfort and heat from the finished room above.
The Fix
Fortunately The Pro’s at Energy Geeks have a simple solution. Fill the entire floor cavity (to avoid settling) with fiberglass batt insulation and then apply 2” thick rigid foam board insulation to the underside of the floor joists. When installed properly rigid insulation adds a seamless layer of additional warmth and acts as a protective air barrier crucial to sealing the warmth in and the cold out. Remember, a properly insulated and well protected floor makes for a cozy room above.
Best of all, you may qualify for zero percent interest financing through the Mass Save and EnergyWise Heat Loan Program which can be used for window replacement and other energy efficiency improvements. Combine this with generous utility rebates some of which may cover up to 75% of the cost and it becomes clear that there has never been a better time to act. Isn’t about time for this simple problem to be fixed once and for all?