My house remodel

[EddieWalker]

Nice looking roof!!!! I can't tell where the chimeneys used to be.

Keep up the good work.

Eddie

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Thanks Eddie, I decided to use BP 40 year shingles. They were about the same price as 30 year elk. They are not my favorites by any stretch but they adhered good and look nice. I don't really see myself living in this house for 40 years but when I am done it should be maintenance free for 20-30 years and the roof should last well as its kind of protected from the elements. I trimmed a lot of limbs while I had the lift so there are no limbs growing towards the house but there are some about 20' above the peak still. So there is a nice balance of sun and shade now.

 

[dcyrilc]

The roof is done now. I have been very busy on the farm and have not had too much time to work on my house. I did rent a 60' lift though to make it easier and had friends and family help do what I can't do anymore. So the chimneys are gone and the new roof is on. It is a nice step as I can now tear both chimneys down through the house and start the rebuilding phase.

I'm curious. I don't see any attic venting. How is the attic vented?

 

[Robert_in_NY]

I'm curious. I don't see any attic venting. How is the attic vented?

I was originally going to go with ridge vent but then talked to the foam insulation guys and they said I won't need any ventilation when they spray the attic. So I am relying on their experience but am easily able to add gable vents if I don't like how it performs.

 

[dcyrilc]

I was originally going to go with ridge vent but then talked to the foam insulation guys and they said I won't need any ventilation when they spray the attic. So I am relying on their experience but am easily able to add gable vents if I don't like how it performs.

That makes sense. I just have it in my mind that an attic has to be able to breathe. I forget about foam. LOL

 

[eepete]

Regarding foam and shingles:

Down here in NC I was told you can't have the attic space sealed with the foam ventilation and have a shingled roof, you have to have a metal roof. I love the totally sealed attic space. When they were putting down the wood floors in the house, we hit 103. Had the AC running for a while before that to get the wood conditioned. The attic was about 80-85 degrees. The 2nd floor living space was at 73 degrees.

Worked for me, the metal roof reflects a lot of heat (which is why they said you can't use shingles down here). Also like the 50 year life, wish I had that much life left in me :laughing:.

So foam is great. Check on shingles with sealed attic space. Big difference in weather between NY and NC, and maybe even the shingle type affects things.

Pete

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Thanks pete, I will check on it. Would it help if I told you there is a metal roof on there still it was an old style metal shingle that laid flat. The deck was in great shape so I water and iced the first 6 feet and all the valleys and shingled over the metal roofing.

Regardless I am going to look up the specs for the foam in attic installations and make sure every thing is ok.

 

[mikefromnh]

I wouldn't trust what the foam guy said about venting. In cold climates many shingle manufacturers require venting or they will void the warranty. Even with foam.

Here in Maine people have tried to skip the attic vents with bad results.

 

[EddieWalker]

From what I understand, when foam is applied to the actual roof, you creat a whole house envelope, no venting it allows. YOU NEVER VENT when applying foam to the roof itself.

The advantage to this is that you are not fighting the extreme heat the develops in the attic space, and having to overcome that heat when cooling. The attic, above the insulation, will easily be 20 degrees warmer then the outside temerature. With foam on the roof, this does not happen, and it's easier to keep that attic cool then to fight the heat that it generates.

If the HVAC unit is placed in the attic, this will also keep the unit cooler and allow it to last longer and work more efficiently.

If you can afford the upfront cost of spray in foam insulation, it's easily the best way to go.

I've never owned a house that has been insulated this way, but I have clients who have done this and they say that it's the only way to go.

Eddie

 

[dave1949]

From what I understand, when foam is applied to the actual roof, you creat a whole house envelope, no venting it allows. YOU NEVER VENT when applying foam to the roof itself.

The advantage to this is that you are not fighting the extreme heat the develops in the attic space, and having to overcome that heat when cooling. The attic, above the insulation, will easily be 20 degrees warmer then the outside temerature. With foam on the roof, this does not happen, and it's easier to keep that attic cool then to fight the heat that it generates.

If the HVAC unit is placed in the attic, this will also keep the unit cooler and allow it to last longer and work more efficiently.

If you can afford the upfront cost of spray in foam insulation, it's easily the best way to go.

I've never owned a house that has been insulated this way, but I have clients who have done this and they say that it's the only way to go.

Eddie

It's definitely something different to get accustomed to. The same applies to unvented crawlspaces which become part of the house envelope. It just doesn't 'sound' right. Time will tell
Dave.

 

[EddieWalker]

What does venting in an attic accomplish? Coolling is what most people think, but that really doesn't happen to any measurable degree.

The reason for vents at the eves and peaks is to create air flow. The advantage of air flow is to keep things dry up there. If you didn't have air flow, then condensation would build up and you would have rot problems from moisture and heat.

By encloseing the attic space, and making it part of the total house envelope, you are controling the humdity levels and air temperatures in that area. This eliminates condensation and those problems that happen to unvented attics.

Eddie

 

[mikefromnh]

Here in cold climates condensation also lead to ice dams in addition to rotted sheathing.

Attic ventilation removes the moisture before it causes damage. You can skip the ventilation but proper air sealing must be accomplished.

Unless you used closed cell spray foam, which is not always cost effective for an attic.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

New technology is always fun. I will research it more and if I find I need to vent the peak it is not that big of a deal.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

I have looked into it more and am lead to believe that you do not need venting in the attic if the foam is sprayed to the underside of the roof and the gable walls. The theory is sound and even ELK came out and said there will be no problems to their shingles in this type of application. I am going to try it unless I learn something else negative between now and then. I plan to use the open cell in the attic and am thinking of using the closed cell in the rest of the house that I am going to insulate.

I have been very busy all summer so I have not done much work at all on my house. I did tear down both chimneys and have removed them completely from the house. I have one more room to gut then I am ready to start running wires and pipes. In another month I will have more time and over the winter I will have plenty of time to make some progress. Hopefully by next spring I will have the walls closed up and be finishing the kitchen off so that I can move in while work continues on other sections of the house.

 

[/pine]

Sorry I have not read this entire thread...but I can tell you if you have ever seen a roof where asphalt shingles have "curled up" ...it is mostly due to lack of proper ventilation/cooling...

Check the application (and warranty) on shingle packaging...most state that "proper ventilation" is required to maintain the warranty...

 

[Robert_in_NY]

I have and understand the issues with attic venting. However, elk has said this insulation will not harm its shingles or void their warranty. I will post a link or two to what I have learned when I get home tonight.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Hey guys, what should I do to prepare my house for computers, TV's and all the other entertainment devices? I will have cable for TV and the internet. I want to be able to tie all four bedrooms into the main system as well as both living rooms, office, kitchen and basement with the potential for adding to the attic if I finish it off nice in the future. I don't plan to have computers and TV's in each room but I want to be prepared for if I ever want to set up a system in there.

I have never set up a system of any sort like this so if anyone can help me with any knowledge they have I would appreciate it as I have no idea where to even start or if there is any particular system that would be good for my application. Thanks in advance.

 

[EddieWalker]

Everything is going wireless. I worry that anything you buy for a whole house system would just be a waste of money. You can buy a router that you plug your modem into and it will make your whole house live. Even if you have your internet through a wire, all you need is the router and everything in the area can pick it up.

Knowing where you will mount your TV is important so you can either hide the speaker wires, and install your surround sound. Most of that can be done through your attic if you have one. I would put surround sound as a must have for modern TV's.

If you are installing a security syste, hard wired is the best way. They sell wireless kits, but those are dependent on batteries and some batteries last longer then other batteries. You just never know if one will stop working when you are away.

Do you have enought outside outlets? What about for Christmas lights?

Eddie

 

[bdeboer]

The last investment property we rehabbed, I pulled coax from the attic to the living room, and bedrooms. I also pulled a phone wire into the rooms for the satellite dish receiver. There are three coax cables pulled to the rooms where the receiver would be. Two incoming cables and one outgoing. I just labelled and looped the coax in bundles at a common accessible point in the attic. I would also pull a dedicated phone wire from the telephone junction box on the outside to an office area where the router would located if you are going to use DSL for internet.

I used this style of wall plate with snap in connectors for the coax jacks and phone/cat5 jacks. The supply house didn't have another way of a combination Cat5 and Coax jack.

Amazon.com: Leviton 41642-B QuickPort Decora Wall Plate Insert, 2-Port, Brown: Home Improvement

Amazon.com: Leviton QuickPort F-Type Bulkhead module Nickel Plated: Home Improvement

Amazon.com: Leviton 5G108-RW5 Gigamax 5E Quickport Connector, Cat 5E, White: Home Improvement

The main reason I did this was I didn't want the dish installers to run coax all over the siding and drill through the walls as they will do, if the owner is not there.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Everything is going wireless. I worry that anything you buy for a whole house system would just be a waste of money. You can buy a router that you plug your modem into and it will make your whole house live. Even if you have your internet through a wire, all you need is the router and everything in the area can pick it up.

Knowing where you will mount your TV is important so you can either hide the speaker wires, and install your surround sound. Most of that can be done through your attic if you have one. I would put surround sound as a must have for modern TV's.

If you are installing a security syste, hard wired is the best way. They sell wireless kits, but those are dependent on batteries and some batteries last longer then other batteries. You just never know if one will stop working when you are away.

Do you have enought outside outlets? What about for Christmas lights?

Eddie

Hi Eddie, I understand the wireless router and such but I am not sure what new technology is around the corner and thats why I am looking for insight from other members who actually know the audio visual field. I know I can plug in a wireless router and not worry about it but I wasn't sure if there is any advantage to running ethernet cable through the house. My house is a two story but I plan to have conduits run up to the attic from the basement just in case I need to add something later. I just want to run what I can in the walls while their open.

I haven't thought about any type of security system yet but I probably should. Theft isn't really a big issue here currently but it is something I have been concerned with in the past. The theifs here like to steal what is easy to grab, breaking into a house to rob it isn't very popular here but it has happened before.

As for exterior outlets, I can add them as I need to from the basement and so far I have added one to the front porch and plan to add a few more around the house as I need them. I have no plans for christmas lights as that is something I don't like very much. I will have two outlets near the front of the house so I can plug into if needed but I hope I never need to worry about putting up christmas lights.

I have thought about an intercom system through the house but I am not sure about it yet.