So, this weekend I put the hammer down and went full-speed ahead on one of the mandatory, pre-winter, pre-baby projects that had hitherto been looming on my mind's horizon for months: re-insulating the exterior wall in our bedroom and deleting the old front door to the outside.
Last winter, and the winter before that, I froze my arse off. I swore to myself this last time that I would do whatever it took to replace that old door and whatever was behind the drywall with with beautiful R-19 insulation. It's nasty to install, but the pay off is well-worth it. I believe what was pre-existing was R-13, so I swapped it out for the good stuff. I was going to go with R-39, but aside from being pricy, there simply is not enough room for it to expand in our walls, so I stuck with the standard R-19
The project went remarkably smooth. I took a few pictures after the demo was done, but since they strike me as hideous, I will not post them. After installing the new insulation, I covered the interior of the wall with 1/2' OSB plywood, per my mountain-man carpenter neighbor's suggestion--a piece of advice he has followed himself in his house with great success. In fact, last fall, using this technique, he renovated his bedroom, which sits on the north side of the house and consequently gets blasted by the prevailing winds, and stayed warm all of last winter.
I've already noticed a difference with the A/C window unit we have in there. The place stays COLD until you open the door. Nice ice box cold. I'm hoping that come winter it will stay nice and toasty warm.
Installing plywood before the drywall is more work, but it the results are better: the room feels more solid (it is); the room is much quieter; and the extra layer or ply helps with the R-factor, or adds another layer of insulation, sealing out undesireable weather.
Anyway, I just felt the need to get moving on this, even in the midst of my 31 other projects I have going on around here. Slowly, but surely we are becoming more organized and slight more sane-seeming. Possibly. I don't know, but it sure feels nice to have this one off the shoulders and off the horizon.
Until next time...
Over and out,
--Nick-Dog
2 comments:
Nice work. I have a few vital projects before winter as well, but then I go outside and see all the fat delicious squirrels munching on nuts and it makes it hard to stay motivated.
Hey Martin! Glad to see your still on the internets. Thanks for the props. After reading the latest Backwoods issue, I am considering munching on some squirrel myself, come this fall, now that I have a poodle shooter (Marlin 60).
Peace Yo!
--Nick-Dog
Post a Comment