This isn't bungalow specific, but I was hoping that someone here had some experience in the attic department. <br> <br>I am planning on replacing the roof on my 50-year-old bungalow soon and decided it would be a good time to put in some new insulation in the attic as well. The insulation there is the old loose, grey kind. I suppose that I'll have to pull it all out first so that there's a place to put the new insulation between the boards. Some of it has gotten wet in places anyway and probably isn't doing much good. <br> <br>a) What is the easiest way to remove the old insulation? Do I have to pick it all up by hand and bag it? <br> <br>The second problem is that there's no ventilation in parts of the attic. The second floor of the house is broken up so that there are 5 separate sections of attic that aren't connected. The crawlspace along the top ridge possibly has some ventilation through the gables (at least it looks like this from the outside, but I have no way of getting inside). The other 4 areas are on the corners of the house (the living area forms a cross in the center of the upstairs) and, although I can see daylight breaking through cracks in places, there is no formal ventilation. <br>I've read about the importance of ventilation, but it seems weird that the house has gone this long without any. <br> <br>b)Is there any damage I should look for? How important is it for me to add ventilation now, and what exactly is needed? <br> <br>

Indigo-- <br> <br>Ventilation is one of those really important, house-for-a-lifetime things. It prevents condensation that rots wood and creates mold. It is good for the health of the occupants. It cools the house down when it is really hot outside. All sorts of things. <br> <br>I thought it was strange when many old houses I looked at didn't have much formal ventilation (it's the "closet engineer" in me begging to get out). A long talk with a great old house inspector brought many things to light...most old houses had tile or cedar shingle roofs and not a lot of insulation. They were "over ventilated"! After asphalt or asbestos shingles, rolled roofing, "R-ratings", fiberglass, energy -efficient windows, and vinyl, etc. etc...houses became really snug and "under-ventilated". <br> <br>Wet insulation makes bells go off for me...is it from the roof leaking? Or condensation forming from the house? Or both? Some inspectors recommend looking at the underside of the roofing nails...are there black marks on the wood around the nail? Could be a sign of condensation. <br> <br>I would get a great roofing contractor and HVAC person to collaborate with you on your venting. Attics need two "vent critical" areas...space for the air to get in and space for the air to get out again. We inherited 3 mushroom vents on the top of the roof spaced out along the main ridge which didn't help one bit...no air was getting INto the attic to get OUT of those vents. We don't want soffits (the house doesn't currently have them...this is where "intake-vents" are put in most newer houses) so we are investigating alternatives. Many old house specialists have told us to get gable vent "fans" if we have/install gables that face east and west. And avoid gable vents facing north because of bad weather getting snow and rain in through the vents (?) Most everyone has spoken well of ridge vents for the top of the roof. There are some rare specialty products for venting the attic near the place where the roof meets the wall (small round pipe fittings) but I'm having trouble finding them. <br> <br>Finally, although it is more difficult to pull off and look "authentic", make sure the bathrooms and dryer are vented to the outside. And the kitchen if you can swing that. All will help to keep concentrations of moisture off of your paint, plaster, wood and metal. (We are considering retro-fitting a nicer vent grill with the common bathroom vent fans for the bathrooms.) <br> <br>Take care... <br> <br> <br>

Thanks so much for the info. <br>The water is from leaks. We have a horrible roof which is why I even looked into the attic to begin with ;P Adding vents isn't going to be easy since the space is broken up into 5 separate pieces. The top crawl space appears to have gable vents at either end already. Since it is only a crawl space anyway, it seems like that should be ok. (?) <br>The problem is going to be the other 4 in the corners. They each have 2 outer walls (one low end on the back or front and one high end in the middle of the house). If I don't have soffits and don't have a gable or ridge to use THEN what? *sigh*

Could you send us a picture of the outside of your house? Nothing fancy...just from ground level. I have a contractor as a good friend and neighbor and he may have some ideas. His attic was broken up into 4 pieces...a main ridge that had 2 dormers (front and back) and then 2 seperate dormers on each side. <br> <br>Don't worry...somebody on the board has had to have dealt with the same issue. Seeing it might refresh their memory. <br> <br>Would you like a couple of the raccoons hanging out in our attic? (grrr.) They chew new vents like, well, magic!

When I tore out a ceiling in our old sleeping porch, a ton of that loose gray stuff fell on me. Yuck. Anyway, I just scooped it out of the remaining sections and threw it out. You don't necessarily have to remove it. If you solve the moisture problem (no more leaks) you can just lay rolls of fiberglass insulation over the existing stuff or you can rent a machine to blow in the cellulose stuff. It's really inexpensive and pretty easy to do. Thats what I did in the adjacent areas that I couldn't access. I've got photos in the camera that I have to have developed, but I need to finish the roll first. I'll try to do that soon.

I finally got up some pictures of the house and attic. <br> <br>http://www.pbase.com/indigo997/gallery/work

Oh wow...cool! That looks like the kind of insulation you can bag and dispose of yourself I think. Provided no animals have ever taken up residence in there. (Then there are risks of parovirus, etc. and you should have a professional remove it and then spray the wood with a light hydrogen peroxide solution to kill germs that could hurt you or family once the space opens up.) I would still wear old clothes, ones you could dispose of would be GREAT, a GOOD mask (not the flimsy kind), googles and gloves. <br> <br>Someone put a gable vent in for you, which is an okay vent for starters. You don't want to ruin those beautiful open eaves and knee braces. Maybe you should look into a fascia vent system for intake (in wall under eaves). Are there outtake vents in the roof? <br> <br>Nice pictures, the upstairs will make a beautiful space!

It looks to me like your existing insulation is old "mineral wool." Mineral wool has a good R factor, so if its in good shape, I'd keep it. I'd dig down a bit in the existing stuff to see if their is a vapor barrier on the floor.....if not, you probably will want to add one (some type of poly film, or paper backed aluminum). You can buy them at any home store. If you intend to add insulation batting over the existing stuff....make sure you get the kid w/o a vapor barrier attached, or slash the barrier with a knife. You don't want the new batting to form moisture in the old stuff. Remember, vapor barrier goes on the bottom. <br> <br>I think current wisdom says you need a foot of vent for every 300 sq ft of attic space. If you don't have a vapor barrier, you need much more ventilation. <br> <br>IMHO, it would be a shame (nay, a crime) to cover those eaves with a soffit vent......I'd eliminate that option and stick with a combo of ridge, roof or gable vents. I'm planning on removing a PO soffit vents from my house sometime this summer. <br> <br>One final thought....you might call one of your ultility companies (gas or electric) to see if they offer energy audits. I posted a few months (probably 5 or 6) about having an audit done on my house. They gave me detailed instructions on weatherproofing, insulation, ventilation, heating, gas, water heater, and other appliances....and a truckload of other info. specific to my house. I think it cost $20, but they left me a sink aereator (sp?), caulking, a water saving showerhead, and other energy saving trinkets. <br> <br>Good luck!

Agreed about the soffit vents...a lot of PO's in our neighborhood ruined the look of their bungalows this way...by putting in vinyl soffit vents and covering the open eaves. <br> <br>GAF makes a product called the "COBRA Fascia Vent" which wouldn't affect the eaves. And there a number of very cool fascia vents in the UK which I wish they sold over here. <br> <br>http://www.cavitytrays.co.uk/pdf_menu.php <br> <br>Some vents can go under the eaves, placed in the wall next to the roof. Or on the roof right above the gutters (It has some kind of flashing to keep water on the roof from running in). Although these "over fascia" vents are common, I haven't heard great things about how they keep blowing rain or snow out. So I'm checking out the vents that go under the eaves.... <br> <br>I'd like to see more about how a couple of these work, so I am trying to find a contractor or store that can show me how they are installed... <br> <br>http://www.airvent.com/cvent/cvav00801p.html <br> <br>Of course, if anyone else is familiar with these types of vents, let us know please [img]/ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

I read something somewhere about those fascia vents suggesting they let wind blow through - allowing too much air to blow through the attic which can increase moisture. I dunno. An energy audit sounds good if it isn't too expensive. I just need some good advice.