AttiCat Machine Question

nopper

I have balloon constructed walls that extend into the attic so I can drop the hose all the way down the wall length. The walls are old lathe and plaster. Is there another reason that blowing in the wall is not ok?

mrrodgersnot

Actually, you will not find anything just yet about blowing Owens Corning AttiCat into the walls because they are just now rolling it out. From what I was told is that all the product in the stores CAN be blown into the walls!!! The new packaging should be coming out soon. So go right ahead and blow it into the walls!!!

Now I was told you can go from the attic and blow it down the walls if you have that access. But make sure you can get most of the way down the wall because it is not like cellulose (paper) that just falls. So put the hose down and blow as your pulling it up. The other option you have is drilling 3" holes in the interior or exterior walls and doing it that way. One hole at the bottom and one at the top.

I was told there should be more info on doing it on their web-site towards the end of the month!

nopper

Great! You saved me a phone call. My next move was to call OC's technical department. Did you get your info directly from OC?

Jayrek

I just saw that the bug orange was waving the rental on the machine if you by over 10 or 12 bags of atticat.(I dont remember). My friend was thinking of trying it out on his house I told him I want to be there, just to see what it is all about.

Doing it myself

thanks

GeastJas

I know this thread is almost a year old but it is still coming up when people are doing a search related to attic cat or cellulose insulation. Basically what has been bantered back and forth are all valid reasons to go with either product and ultimately the structure is what needs to be fire proof and not each individual element. It's called building systems that save the structure. I think the bigger issue between cellulose and fiberglas is that cellulose will settle and will need to be added to in a 5 to 10 year time frame. Don't even try to tell me it doesn't! I have witnessed it first hand in several of my projects, whether it was an attic or walls (worse in walls - at least in the attic it's not leaving an exterior building skin un-insulated). In approximately 10 years cellulose will settle in an 8' wall down to 2' leaving 6' of un-insulated wall. Fiberglass does not settle and will maintain it's R15 rating. So maybe if you want repeat customers then you will want to use cellulose but I think that is the unprofessional manner in treating a customer and that is why reputable contractors are always fighting the perception that we are out to screw our customers. By the way maybe this isn't as crucial in the south but in the northern states we don't take advantage of our customers.

Framer53

Your points would be valid except for one thing. Cellulose is now being dense packed into walls and there is no settling.

Cellulose doesn't loose r value at lower temps as fiberglass does.

Cellulose has higher r value than equivalent amounts of fiberglass.

Cellulose is "green"

One other thing, go to building science.com and you will see the scientific evaluation of the differences. Once you do, you will not be blowing fiberglass.

I can get you more if you need it

GeastJas

I agree with you on the fact that the dense packed cellulose insulation is the way to these days on new construction or renovations where either the interior or exterior skin is removed. I should have stated this if for existing homes that all I am doing is fixing the settling that the cellulose did when it was blown in through a 2 inch hole in the top of the wall cavity.

I think it's the application is what should dictate the type of material to use. In my situation where I am insulating existing homes that were built prior to insulation (which there are several still in Michigan) or had the cellulose sprayed in dry with air that have settled. Fiberglas although not the same R-value as cellulose will not settle when blown into the existing wall cavity.

And I agree cellulose is green but there are limits to what needs to be green in the construction industry. If it adds cost to the customer and a payback of more than 10 or 15 years than I don't see it as a benefit. Solar panels to become less dependent on the power companies but the investment can be in the 10 of thousands (depending on the house size) and the payback is 15 years. Not many homeowners or buyers can afford that.

Different field but an example is Lithium Ion batteries are sold as being green but the mining of the Lithium is one of the most hazardous non-green processes in the world today.

Either way thanks for the input. It comes down to the right material for the right application. Thanks

Framer53

I have dense packed cellulose back in the 80's and have been back to many houses that I did and have found little to no settling of the cellulose.

I believe that it depends on the quality of the contractor as to settling issues.

Redliz75

I despise cellulose insulation and would rather eat fiberglass than crawl through an attic filled with cellulose.

Redliz75

Oops! I resurrected a nealrly year old thread.

joasis

Personal opinion or experience? Maybe you can educate the forum on the merits of fiberglass? Over cellulose?

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Redliz75

I do mostly commercial electric work, but sometimes I am sent out on a residential job. Crawling in cellulose is NASTY and terrible to breath. Blown fiberglass is so much cleaner. Plus, fiberglass is easier to find your tools in.

Dirtywhiteboy

,,, I personally love the sprayed in iceoline foam stuff it sticks to the rafters and sheathing and has a very high R value.

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joasis

The point being is that you prefer to roll around in fiberglass, but have zero input on the relative properties of cellulose as an insulator, vs. fiberglass. I would certainly use an inferior product, to make life easier for an electrician once in many years, as opposed to the better product and cost savings for the home.....paid every month. Gotcha!


BTW, does your employer charge more by the hour if they know cellulose is present?

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Dirtywhiteboy

She never said she was rolling around in it she was talking bout breathing it

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joasis

We can all read what she said. Her personal preference, regardless of the performance factor of the product, is to be in contact with fiberglass.....and maybe she is one in a million that isn't bothered by fiberglass. I go with the better product, and if the subs want to complain, then find other subs.

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parts

I hate blowing in fiberglass and only do it when there is no other choice given. Besides being a better insulator I feel it is much easier on the skin, cloths, equipment and lungs than fiberglass.

chivs

Different people different choices. Personally I prefer cellulose than blowing fiberglass. It does sometimes settles in the wall cavity, but there is no better insulator.

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Robpeddie

I am really enjoying this thread and am glad it came back. Our company just bought an Attic Cat Machine and have been nothing but impressed with it. Yes you can blow in walls with it. However, most air infiltration occurs in attics and floors as well as doors, windows, and vents... not wall cavities. Drywall acounts for 69% of a walls airflow while exterior siding and sheathing make up an additional 20%... these numbers are from the 1996 Whole House Air Infiltration Study.

The biggest mis-understanding I am reading is that most people think it's the same fiberglass that makes people itch and scratch but IT IS NOT. This stuff will not make you itch. Go to a local provider and pick up some of it and see for yourself. I can not stand fiberglass but this stuff is amazing. I would sleep in it. I have worked with cellulose and I will not go back to it. You have got to understand that when you are talking about this insulation it is not the same as the rolls.

There really isn't enough known about the safety of cellulose. 20% of cellulose insulation is chemical by weight. It has been proven that some ingredients in cellulose are health hazzards. Speaking for the fire retardant... in 1993 Indiana did a survey and found that out of 900 fire departments 72% of them fight cellulose insulation fires in an average year. The city of Palo Alto, California tested cellulose insulation in 133 attics for fire safety... only 8 of the attics passed the Consumer Product Safety Commision fire tests.