Attic Remediation and New Insulation in Howell, MI
Challenge
The homeowner explained that he had remodeled his bathroom and noticed when he went to install new lights into the ceiling, that the roof sheathing was covered in mold growth and the roof decking was frozen. The roof deck was frozen at the time of inspection in the winter and water droplets were on a majority of the roofing nails. Mold growth was present on the roof sheathing and the trusses within the attic. The problems were caused by lack of intake ventilation from the soffits because they were covered with insulation and the attic floor had not been air sealed. The homeowner chose to have the problem fixed because he was planning on staying in the home forever and wanted to make sure that the home living space was healthy and that no further damage would happen to his roof deck. The homeowner's biggest concern with the problem was that mold growth was in his home and he did not want his family living in the home with a potential health concern.
Solution
The homeowner chose our company because we were referred to him by a previous customer of ours who was also his friend. We had a detailed explanation during the inspection with the homeowner which built trust that we would be the right company to fix his problems within the attic and also provide him with an opportunity to save money on his utility bills. Our solution was to remove all the insulation from the attic floor, remove the insulation that was blocking the soffits, install baffles into the soffits to insure proper airflow, remediate the mold in the attic, air seal all the penetrations on the attic floor (Ex. top plates, wire penetrations) cover the can light with a rockwool can light cover, air seal and insulate the scuttle cover, and reinsulate the attic floor with cellulose insulation to R60. During the installation process we did face the challenge of a low pitch roof which made moving around the attic a bit difficult especially when removing the insulation in the eave. We used a combination of products to achieve our end results. We used Moldx2 products, DuroVent Baffles, SilverGlo foam board and weather stripping, ZypFoam, TiteShell can light covers and TruSoft Cellulose Insulation. The homeowner now has a clean healthy attic that has been properly air sealed and insulated to the maximum recommended insulation R-value for energy efficiency in Zone 5 of Michigan.
