[displacedhoosier]

Wondering experiences in insulating above your garage and/or Lanai.

- What type is best (radiant vs blown-in)?
- Approximate cost for 2 1/2 Car Garage?
- Did you also get insulation above your Lanai area?
- Why did you choose to do it?
- What benefits have you seen?

Thanks!

[dewilson58]

I did the garage during construction and it was extremely cheap.
Blown-in.
I notice +20 degrees cooler than outside temp & less humidity.
I would do it again.

You might want to search for old threads regarding this topic.
It has been beat to death.

There will be posts that it's a waste of money.
Sit back and enjoy the experts.

[retiredguy123]

There are many threads on this topic. Do a search. For many years, builders and house designers have never installed insulation as a heat transfer barrier between two unconditioned spaces in houses. This is based on the scientific heat transfer concept that it doesn't create a sustainable temperature difference between the two spaces. In other words, it is basically a waste of money.

[GpaVader]

The real question that isn't asked or answered is, what are you going to use the garage for? I use mine as my "man cave" as my wife calls it. I have my hobbies out there and so I actually have an HVAC unit in my garage. My garage faces East so I get the morning sun and I have insulated the garage door, which made a huge difference and had my garage windows tinted. I did not insulate the rest of my garage as I use it for storage.

I was more concerned about getting the heat out of the space so that's why I didn't put any in. I suppose I still could...

Back to the original question I asked, what are going to use the space for? If it's just a garage and that's all it will be... If you are going to use the space as I have...

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by GpaVader

The real question that isn't asked or answered is, what are you going to use the garage for? I use mine as my "man cave" as my wife calls it. I have my hobbies out there and so I actually have an HVAC unit in my garage. My garage faces East so I get the morning sun and I have insulated the garage door, which made a huge difference and had my garage windows tinted. I did not insulate the rest of my garage as I use it for storage.

I was more concerned about getting the heat out of the space so that's why I didn't put any in. I suppose I still could...

Back to the original question I asked, what are going to use the space for? If it's just a garage and that's all it will be... If you are going to use the space as I have...

If you have an HVAC unit in the garage, you should definitely insulate the ceiling. If you don't, you will lose a lot of energy through the ceiling. That is why all of the ceilings in the conditioned spaces in your house are insulated. If they weren't, your AC system probably couldn't even cool down the house.

[Altavia]

Also depends on which way the garage is facing.

South facing being worst getting direct sun and reflected /radiated energy off the driveway.

Simply adding reflective window film to my south facing garage Windows made a noticable difference.

[jimbomaybe]

Originally Posted by Altavia

Also depends on which way the garage is facing.

South facing being worst getting direct sun and reflected /radiated energy off the driveway.

Simply adding reflective window film to my south facing garage Windows made a noticable difference.

I apologise for perhaps hijacking the thread , but what film did you use ? 3M would be my first choice but they only sell to contractors and I want to di it myself.

[Altavia]

Originally Posted by jimbomaybe

I apologise for perhaps hijacking the thread , but what film did you use ? 3M would be my first choice but they only sell to contractors and I want to di it myself.

Easy to apply, static cling.

https://a.co/d/0e5seWFi

[westernrider75]

Originally Posted by jimbomaybe

I apologise for perhaps hijacking the thread , but what film did you use ? 3M would be my first choice but they only sell to contractors and I want to di it myself.

I don’t know what brand it was but I purchased at Lowes and did it myself. Made a noticeable difference.

[vintageogauge]

I always wondered why the homes here were not built with factory insulated garage doors, they do help with heat as well as sound. I realize they would add a little to the cost but would be well worth it.

[displacedhoosier]

Thanks for all the feedback. Looking at SolarGuys to insulate above the Garage and the Lanai to help prevent drywall cracking in those areas.

Looking into maybe using the Ownings Corning Fiberglass panels that Home Depot sells to insulate the garage doors.

Question. Has anyone who has used this product had any problem with the added weight of the insulation requiring any adjustment to the doors or required different springs to be installed. My understanding is that this product adds about 10lbs to a 2-car garage door.

[Carlsondm]

We insulated when we started using the spaces at the suggestion of our contractor. Blown insulation. Glad we did it. Our expanded lanai was done by Fullview in double pane glass. The insulation keeps the space comfortable without a split. The windows and insulation cut down on noise too. During the last hurricane/hi winds we slept through and really wanted to see the peak of the storm. Didn’t hear much at all.
Regarding the reflective panel insulation, be aware that it can interfere with using an antenna in your attic.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by displacedhoosier

Thanks for all the feedback. Looking at SolarGuys to insulate above the Garage and the Lanai to help prevent drywall cracking in those areas.

Looking into maybe using the Ownings Corning Fiberglass panels that Home Depot sells to insulate the garage doors.

Question. Has anyone who has used this product had any problem with the added weight of the insulation requiring any adjustment to the doors or required different springs to be installed. My understanding is that this product adds about 10lbs to a 2-car garage door.

Good luck on preventing drywall cracks, insulation or not.

[jrref]

Here are the facts:

Insulating an open Lanai will only help prevent the ceiling from getting cracks. Because the air above an uninsulated lanai ceiling can superheat depending on it's orientation to the sun during the day, the sheetrock expands and contracts beyond what the taping and mud can tolerate so it will eventually develop a crack or two. Will it keep the open lanai cooler? Maybe.

Insulating your garage will keep your garage a couple of degrees cooler than the outside air with the door closed, again depending on your homes orientation to the sun during the day. It will also prevent the garage ceiling from cracking, same reasoning as the Lanai.

I used the solar guys to install blown-in insulation over the garage and lanai the past couple of years when they had the federal tax credit for this.

How accurate is my information? The woman I hired to fix the lanai ceiling, A Touch of Drywall, would not do the job unless the ceiling was insulated since she said from experience the crack would come back. Since i had the lanai ceiling and insulated and she has fixed the ceiling I've had no cracks.

As for the garage, I have several temperature sensors as part of my home automation system so I can say without a doubt the inside of the garage with the door closed is always about 5 or more degrees cooler in the summer and in the winter never goes below 50 degrees even when we get those overnight temperature drops.

Given the federal tax credit, the cost of the insulation was well worth it in my opinion. The cost will depend on the size of your garage and lanai ceilings.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by jrref

Here are the facts:

Insulating an open Lanai will only help prevent the ceiling from getting cracks. Because the air above an uninsulated lanai ceiling can superheat depending on it's orientation to the sun during the day, the sheetrock expands and contracts beyond what the taping and mud can tolerate so it will eventually develop a crack or two. Will it keep the open lanai cooler? Maybe.

Insulating your garage will keep your garage a couple of degrees cooler than the outside air with the door closed, again depending on your homes orientation to the sun during the day. It will also prevent the garage ceiling from cracking, same reasoning as the Lanai.

I used the solar guys to install blown-in insulation over the garage and lanai the past couple of years when they had the federal tax credit for this.

How accurate is my information? The woman I hired to fix the lanai ceiling, A Touch of Drywall, would not do the job unless the ceiling was insulated since she said from experience the crack would come back. Since i had the lanai ceiling and insulated and she has fixed the ceiling I've had no cracks.

As for the garage, I have several temperature sensors as part of my home automation system so I can say without a doubt the inside of the garage with the door closed is always about 5 or more degrees cooler in the summer and in the winter never goes below 50 degrees even when we get those overnight temperature drops.

Given the federal tax credit, the cost of the insulation was well worth it in my opinion. The cost will depend on the size of your garage and lanai ceilings.

I don't agree with you so-called "facts" with respect to drywall cracks. I have no ceiling insulation in the garage or the lanai, and I don't have any ceiling cracks. But, that is just anecdotal information, just like what you were told by the owner of A Touch of Drywall.