Warming attic roofs from the inside with their own hands -

Given the steady rise in real estate prices, one square meter of living space in Russia is so valuable that it is wasteful simply stupid to treat it. Designers, developers and potential homeowners are unanimous in their desire to efficiently use the space of the house, therefore, projects with a residential attic are becoming increasingly popular.

Due to savings on building materials, minimization of labor costs for workers, the cost of such projects is 1.5-2 times lower than similar buildings of two or more floors. However, it should be understood that the climatic conditions of our country do not allow using the roofing room as a dwelling, if the insulation of the roof of the attic floor was not properly performed.

Thermal insulation attic floor - the main condition for a comfortable stay in it. This construction operation can be done with your own hands at the stage of building a roof or in a completely finished house, if the owners decided to reconstruct it. However, the insulation provides a tangible effect only if the suitable material is used, the installation method, and the process technology has been correctly followed.

These requirements cannot be met without an understanding of the heat distribution mechanism in the house, without knowledge of the mansard roof insulation method. A competent approach will not only provide a comfortable temperature, but protect the family budget from unnecessary expenses due to the rational use of funds for thermal insulation, and will save on utility bills.

Heat distribution in the house

The question of where the heat goes, torments not one homeowner. When the heating boiler relays are screwed to the maximum, but the room is still cold, some sin on poorly insulated walls, others on cracks in the floor. Although most often the "black hole" in which the money spent on heating flies is the roof. The properties of heated air are such that it rises up, freeing up space for cold air below. Further developments occur as the scheme shows:

• Traditional cold roof. Part of the heated air is held up by bulk insulation in the ceiling, the rest goes to the under-roof space of the attic floor. The snow cover on the roof performs thermal insulation functions, as well as the air in the attic. The temperature in the attic does not fall below 0⁰ even in severe cold. In the summer, for ventilation, it is enough to open the windows wide open, providing fresh air. Thus, heat distribution in residential floors is optimized, in the name of which they donate square meters that you no longer use to equip an additional bedroom or office.
• Residential warm roof. Thermal insulation of the mansard roof solves the problem of temperature, but creates a new one: a layer of snow on the surface of the eaves melts away, depriving the house of a natural insulating layer. In addition, it destroys the roofing material, shortening the life, that is, bringing time to replace it. And the hot season brings even more trouble - the hot surface of the roof heats the room of the residential floor, from which the air becomes hot, it becomes stuffy. Even powerful air conditioners are not able to withstand these disasters. The only “medicine” is the use of the right materials and adherence to technology.

Characteristics of a good heater

Experienced builders say that not only the type of material is important, but also the place of installation, the volume and the correct installation method. It is not enough to choose the best insulation, it is important to observe all aspects of mansard roof insulation, to provide ventilation gaps, vapor barrier, waterproofing to form a reliable roofing pie.

Before insulating the mansard roof, choose a thermal insulating agent with properties as close as possible to the material from which the house is built. In general, it should have the following characteristics:

• Low thermal conductivity, the value of which is at the level of 0.05 W / m * K.
• Low weight It is highly undesirable to weight the massive construction of the mansard roof. This parameter correlates with the density of the insulation. Mineral wool with a density of 45-50 kg / m is considered acceptable³, fiberglass based materials - 14 f / m³. More massive options are not suitable for DIY installation.
• Low hygroscopicity, moisture permeability. Insulation should not absorb moisture, it is very bad if, when wet, it loses its thermo-insulating properties, since leakages are not rare.
• Fire resistance The safety class of the used material G1-G2 ensures that it does not ignite, does not sustain combustion.
• Ability to keep shape. Before you properly insulate the mansard roof with your own hands, they check whether the heat insulating agent is capable of not deforming for a long time, being between the rafters. Otherwise, he will soon slide down the crate, exposing the ridge joint.
• Sustainability. The principal ability to tolerate temperature drops, heavy rainfall and other weather "vicissitudes".
• Long service life.

Material selection

Deciding what and how to properly warm the attic roof with your own hands, it’s hard not to get lost in the abundance of options. Nevertheless, there are four types of insulation:

• Mineral wool. With its help carry out the warmth of the attic roof from the inside. It has high thermal insulation characteristics, is light in weight, perfectly fits in between the interplanetary space and does not ignite. However, the choice of material based on mineral wool has not only some advantages, because of its tendency to get wet. Having been exposed to moisture, glass wool loses up to 60% of its insulating ability, which will not recover when it dries. To protect against these negative effects, perform roofing pie waterproofing. The minimum layer of such insulation is 150 mm, this is enough for buildings in central Russia, for more northern areas it will be right to increase the thickness to 200-250 mm.

  

• Penopolisterol. With such valuable qualities as a very light weight, good thermal insulation qualities, expanded polystyrene has a significant drawback - it is a very combustible material. It is inconvenient to work with polyfoam, it crumbles during cutting and stacking, forming difficult removable gaps. It is better to use extruded polystyrene, applied in the form of foam on the inner surface of the roof. It does not burn, covers the roof with an even layer, for an effective warming layer of 50-100 mm is enough.

  

• Polyurethane foam. Modern insulation, which, using a special installation, is blown into the roofing pie, under the film. It is not flammable, has a low weight, is not afraid of water, retains its shape. Polyurethane foam has one unpleasant property - it does not breathe, therefore, without organizing forced ventilation, it will be wet in an attic insulated with it. For this reason, it is not used for thermal insulation of wooden buildings.

  

• Ecowool The best natural material based on natural flax fibers. The main plus of eco-wool is its ecological cleanliness, which other insulation materials cannot boast of. It is also blown out with the help of special equipment, evenly covering the roof slopes from the inside. Ecowool has a low thermal conductivity, light weight, resistance to wetting.

Sequence of work

The structure of the roof is called the roofing cake, as it consists of many layers that interact, complementing the useful qualities of each other. The following scheme reflects what it should be folded according to building codes:

1. Finishing material.
2. Ventilation clearance.
3. Poro-insulating membrane.
4. Insulation.
5. Waterproofing film permeable to steam, but stopping moisture coming in from the outside.
6. Ventilation clearance.
7. Roofing material.

It is more convenient to make the process of warming a mansard roof with your own hands during the construction phase. To determine the scope of work and the required amount of materials, a scheme is made. After that, proceed to weatherization.

• Before the roofing material is laid, the roof is waterproofed. To this end, a waterproofing membrane with an overlap of 10-15 cm is laid over the stripes. The rails of the counter-batten are fastened on top, they serve to form a ventilation gap.

  

• Mounted obreshetka, solid or lattice, depending on the type of roofing material. Continuous is made of moisture resistant plywood, and lattice of unedged boards. Roofing materials will be laid over their own hands as recommended by the manufacturer.

  

• After this comes the turn of the inner workings. Heater is unpacked, rolls are spread out so that it is finished. Make cutting, cut pieces of the necessary size. The width of the insulation is taken 2-3 cm more than the distance between the rafters, to install them on the back.

  

• Lay the canvas. Placed insulation between the rafters, press on the central part of the sheet, so that the edges are flattened. The width of the roll of insulation 120 cm, so the step between the rafters choose the appropriate: the full distance between the rafters or half, to make easier cutting.

  

• Steam insulating membrane. Fix it with a construction stapler with strips with an overlap of 10 cm. It is better to glue joints with adhesive tape.

  

• Adjust the crate of the rails with a width of 2.5-3 cm, on top of which the finishing material is mounted.

This process of thermal insulation of the roof with his hands ends. However, if the space of the attic floor will be used as a residential one, it is necessary to provide for the insulation of the gables and the floor. Then the warmed attic will be as comfortable as the ground floor rooms!

Video instruction

To better get acquainted with the process of warming the attic roof in practice, watch this video instruction.