Cooling the attic?

14 years ago

Hi.

I recently purchased a 1925 home in Southwest Virginia. It's approx 2100 square feet on the two main floors. The heating (radiators) and cooling (heat pump) seem to work fine on these floors. The basement is semi-finished but seems to stay warm enough in the cold and not too hot so far. The attic, however, is another issue.

Someone started finishing the walk-up attic in this house - there is an extra bathroom (tub only, no shower) up there. It's quite charming with sloped ceilings and a huge deep old-fashioned tub. My kids love bathing up there as do I. Since it turned warm, however, the room is too muggy for evening baths. There are two other spaces framed out, and some closed-off storage (where the heat pump air handler is) and some open storage as well (you can see the insulation, rafters, etc). I was hoping to use one of those rooms for a jewelry studio. But I am dismayed to find this space with some really cool potential is basically going to be unusable half the year.

This is new territory for me, so please make suggestions as well as weighing in on the options I am pondering.

1. Put a window unit in the bathroom. Not super desirable but would consider. Also would consider a "portable" ac unit.

2. Finish out the walls and flooring of the attic space, and either try to increase the ducts to this space (really don't think this will cut it and may put too much strain on the system) or put in one of these mini-split ductless systems I have been reading about.

I am definitely open to other ideas. Should I call a HVAC guy out to assess the situation and give recommendations? I am having a contractor friend come look at it to give me suggestions but he will be the first to say he's not an HVAC person.

I want to try to achieve comfortable temps without spending the world on this as I am a single mom with two young children. On the other hand, I don't want to do a "quick fix" that I am then going to throw more money at down the road.

Thanks for your help!!!

Kara

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Comments (4)

coppercoil
14 years ago
Being no expert either, I would say call several HVAC guys out.

We are working on a similar project, and having people out really helped educate me on what direction to go in. You are not wasting their time, you are giving them an opportunity to bid for business (the fact that you learn something is a bonus).

Just be very clear that you are on a limited budget and that cost is as important as performance. Who knows, the system you have may be oversized and may be able to deal with the additional load efficiently... then the only question is engineering new supply/return air duct work to the upper level.

Oh, most codes require that bathrooms have either an extractor fan or a window - so (if you are pulling permits) a velux window may be the most economical option...
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coppercoil
14 years ago
http://www.dsireusa.org/incentives/homeowner.cfm?state=VA&re=1&ee=1

Here is a link that might be useful: DSIRE Incentives in VA
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kararobin
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks for your info!
I had a friend who is a contractor take a look and he figured out (I felt sort of stupid!) that the three vents cut into the attic rooms were closed on the duct side. He opened them and it felt cooler immediately.
I am going to see how that pans out and also call in a local HVAC company to service and check the existing system. And give me an opinion on how well the current AC will work in the attic.
After talking with my friend, I also realized the need to re-insulate the attic area regardless of the air situation. I guess time with tell how those measures would work and then I can decide how to proceed and what I need.
Thanks again and further suggestions/thoughts are welcome.
Kara
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energy_rater_la
14 years ago
the thing about conditioning rooms in the attic is that the temp in the attic is much more extreme than outdoor temps.
here in the south in the summer attic temps reach 130 degrees (and higher)
insulating walls shared with conditioned space and attic space helps, but installing a foil/foam sheathing board
over the insulation with the foil facing into the attic space will do two things. foil will reflect the heat back into the attic, instead of allowing it to transfer into the
conditioned space. foam sheathing will help to minimize air infiltration from attic into conditioned space, and insulation in walls will perform as spec'd.
caulking the foam/foil sheathing boards will also
help to minimize air leakage.
if you can stop the air movement from attic into cond. space
it will be much more affordable to heat and cool, and comfort will be easier to achieve.

air sealing would be done before adding additional insulation to attic floor.

best of luck.
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