Insulating Skirting

[maurtee]

Can I insulate behind my skirting to make my house warmer?

[Mark]

Hi,

Using styrofoam is the cheapest way to insulate. You can buy it in 4x8 sheets of various thickness and cut to fit.

On my home, I used 8" thick fiberglass insulation. It came encased in plastic. I installed mine before I installed my new skirting, but the concept is still the same.

First I put down some narrow strips of styrofoam on the ground. I used long nails to keep them in place. Most of my styrofoam was my old thermo skirting cut into strips.

Then I took the insulation and nailed it to a 2x2 that was added at the top. I used roofing nail gun to make quick work. Before I nailed, I bunched up the plastic wrap so it won't tear out.

Below are a couple pics.

Ever since I have added the 8" fiberglass insulation, underneath my home has never dropped below freezing, and I live in artic South Dakota. During the winter my floors are warmer and I believe my heat bill is less. Since it doesn't freeze underneath my home, I no longer have frost heave issues. When you do insulate, you still need vents although I only opened mine during the warmer months.

Mark

[Mark]

Since I mentioned venting, what I did was add 7 doors for getting underneath my home. Best decision I ever made. During the warmer months, I remove the door and put in screens. See pics below.

Mark

[Greg S]

Mark

I have had numerous discussions regarding insulating under a home. Some swear by skirting insulation without any under floor insulation. They argue that there is a benefit gained in warmth from the ground that would be otherwise partially blocked by insulating the floor if the skirting is also insulated.
They site the case of a conventional home on a crawl space having a dirt floor with a vapour barrier. The perimeter of the crawl space is insulated and the crawl space is actually heated with no insulation in the floor above.
Living in Ontario with it's cold winters I am curious about your opinion and those of others on this subject. Do we have any home insulation specialists on this site.

[marjiilew]

Hi Mark:
I was reading about the insulation behind your skirting and looking at the pictures.....I was wondering if you have vapour barrier or some other material on the ground underneath your unit?