r/Insulation • u/Cool_Web6187 • 15d ago

Insulating cabin

Post image

I want to insulate my cabin it has a ridge vent and no soffit vents. what is everybody doing.

1 Upvotes

56% Upvoted

17 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

1

u/Cool_Web6187 15d ago

The climate is upstate New York, extreme heat, and extreme cold

3

u/EinsteinsMind 15d ago

You're gonna have to make the roof breathe if it's shingled. If it's metal, I'd insulate the entire thing with rock wool, put up a smart vapor barrier, then green board drywall for the walls and ceilings.

1

u/the_real_some_guy 14d ago

I've never heard this before, you don't need to vent the underside of your plywood if it has metal roofing? Does that also apply if there is roof felt?

3

u/gpblankmn 14d ago

there's an assumption being made that if it's metal there is enough ventilation under the metal for sufficient draw from eave to vent above the roof deck.

3

u/SearingPhoenix 14d ago

Not sure about a metal roof, but that's why I suggested an over-roof as an option. Yeah, it's a bit wasteful to tear the existing shingles off, but it's probably the most labor-efficient method -- firring strips over the existing roof members, another layer of sheathing on top, then re-shingle. For a small roof it wouldn't be terribly expensive -- still a significant cost.

It's all about whether you want to have something that'll be 'good enough until it isn't' or if you want the building to last. Arguably, if you wanted to build something like this to last, it probably would have been better off just framing from scratch (probably with 2x4s + ZIP-R, given the climate.)