Air Seal Attic Hatch

A home loses about 25 of its heat through the top floor ceiling due to the effect of hot air rising.

Air seal attic hatch. Carefully pull down the finish trim. Just put it back into place. When you re done sealing your attic bypasses push the insulation back into place with an old broom handle or stick as you back out of the attic. If your hatch rests directly on the moldings like ours did add 2 1 2 in wide stops around the opening.

The insulating material helps reduce heat transfer between the floor below and the attic. Sealing the attic hatch or door finish up by sealing the access hatch with self sticking weather stripping. The finished box is then fitted over the hatch opening on the attic side. This is a result of moist air leaking into your attic and then freezing when it hits your cold attic.

To properly seal your attic hatch also known as an attic door or scuttle hole at a minimum you should apply weather stripping and ensure the attic side of the attic door is insulated. Insulating and air sealing a leaky attic hatch will help stop drafts and it will make your home more comfortable and efficient. Air seal the trim the first step is air sealing the finish trim and enclosure around the attic hatch. If you re lucky this only causes heat loss in the winter and brings attic heat into the home in the summer.

In our ongoing series on air sealing we are going to focus on the dreaded attic hatch or as allison baile s of energy vanguard so eloquently calls it a mind blowing hole in your building envelope. Then finish up by sealing the access hatch with self sticking foam weatherstrip photos 10 and 11. Better yet there are high quality products such as the attic gator designed to both seal and insulate attic access doors and scuttle holes. My apologies for the lack of photos but you can surely imagine how it works glue layers of insulation to hatch.

Attic hatch covers are easy to install and help keep the air in the attic separate from the air throughout the rest of the home. How to insulate and air seal an attic access hatch. Once installed the attic access cover creates a tight seal around the hatch. The stops provide a wider surface for attaching the weatherstrip and a space to mount hook and eye fasteners.

Seal small gaps with caulk up to inch and expandable foam spray up to 3 inches. To guarantee a good seal i paired sash locks with a gasket of foam weather stripping around the frame of the attic hatch. It s easily removed and set aside whenever you need to access your attic. Once you seal the air leak with caulk or expandable foam it s not necessary to replace the insulation.

Finally seal the hatch door with adhesive foam weatherstripping. If your hatch rests directly on the moldings add 2 1 2 inch wide stops around the opening. Instead of crunching the numbers as he did one just needs to walk by one in a hallway during the middle of summer to know it isn t insulated.