Insulating a 1913 brick veneer home exterior walls
I have a 1913 brick veneer home with now insulation on exterior walls. I live in Saint Paul MN for a climate reference. I have zero interest in removing walls down to studs for most of the home so blown in insulation is the only option. However I’m concerned about moister issues after blowing in insulation. Here is a description of the exterior wall construction from outside to inside.
1. Brick
2. air gap
3. 3/4 inch wood sheathing
4. 2 by 4 framing
5. layer of plaster
6. air gap
7. interior plaster wall.
Looking for advise. What is the best material to blow in that will improve r value but will not cause moister damage to the home. Thanks.
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Replies
For a similar old house (balloon framed brick vaneer), I dense packed the studs with cellulose.
You have to be careful with some of the older bricks that are very soft as you could end up with spalling down the road. There is no easay way to quantify this, always a risk with insulation retrofits.
You also have to take care of your window and door flashing details as these are none existent in older houses. The best bet is to do full window replacements first before insulating and flash the new windows properly. If this is not in the cards, you can do your best to flash on the outside or even skip insulating the bays under the windows.