Vented attic, winter ice dams and need to place AC in attic
Kingfisher
| Posted in GBA Pro Help on
I’m in a quandary. I live in the Boston area and my 50’s Cape is super ice dam prone. Attic is vented. I need to get AC but the only place to put it is the attic. I really don’t want to go the spray foam route. Do I have any good options??
GBA Detail Library
A collection of one thousand construction details organized by climate and house part
Search and download construction details
Replies
Kingfisher,
This article has five cathedral ceiling assemblies to choose from, three of which have no spray foam.
https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/article/five-cathedral-ceilings-that-work
I hate old half story building as such the smart move is to sell this energy hog as fast as possible. No matter how much time and money you lavish on this sows ear it will never be a silk purse.
OK those word fell on deaf ears but I had to say them.
Before you condition your attic understand a conditioned attic will only be marginally better than the current situation. If spray foam is off your list then sheet foam on top of the roof will work.
“Attic is vented” Clearly not enough to keep the roof below freezing. Keep the heat out of the attic and or ventilate more.
“I need to get AC but the only place to put it is the attic.” Seems to me there is a world of options you have chosen to reject the others because this one seems easy. Ductless, basement and dropped ceiling are all possible.
Walta