Ok. Son's room is over the garage. It isn't COLD, but it is a few degrees cooler than the rest of the upstairs and his closet (no vent) is icy cold. So we decide, with all of our TimTheToolMan skills to fix the problem.
Hubby cuts a hole in the garage ceiling and immediately identify the problem. Our builder did not install the insulation correctly. It is in the right spot, with the vapor barrier towards the living space, but it is laying on the drywall of the garage ceiling instead of flush against the wooden floor above it. So the air circulating is against the floor of son's room and sucking the heat out.
We decide the proper solution is to cut a series of holes in the ceiling, push the insulation up to where it is supposed to be, and fill in the void beneath it w/blown insulation, to hold it up there. Good plan.
So, Saturday night, hubby goes to Lowes'. Puts the bundles of blown insulation into his cart. Reads sign posted that you rent the hopper to blow the insulation at the cusotmer service desk for $20 per day. Great.
Goes to customer service desk:
Hubby: I'd like to rent the hopper for blowing insulation.
Lady: we don't rent those
Hubby: ?
Hubby: there's a sign in the aisle?
Lady: it's wrong, we don't rent those...
Finally, the other guy at the desk says "yes we do" and sets him up...stupid idiot.
Ok - hubby goes out to garage to do the deed while I watch son. Comes in in a huff and grabs trash bags and slams door. ???
An hour later sticks head in the door and says could I please come out when son is asleep??? Sure...
Fast forward - son sound asleep.
I go out to garage...Yikes! There's insulation everywhere (and on my truck that hubby didn't move out of the garage first) and holes in the ceiling. Apparently, he's up on the ladder blowing insulation when the cavity fills up and by the time he gets down to turn the hopper off, it's blown back down and all over the place! Egads!
So I change into icky clothes and put on a face mask. He explains what we're doing.
Fill hopper full and get started.
Hopper so full the rotor can't turn and send the insulation out tubing.
Take some insulation out of hopper and put into garabage bag for later...make sure to drop plenty in the water on the garage floor (from driving truck in snow, parking it in garage, and the snow melting off).
Start hopper again. Do one floor cavity worht.
Notice no insulation coming out of tubing. Spend an hour locating glob in tubing and getting it out. Realize that is why tubing has lots of holes covered in duct tape.
The hopper and bales of insulation were made by the same company. You would think, therefore, that 1 bale would fit in the hopper. Not so much. The most efficient thing to to is put bale into garbage bag, cut it open. Close bag and mash until baled insulation is nice and fluffy, not block-like. Then put 1/2 of bag into hopper (also messy, once it's light and fluffy).
Did 1/2 the garage Saturday night and 1/2 Sunday night. Son's room is nice and warm now.
I have 3 loads of insulation coated clothes to wash. (after I beat them outside to get the majority of insulation OFF of them).
The joys of home ownership.
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