Adding insulation to attic above garage

[bellbound]

I store lots of boxes in my attic located above the garage. It does not have insulation, and I am having it cleaned and I am thinking of also adding insulation to cool it off during summer and warm it up during winter. If I add insulation:

1. Could I still store boxes up there?
2. Would I need to wear a mask each time going up there to go into boxes?
3. Could the fibers from the insulation get into my boxes?
4. Would providing insulation over the attic make much difference with keeping it cooler during summer and warmer during winter?

Thanks!

 

[Snoonyb]

That depends on where you are located and what size framing members are there.

If you intend to use blown in there are no fibers, just dust at insulation.

If you are using batts, they are available incapsulated.

 

[zannej]

I'm no expert on this, but I believe you can add insulation to the underside of the roof (so long as you leave room to vent) and you can use batting on the flat surface above the ceiling of the rooms below. I think there is a product (probably more) that spans the joists that you can put down as a sort of floor so you can store stuff in your attic. Attic Dek is one of the brands for spanning joists for storage. It's sort of like a grate- has holes so it allows airflow.

 

[bellbound]

I am located in S. California.

1. Pardon my ignorance, but what is the framing member? I will likely not have the answer to this anyways...

2. Would blown in be the better option if I intend to store boxes up there?

3. What does it mean that the batts are incapsulated? Does that mean that all of the insulation is somehow enclosed in some type of cover to keep everything in it?

Thanks.

 

[Snoonyb]

Every wood piece used in the bones of the structure, is a framing member.

In the ceiling of a garage that is stick built there will be a framing member every 4' OC the ties the walls and rafters together. These will describe a ceiling plain, and depending upon the width of the garage, will be 2X6's.

If someone in the past has added to these to make the distance between them to be about 24" or 16", which is much more conducive to storage, it's been infilled.

If the roof framing in the garage is made up of trusses, they will have a specific spacing and because of the form of the truss, your storage will be far less organized, and the bottom member of the truss will probably be a 2X4 and the insulation will be limited to R-13.

Yes, Johns Manville has in the past had encapsulated batt product, and the encapsulation is breathable, but contains the fibers from becoming airborne.