Improper Air Sealing in Cumberland, RI
Challenge
This homeowner lived in a condo with major ice damming issues. Their roof was leaking into their daughter’s bedroom on the second floor and all the way down to main floor ceiling. They had problems a few years back and had some ventilation people in to help, but that didn’t solve the problem. The problem was air leakage and the duct work in the attic causing the attic to heat up and snow to melt. This also caused a higher amount of humidity in the attic, which was evident due to the dark stains around the nails. The previous company just blew insulation over old batt insulation to give her more r value. It was a like putting a bandaid on a broken limb.
Solution
The best thing to do in this situation would be to remove the insulation, air seal the attic floor, encapsulate the hvac duct system, and then insulate. She was very lucky she had proper ventilation, or she would have mold all over the attic!