Insulation, Radiant and Vapor Barriers - prior rodent activity in the attic insulation
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brinainlakeelmo
03-27-08, 08:04 PM
Hello, I've been reading the archives looking for info on rodent droppings, urine, etc.
I've read conflicting info as to whether or not to remove damaged/ contaminated insulation in the attic.
The previous owner of my Minnesota rambler clearly shared her home (walls and attic & the space between the main level & the basemnent) with mice - and lots of them. The was never a seal on the garage door until the first week we lived here when I installed one. We have not seen any trace of current rodent activity, but I have found several traps, poison pellets, piles of feces, nests, skeletal remains and urine stains all through the attic, in walls that we've opened for renovation work and in the attic insulation.
I usually wear a carbon filtered respirator in the attic and did as well in the kitchen last summer, as well as had the windows opened with fans blowing out and hung sheets of poly taped over the doors to isolate the kitchen from the rest of the house while I had the walls & ceiling opened up.
Is it best to remove the insulation, or to minimize disturbance & add more as needed? In the kitchen last summer, I ripped out all of the sheetrock - walls and ceiling - and removed a good portion of the damaged insulation, replacing with poly and new batts, but to do the rest of the attic, from up above, seems like a lot of work, and would certainly create a lot of dust, some of whick would make its way into the house. I've ben updating the lighting, and have been careful to limit intrusion of attic air into the home by taping bags to the ceiling, surrounding the area, and cutting in holes, etc from up above.
Brian
I've read conflicting info as to whether or not to remove damaged/ contaminated insulation in the attic.
The previous owner of my Minnesota rambler clearly shared her home (walls and attic & the space between the main level & the basemnent) with mice - and lots of them. The was never a seal on the garage door until the first week we lived here when I installed one. We have not seen any trace of current rodent activity, but I have found several traps, poison pellets, piles of feces, nests, skeletal remains and urine stains all through the attic, in walls that we've opened for renovation work and in the attic insulation.
I usually wear a carbon filtered respirator in the attic and did as well in the kitchen last summer, as well as had the windows opened with fans blowing out and hung sheets of poly taped over the doors to isolate the kitchen from the rest of the house while I had the walls & ceiling opened up.
Is it best to remove the insulation, or to minimize disturbance & add more as needed? In the kitchen last summer, I ripped out all of the sheetrock - walls and ceiling - and removed a good portion of the damaged insulation, replacing with poly and new batts, but to do the rest of the attic, from up above, seems like a lot of work, and would certainly create a lot of dust, some of whick would make its way into the house. I've ben updating the lighting, and have been careful to limit intrusion of attic air into the home by taping bags to the ceiling, surrounding the area, and cutting in holes, etc from up above.
Brian