I'm Moving Out!

Hey Pixie, nice place you got there I'm happy for ya girl.

I do a lot of construction work at my city job and if ya got anyquestions email me. As for eth fiberglass insulation thats falling, simply use a staple gun and staple it back up, unless its torn, if its torn replace that section, then cover it with a interior vapor barrier, and whatever wood or drywall you want to put there.
 
Wait, you mean fiberglass that can have staples go through it?
I had a totally different fiberglass in mind.


99% of all fiberglass insulation sold in the US had a thick paper backing on it so that it can be stapled into place.

Pixie tell Sarah not to be afraid of a staple gun, they are safe as long as you hold them firmly against what your stapling
 
Congratulations! Though to my mind houses in America are funny - they often look like the walls are all paper ;). In Germany houses alwas look very thick and dark and strong, well most of them survived two world wars ;). The building I live in now is probably older than the USA itself ^^.
Have fun with your own kingdom! Hope there's a guest room in case of me visiting the US ;).
 
Congratulations! Though to my mind houses in America are funny - they often look like the walls are all paper ;). In Germany houses alwas look very thick and dark and strong, well most of them survived two world wars ;). The building I live in now is probably older than the USA itself ^^.
Have fun with your own kingdom! Hope there's a guest room in case of me visiting the US ;).


And THAT is why Germany is world known for quality in building ANYTHING
 
Pixie, I am SO happy for you!

As for the fiberglass insulation:

As you all know, I am a contractor by trade.

What Wolfen is talking about, Dale, is the paper backing that goes towards the living area. That paper is 2 inches wider than the insulation itself on each side, and that is what gets stapled to the studs/joists. In other words, you're not stapling the fiberglass itself, you're simply stapling its paper backing to the wood members it runs between. We don't use actual staple guns - we use what is called a tack hammer (or a staple hammer): you swing it like a hammer, and it embeds a staple. These are also used for roofing felt paper.

312SZW1C3WL._SL500_AA280_.jpg


Dale -

What you are talking about is referred to as a batton. No, not a baton! You don't want to get caught on one of MY job sites twirling a girl's toy. :shock:

Batton is simply a word that describes a piece of backer material that runs the lateral, exposed side of a roughed-in wall, usually used to fur out a wall's hanging surface. It is not to be confused with actual backer material, which we call "meat," that is used inside the wall as a supporting member to secure itmes to, such as handrails, cabinents, and et cetera. Normally, batton boards are a 1x4 (which is actually a 3/4 by 3 3/4) that are secured to the joists/rafters to hold the insulation up, because gravity will eventually tear the paper the staples go through. Ergo, we use battons instead of staples when we have to hang insulation on the horizontal, such as what Miss Pixie has shown us.

Pixie:

Easy fix, young lady!

Measure the width of the attic. Then buy enough Pine 1x4 to span that width every 2 feet plus 1.

For instance, let's say that your attic is 30 feet long and 10 feet high.

Ten feet high divided by two feet is five. Add one to make six. You need 6 boards per their length divided by the span. If your 1x4's are 8 feet long, you'll need:

Lu = {[H / 2 + 1][W(L)]}

All this says is the the needed Lumber is equivalent to the Height divided in half plus 1, multiplied by the product of the Width times the Board Length (that is sold at your local store, which is usually 8, 10 or 12 feet).

If you wanted to buy the wood in 8-foot lengths, then just plug in the variables, solve the brackets, and viola!

Lu = {[10/2 +1][(30)(8)]}

Lu = [5 + 1](240)

Lu = 6(240)

Lu = 1,440

So, you need 1,440 linear feet of material.

To determine pieces, you'd divide by the length you've selected: 8 feet, in this case.

1440 / 8 = 180

You need 180 pieces of 1x4 lumber to fill this task.

HOWEVER, you have to account for the cutoff.

That is, 30/8 = 24. That's not 30. So that cutoff will make up a LOT. 30 - 24 = 6.

The leftover from each piece will serve as a fill:

You have 6 feet of leftover material per board that spans the 30' width.

180/6 = 30

You have 30 extra boards. 180 - 30 = 150.

You need 18 boards.
 
Congratulations! Though to my mind houses in America are funny - they often look like the walls are all paper ;). In Germany houses alwas look very thick and dark and strong, well most of them survived two world wars ;). The building I live in now is probably older than the USA itself ^^.
Have fun with your own kingdom! Hope there's a guest room in case of me visiting the US ;).


hehe yeah my house was build in 1938, it survived a bomb explosion nearby in 1943 and it still stands nice and firm :)
 
That's cool, the whole thing about the fiberglass.

I had something more like this in mind:
PICT1372.jpg

Because I used to live in pretty sh*tty places under the stars and rain leakage.
 
The black boards in your picture are battons. Exposed battons, but battons. When exposed, we refer to them as trim, such as chair rails, corner beads, and etc.

Unless she is going to allow the attic to be exhibited as a living area, she only needs knotty pine as a supporting area for the insulation (which, at typical R-13, only weighs 1 pound per 14 feet at a 24" span).

That's cool, the whole thing about the fiberglass.

I had something more like this in mind:
PICT1372.jpg

Because I used to live in pretty sh*tty places under the stars and rain leakage.
 
Congratulations! Though to my mind houses in America are funny - they often look like the walls are all paper ;). In Germany houses alwas look very thick and dark and strong, well most of them survived two world wars ;). The building I live in now is probably older than the USA itself ^^.
Have fun with your own kingdom! Hope there's a guest room in case of me visiting the US ;).

...well we have a futon upstairs. :) (And Shawna might want to keep you, especially if you are tall...she wants to get a man for around the house. You can stay in the closet when we don't need you). LOL.

Hahaha, and don't get me started on the walls. That is my personal annoyance in that house (and Shawna's too). The walls are in rough shape.


p.s. Maybe sometime this year I'll get some more pictures up.

So far we have the upstairs, my bedroom and the living room finished. We have to sterilize the cupboards soon and then start moving dishes etc, in. Then paint the bathroom and we are done!
 
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We finally have internet so I'll post some more pictures of what the house looks like now and I'll be around here more often! Yay!
 
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