Attic insulation - before

So I went up into the attic to check out the insulation status. This was because the energy audit we paid for said our attic insulation was only R-35. Charles and the insulation contractor said that it was R-40 (I had asked for R-50 or better but Charles said a good vapour barrier made anything more than R-40 a waste of money). Well, I didn't buy it then and I don't buy it know.

We bought a bunch of cellulose blow-in insulation a while ago. This is what the coverage chart from Home Depot says in terms of "blown inches" (after installation) and "settled inches" (after cellulose has had a chance to settle down):

R-32 9.4 8.4
R-40 11.8 10.5

With that information in the back of your mind, here are the photos.

This photo is above the closet by the great room, and shows a large hole (I could put my hand through it) where the electricians roughly made a hole for the wire. You can also see condensation in there because the cold air can enter the space and condense the warm inside air against the cold plastic. You can also see there is absolutely no insulation against that plastic....


This photo is looking south along the front wall of the house. You can see the soffits on the right, and in the center you can see the top of the wall. The solid plywood wind barrier should have been in line with the outside of the outside wall, or right above the 2x12 (which is a bit weathered, beside the new looking 1x4 strapping).


For this photo, you need to know that the solid plywood wind barrier is 1 foot tall (almost everywhere). You can also see the trussesin this photo, which are made of 2x4 and 2x3. If R-40 of insulation was installed according to the table form Home Depot, then only 1 1/2" of plywood should be showing - and clearly there is a lot more visible....


I said the wood barrier is 1' tall almost everywhere. In this location, it is only 11" tall. Not such a big deal, but the insulation on the other side is about 3" - 3 1/2" below the top of the wood, which means that there is 7 1/2" - 8" of insulation. According to the Home Depot table, that makes it less than R-28...

Losers and liars.... that describes the builder and the insulation contractor...