Insulation Be-Gone

Well, here’s the original attic insulation - bagged in big contractor bags and piled in the driveway. There are multiple piles because we need to stagger their pickup over the next few weeks (if we put out all the bags at once they won’t pick them up and will tell us we need a dumpster).

All the bags came out the window so it wasn't tracked through the house.

Mike took lots of safety precautions when handling the insulation - goggles, several high quality respirator face masks that were replaced as needed, long elbow gloves, long pants and long sleeves. It was still really gross and a huge hassle. It’s why we didn’t really want to get rid of it in the first place… but it was the right choice. I’ve been glossing over our whole decision process, but we talked to a pro, neighbors and did a lot of research. While fiberglass insulation doesn’t go bad, there are times when it needs to be replaced. Under the layers dirt, debris and cardboard we found evidence of insect and animals from long ago. Once we started paying attention and pulling things up, we discovered even more problems - like some sections were missing a vapor barrier altogether or worse, were a combination of thin pieces of wall insulation and cardboard. Old house syndrome.

Now we have a clean slate and can put in the right kind of insulation and the right kind of vapor barrier and feel good knowing that we won’t have to worry about this again.