If you’ve ever pondered the question of how to insulate walls without removing the drywall, I’ve got all the solutions you need.
Insulating your walls is a necessity in most contemporary home constructions, with few exceptions. Not only does it enhance the comfort of your home, but it also leads to year-round energy cost reductions.
Regrettably, insulation was not as standardized in homes prior to the 1960s.
If you’ve noticed air leaks, drafts through your outlets, random cold spots, or persistently high energy bills, it may be time to inspect your insulation.
Uninsulated walls can place excessive strain on your HVAC system by causing it to regulate the temperature within a house with air leaks, which is especially problematic in older homes.
For many, the fear of updating insulation revolves around the drywall.
Adding insulation between your finished drywall and the exterior siding may seem like a process that involves removing your gypsum board, inserting roll after roll of wall insulation, and then completely redoing the interiors with boarding, mudding, sanding, and finishing. However, this is not necessarily the case.
Should You Retrofit Your Home’s Wall Insulation
Whether you reside in an older house, have noticed unusual cold spots, or are baffled by your high energy bills, you might be contemplating whether it’s worth retrofitting your home’s insulation.
Unfortunately, there is no definitive answer in the debate about adding insulation to your existing walls.
Having uninsulated or poorly insulated walls is not environmentally friendly due to heat loss, and it’s also unfriendly to your wallet.
However, the cumulative costs of removing your drywall, adding new insulation, and then reinstalling the drywall might be too financially burdensome to justify the fix.
Fortunately, not all insulation methods require the same amount of money, time, and effort as a complete interior overhaul of your home.
If you opt to retrofit your home’s insulation as a do-it-yourself project, you can save money in the short and long term.
The average U.S. household expends nearly half of its energy bill on the HVAC system and home heating and cooling. A well-insulated house or apartment can lead to significant energy bill savings for years.
Add Wall Insulation Without Removing Drywall
There are numerous insulation options available for your home’s walls that do not necessitate the removal of the drywall.
Most methods entail creating an access point into your wall cavities, often involving removing small sections of exterior siding and drilling small holes to allow the insulation to be sprayed into your walls.
The insulation installation process largely depends on the type of insulation you choose.
Inject Spray Foam Insulation
Spray foam insulation is the ideal choice for wall insulation with minimal damage to drywall or existing walls.
This material starts as a liquid and is sprayed into your wall cavities, expanding as it comes into contact with air. Its expansive nature makes spray foam insulation superior in insulating and air-sealing all voids within a wall cavity.
Spray foam insulation offers one of the easiest and most convenient methods for installing insulation in existing walls.
Unlike other insulation materials such as fiberglass, cellulose, and roll insulation, spray foam insulation can expand into hard-to-reach areas around protruding nails, wires, and boxes.
While professional installation of spray foam insulation is recommended, DIY kits for injection foam insulation are available.
Advantages
- Strong expansion properties enable spray foam insulation to reach areas that gravity-fed insulation cannot.
- Moisture, mold, and mildew-resistant properties make spray foam one of the best insulation options.
- High R-value makes spray foam insulation an excellent choice, even in the coldest climates.
Disadvantages
- Spray foam installation requires drilling holes into wall cavities that need to be patched.
Recommended Brands
- Touch n’ Foam
- Froth-Pak
- Tiger Foam
Loose-Fill Blown-In Cellulose Insulation
Loose-fill blown-in cellulose insulation combines recycled paper products with boric acid to create a fire and moisture-resistant insulation material.
Similar to spray foam insulation, loose-fill cellulose is installed by drilling small holes in interior or exterior walls to access wall cavities. However, loose-fill cellulose differs in terms of price and longevity compared to spray foam.
Advantages
- Cost-effective and affordable insulation material.
- Moisture, mildew, and pest-resistant.
Disadvantages
- Requires a vapor barrier in your home.
- Like most attic insulation, loose-fill blown-in insulation tends to settle over time, creating voids in walls and ceilings and resulting in higher energy bills.
Recommended Brands
- Greenfiber
- Applegate
- Insulmax
Fiberglass Batt Insulation Rolls
When you think of insulation installation, fiberglass batt insulation rolls are likely what come to mind.
Usually pink, these rolls of fiberglass or rock wool are unraveled to fit into your home’s wall cavities. This traditional insulation material, while not the easiest to work with, offers several advantages.
Advantages
- Cost-effective compared to other insulation materials.
- It can be a satisfying DIY project without the need for an expensive insulation contractor.
- Requires only a few simple tools.
- Provides maximum coverage when properly placed in an exposed wall cavity.
Disadvantages
- Labor-intensive.
- Can create a mess.
Recommended Brands
- Johns Manville
- Knauf
- Owens Corning
- Guardian
Blown-In Blanket Insulation (BIBS)
Cellulose insulation can take several forms. Blown-In Blanket Insulation, or BIBS, is a newly patented insulation type suitable for open or closed walls.
This method involves attaching fabric sheaths to studs and joists, creating a cavity into which cellulose insulation can be blown. This technique produces a dense insulation blanket that proves highly effective.
Advantages
- Certified BIBS materials do not absorb moisture, preventing mildew growth.
- BIBS insulation does not settle, maintaining its expanded size after installation, unlike other insulation materials that tend to settle.
Disadvantages
- Specialized system without do-it-yourself functionality may not be suitable for most homeowners to tackle on their own.
Recommended Brands
- CertainTeed
- Knauf
- Johns Manville
How To Insulate Walls Without Removing the Drywall Step by Step
The process of installing insulation into existing walls is referred to as retrofitting. It involves cutting access holes into the interior or exterior walls, blowing in loose-fill insulation, and then patching the holes.
With the right tools and knowledge, homeowners and ambitious do-it-yourself enthusiasts can successfully retrofit their homes, enhancing the R-value and energy efficiency of their homes.
As with any do-it-yourself project, experience plays a role in how smoothly the process goes and how effective the insulation is. You can add insulation to almost any of your home’s existing walls, attics, and crawl spaces.
1. Locate Wall Studs
The process of retrofitting insulation begins with finding the wall studs.
Because installing insulation requires access to your wall cavities, you must drill holes into your walls while avoiding the wall studs. A stud finder can be a cost-effective lifesaver for this step.
2. Find Plumbing Pipes and Electrical Wires
Similarly, before drilling into your house’s walls, it’s crucial to ensure that you are well clear of any plumbing or nearby electrical wires.
Drilling blindly into your walls could cause structural damage if you hit wall studs. Hitting pipes or electrical wires would be inconvenient at best and catastrophic for your home at worst.
3. Prep and Cover Your Work Area
Once you’ve determined the areas to avoid drilling holes in your walls, it’s time to prepare your work area.
Any drilling into drywall will generate a substantial amount of plaster dust, creating a significant mess. Move all furniture and household items at least 6 feet away from the drilling site.
Remove any wall decorations, posters, or framed items from the wall you’re working on. Afterward, cover your belongings, walls, and floors (anything that may accumulate drywall dust) with sheeting, canvas, or plastic to minimize cleanup later.
Ensure that you have the appropriate protective gear for drilling into your drywall and blowing insulation, as the process can generate dust. Be sure to wear eye protection and a dust mask before drilling.
4. Drill Holes Through Drywall at Interior Walls
Once you’ve located the plumbing, electrical, and wall studs within your finished walls, you can begin drilling small holes into your drywall.
If possible, save the drywall discs from the holes you cut into your wall. These can be used to patch the holes once the insulation is blown in.
If you can’t save the drywall discs, use suitable material or sheathing to plug the hole or a combination of drywall tape and mud to secure the hole after the insulation is blown in.
5. Spray Foam Insulation Into Wall Cavity
After you’ve made holes in each stud cavity you want to insulate, you can inject spray foam insulation into them.
Spray foam insulation is designed to fill all areas it is sprayed into, expanding into hard-to-reach areas around joists and studs.
6. Patch Holes
Once you’ve injected foam insulation into your walls, it’s time to patch the small holes created during the process. If you have a tool that allows you to save drywall discs, those are perfect for patching.
If you cannot save drywall discs for later, use materials like rigid foam or styrofoam plugs to patch the holes. Insert the material into the small holes in the drywall to plug them, apply drywall tape to secure the plug in place, and then apply mud to create a smooth surface.
7. Paint Wall
Allow the mud to dry over the patched holes in your walls. The final step is to paint over them to match the color of your walls.
You are finished when your walls are even and painted to your satisfaction. Enjoy your newly insulated and more energy-efficient home.
Resources: Finishing Drywall Systems – USG
tag: # How to Insulate Walls Without Removing the Drywall
