I have a house from the 1950s and it originally didn't have any insulation in the attic, which caused my steel air ducts to sweat and made my home uncomfortable with inconsistent temperatures. I decided to insulate my attic with R38 insulation for about $2900, but now I'm facing humidity issues, and some folks on another forum are saying I got scammed. I'm really considering removing the insulation because I'm concerned about the chemical smell and potential mold. I thought insulation was supposed to improve comfort and furnace efficiency. Should I have this insulation removed, or is there a way to fix the issues? My attic has soffits, ridge vents, and baffles, and there's 2 feet of insulation covering my air ducts, which are still sweating. Here are some [pictures](https://imgur.com/a/vjLnPOU) to help.
3 Answers
Insulating your attic can be a great investment for comfort, but it sounds like you might need better ventilation. Are your soffit and ridge vents working properly? If insulation was added incorrectly, it can lead to serious moisture issues.
It sounds like your attic might have ventilation issues. Insulating an attic usually isn’t a scam, but what kind of insulation did you choose? Proper ventilation is key to preventing humidity problems.
Attic insulation is important, but it needs to be done right. If your ducts are sweating, they might need insulation themselves. It’s best if your ducts are on the conditioned side of the insulation to prevent them from getting cold and sweating. Just blowing in more insulation might not solve the problem if the airflow isn’t right.
Yeah, that’s what I was thinking. My ducts probably need to be wrapped properly, they could be leaking cold air into the attic.
I went with cellulose insulation. Just installed soffits and ridge vents, but I might need to check if insulation is blocking the airflow.