I'm dealing with a cinder block house in Arizona, and one of the rooms gets uncomfortably warm because it has a large exterior wall. The outside wall is about 5 degrees warmer than the walls inside the room. I'm considering building another wall right up against the existing drywall and then insulating and dry-walling it. Is it better to remove the old drywall first, or can I just build the new wall in front of it without taking the old one down?
3 Answers
It sounds like the drywall is nailed to furring strips on the cinder block wall. If that's the case, it would be best to take the existing drywall off, build a new frame offset from the current one (this helps create a thermal break), and then you can move your electrical outlets forward and add insulation properly before putting up new drywall.
You might want to think about adding some kind of exterior cladding and insulation instead of building another wall. It could really help stop the heat before it even reaches your cinder block wall.
If you're looking for a budget-friendly solution, you could try using sun shades like they did on military bases in hot regions. They're temporary and can be taken down in winter to let in heat. It’s far cheaper than building a whole new wall!