Insulating a PWF wood sleeper floor
rainyriver99
| Posted in Energy Efficiency and Durability on
I’m planning a new home. I am going to use a PWF wood foundation and a PWF wood sleeper floor.
I have read about different ways to insulate this type of basement floor; blown cellulose, rigid foam, sprayed foam, etc. I am comfortable with other aspects of preparing for and building the PWF structure, but am interested in opinions as to the most practical, efficient and cost effective way to insulate this type of floor.
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Replies
Thomas,
My review of the design guidelines for Permanent Wood Foundations shows that the design specification is silent on the question of basement floor insulation.
I'm not a fan of this type of foundation. If I had to choose an insulation method for this type of floor, I would probably advise the installation of a continuous horizontal layer of rigid foam insulation above the plywood subfloor, followed by a second layer of plywood or OSB.
Thank you Martin. I hadn't considered that option but it sounds promising. I'll do some checking into that. On that thought, do you have any experience with insulated hydronic floor panels such as Amvic or Creatherm, and if so what are your thoughts on that approach to insulating and heating the floor?
Thomas,
I'm not a fan of in-floor hydonic heat. For more information on this topic, see All About Radiant Floors.