Insulating a house

[Aklogcabin]

We're building a new house. I'm following a process developed by the cold weather research center, university facility. Since we're doing a slab. Hydronic in floor heating. We don't have natural gas so fuel oil fired. The boiler will do hot water also. We have frequent power outages so we will put an oil drip stove in that looks like a wood stove burning. Generator backup.
Insulation. 2 layers of R-10 ridgid foam. R-20 under the slab. 2" foam around the outer perimeter including 4' horizontal from the cement. Just under the soil. Also have non wicking base gravel, D-1 under the slab. So no availability for frost with no moisture.
Walls will have 5-1/2"of closed cell spray urethane. Reflextix Insulation wrap for a thermal break. And 3/4" closed air space. Pine board siding with chinking between the boards laid edge to edge to look like a log cabin. R -62 blown in cellulose in the lid.
Looking for suggestions on how to make it better insulated. I will have humidistats in the bathroom fans to control moisture if needed. Probably have some type of fresh air, make up air, to help control an even air balance.
Thanks folks I appreciate it

 

[zoomzoom]

Looking for suggestions on how to make it better insulated.

Dang. In my book, what you're doing is already SERIOUSLY insulated.
Is your oil burner going to be inside or outside?
Where I am (cold but not as cold as you), we don't like to insulate as tightly. We allow a little air in to keep the air pressure the same as outside. E.g. when running the wood stoves, dryer or anything else that sucks air out of the house, you need some air to come back in so you don't have negative air pressure inside which makes it where things can't vent properly.

 

[Aklogcabin]

Thanks z z . The drip stove will be in the living room and the boiler in the utility room. I will use bath fans with humidistats in them to control moisture. And frresh make up air will be from 3 " pipes in the wall to. The bottom facing inside, top out side air. The heat stacking inside the pipe keeps the draft down but allows for a balanced air system. Also return air chambers from the vaulted cieling over 14' down to the floor area inside the house with fans to keep the air moving
I figured with the price of heat that I can amoratize my investment fairly quickly with the best insulating envelope in can do.

 

[Caribou]

Every burner manufacturer makes box, or other adapter so that you can bring outside air directly to your burner without mixing it with the warm inside air. You neck down from your 3" to whatever size the manufacturer has on the adaptor. I used a flexible dryer vent hose to run it so tha it was easy to remove when I was doing maintenance. this way you are not running air up your chimney that you have paid to heat. I had a heating business in Bethel for several years.

 

[Aklogcabin]

Good morning. So our new house is finally moving along again, covid sucked, and no carpenter's available to hire. Finally got the roof finished.
So I ended up with this plan for insulation. The 2x6 walls will have r-19 rockwool, sound n fire insulation. Then covered with 6mil visqueen sealed with acustic butyl caulk on all edges n corners.
2" pinkboard r-10 ridgid insulation over the vapor barrier. 1x3 pink furring installed horizontally, 5 rows. Bottom of wall, top, middle, middle of the middle. Then 1x3s installed vertically on the studs, 16"oc. Using 7 " long timberlock screws.
This will create an open run behind the vertical 1x3s to run the electrical wires n water lines. Sheetrock over the top.
Outer walls are 1/2" plywood over the studs. Tyvex and 1x2 furring strips installed on the studs. Creating a rain wall and an open air space. Bug screen on the ends. Pink board siding.
20" of blown in cellulose insulation in the attic will be near
r-70.
I'm nearly ready to install our Kuma classic oil drip stove and get some heat n dry things out before insulation. Hopefully get the in floor heating fired up to to help dry out the slab.

 

[Caribou]

If you put your rigid foam on the inside of the house it is more effective. Heat travels in waves. Heat travels faster through fiberglass than through foam insulation. It takes time to change speeds. When the heat passes through the fiberglas it hits the foam and it slows down but it takes time. If the heat passes through the foam it takes time to speed up to the fiberglas speed making the fiberglas more effective.

 

[Biggkidd]

We're building a new house. I'm following a process developed by the cold weather research center, university facility. Since we're doing a slab. Hydronic in floor heating. We don't have natural gas so fuel oil fired. The boiler will do hot water also. We have frequent power outages so we will put an oil drip stove in that looks like a wood stove burning. Generator backup.
Insulation. 2 layers of R-10 ridgid foam. R-20 under the slab. 2" foam around the outer perimeter including 4' horizontal from the cement. Just under the soil. Also have non wicking base gravel, D-1 under the slab. So no availability for frost with no moisture.
Walls will have 5-1/2"of closed cell spray urethane. Reflextix Insulation wrap for a thermal break. And 3/4" closed air space. Pine board siding with chinking between the boards laid edge to edge to look like a log cabin. R -62 blown in cellulose in the lid.
Looking for suggestions on how to make it better insulated. I will have humidistats in the bathroom fans to control moisture if needed. Probably have some type of fresh air, make up air, to help control an even air balance.
Thanks folks I appreciate it

Be careful my father built a house that was so tight it almost killed them. You can over do it on sealing a place up.

 

[Aklogcabin]

Thanks folks. I am building this house tight. But will have fresh make up air that I can control.
I've never seen or heard of anyone putting ridgid insulation on the inside of the walls. So a first for me. But I do understand the science behind it. I think. I enjoy the feedback to.

 

[SheepDog]

Foam is the most efficient insulation you will find. There are a few drawbacks with it though.
1. insects love to make their nests in it - especially carpenter ants.
2. use closed cell foam so it doesn't saturate with moisture. The open cell foam is like a sponge.
3. rodents will eat their way through it so don't have any holes or spaces in your walls or floors that give them access.
4. the foam will melt and shrink if you have a fire long before the wall burns. Be prepared to replace it after any fire.

When I chose insulation for my shop and garage I gave a few points of insulation value and used Rock wool. I had 2x6 walls so I am still well insulated. Tight enough that the first winter I kept the shop warm using the fluorescent lights. I now use a mini-split system (heat pump) to heat and cool both the shop and garage.

 

[Caribou]

Thanks folks. I am building this house tight. But will have fresh make up air that I can control.
I've never seen or heard of anyone putting ridgid insulation on the inside of the walls. So a first for me. But I do understand the science behind it. I think. I enjoy the feedback to.

A friend of mine was a contractor in Fairbanks. He built a subdivision, used various insulation designs, tracked their energy usage, and this was the most efficient.

 

[SheepDog]

Yep! if the R value is the prime concern then spray foam is the answer. Next comes rigid foam, fiberglass mat followed by rock wool.

 

[Biggkidd]

Where does straw bale come in? I know it's supposed to be good.

 

[SheepDog]

Straw bales are good because they are 2 feet thick. They only keep their insulation properties if they are sealed on the outside to keep the sun off and the water out. Unlike most insulators they can produce heat as they decompose. On the down side they only last 3 years if they are exposed to the weather.