Brrrrrrrr!
Our next door neighbors have a wonderful 2-story home with a big bonus room over the garage turned into a kids’ playroom. For their two elementary-school age boys, the playroom is perfect…4 to 5 months out of the year. In the summer, it’s unbearably hot. And in the winter, when kids need a place to play inside, it’s simply unusable because it’s so cold.
They’ve had the heating contractor out several times. Most recently the contractor recommended another entire heating and cooling system! Then on New Year’s eve, they hired an energy auditor who spied the problems with a thermal imaging camera: no insulation in the garage ceiling, poorly insulated exterior walls, conditioned air escaping through five recessed can lights…
Bonus rooms are a wonderful thing. But if your plans call for more than just turning these spaces into attic storage, talk with your builder about properly air sealing and insulating such spaces-especially if they are located over the garage or a porch.