AtticFoil.com is part of www.ShopperApproved.com to get real unbiased opinions from customers on their real life experience using AtticFoil Radiant Barrier and feedback regarding their order experience, and results they have seen in their homes.
We asked our customers to spend a couple of minutes to help us promote AtticFoil.com to other potential customers. The response was pretty amazing. Over 100 customers replied and the phrase “Amazing” seems to be a common comment when describing the results.
Update: We now have over 1,000 unique reviews from our customers. Thanks for the feedback. Read more here www.ReviewAtticFoil.com. (01/21/2013)
Below is a comment form a customer in Hawaii.
Comment: Location: Kapolei, Hawaii (Oahu). Average temps 84 deg F. 50% humidity. Direct sun year round.
Shipping: Foil shipped by UPS as promised and on time. Expensive rates to Hawaii but well worth it.
My Attic: 30 x 70 footprint with a 5/12 pitch. Asphalt shingles. Cathedral ceiling with limited vertical crawl on the outboard slope. R-19 BATT insulation on gypsum fire rated 5/8″ drywall. I have a 5 ton central A/C system. All handler and ducting is in the attic. Ducting is combination of rigid/flex with foil barrier rated at R-6. There are about 300 2″ soffit holes around the house and a electric forced air 1600 cu ft/min gable exhaust fan set for 105 deg F. Average attic temp in the afternoon is 120+ deg F. Inside roof temp can get 130+ deg F. Gable fan runs about 4 hours in the afternoon.
My House: 1600 Sq ft inside insulated R-19 ceiling and R-13 walls. 12 foot cathedral ceiling. Single story. My A/C prior to installation ran about 4-5 hours per day. I keep the temp at 80 deg F. With no A/C the house internal temp will rise to 90+ deg F.
Installation: I did it myself over a course of about three weeks. I could only work in my attic during the early morning (about 4 hours). I installed 2500 sq ft foil in sheets of 8 – 12 feet lengths. An electric staple gun was a must. I used a Craftsman easy staple with 3/8″ staples. Used about 1600 staples. I did a hybrid install because of the cathedral ceiling.
I stapled high and laid on top of BATTS at the low points. Installation was challenging at times but not unmanageable by myself. Ed’s online Blog and instructional videos concise and clear.
The results: AMAZING!! After installation my attic space average afternoon temp is now less then 105 deg F. My gable fan has not run once since the complete install. My A/C runs about an hour per day and the inside temp will not rise above 84 deg F. I have front guest bedroom that receives the direct afternoon sun and was unbearable to be in. It now stays as cool as the rest of the house. My wife and I are amazed that this $500 investment has seen this kind of result.
I have been investigating ways to cool down the house for years but decided to get serious before the tax credit expired. Glad I did. You wont go wrong dealing with Ed Fritz and his company.
Dear Sir, are there any companies,in my area(Richmond, Va.),that install your products.
Sorry, I wish we had more people recommend.
Ed
I am looking for the type of foil you recommend and an installer in the KC area.
Dan
Dan,
You can purchase AtticFoil Radiant Barrier Here: http://www.atticfoil.com
At this time, I do not have any installers in your area to recommend.
Can plywood flooring be placed over the AtticFoil Radiant Barrier, or will it reduce it’s efficiency? Thanks Robert
Plywood can be placed OVER AtticFoil as long as you maintain an airspace on ONE side of the foil. If you “Sandwich” the foil between the flooring and the attic insulation, you no longer HAVE a radiant barrier, since you don’t have RADIANT heat. The three solids would become “one” with different conductive values. The foil would actually be the MOST conductive and in theory could actually INCREASE heat flow in/out.
Ed
I am investigating the same thing as Robert Knight. I recently purchased a home in the mountains of North Carolina and based on what I read, it would be best to put the foil on the attic floor. However, my concern is stepping through the foil if I have to work in the attic. I was thinking of putting down small sections of plywood to act as stepping spots.I could move some of the blown insulation below the top of the joists and perhaps add spacers on the joist to make an air gap. Good Idea?
Regards Rich Soucy
Rich,
It really depends on how MUCH access you want to the areas. The simplest way would be to put down a “catwalk” of 2″x4″ and then bury under insulation and put a seam right over it. Then, if you need to access it, just pull back the foil and walk down the middle on the 2×4. I also had one customer make a who “system” (very large home) using sets of two 2×6″ on their sides on top of the joists about 12″ a part. He then filled the space between the 2×6’s with insulation and then cut plywood into 1 ft by 8ft strips and put on top.
Ed
How thorough does the foil have to be laid down in order to see an improvement? I can’t easily get into the corners of my attic and was considering stapling to the rafters, then letting the foil hang down say a foot or so out of the corners and just attach to the flooring at that point.
Steve,
Your right on! Radiant barrier has a cumulative effect. You want to get as much coverage as possible, but don’t kill yourself on the difficult last little areas. What you may consider for the perimeters is taking two sheets of AtticFoil® Radiant Barrier and taping them together along the seam using foil air conditioning tape. This will give you an 8 ft wide piece. Then staple along the edge you can reach and use a pole to stick it back into the tight areas as far as possible. If you get the foil between the roof and the insulation it will help.
Wow. One ore question – I saw on your site.a hybrid install method. Is that as effective as the other methods? It certainly looks easiest with my roof.
It really depends. Stapling up is the MOST effective to keep out Summer heat gain, while laying over the insulation is the MOST effective at keeping Winter HEAT IN. The hybrid method works great and is especially useful for low-pitch roofs. Or as your earlier post mentioned, stapling up in the middle and letting it lay over the insulation to the sides. I always say do what is easiest.
My home, in Williamsburg, Va.,is five years old. It uses air conditioning and/or heating basically 12 months of the year. The heating/cooling unit is in the attic. The square footage of the home(one-level but with a room over the garage)is about 2500 and the living room area has a ‘flat’ pan-style cathedral ceiling. My ‘installer’ said he would blow in insulation to bring me up to R38, from R30, and install Ultramax Super R attic insulation. The plan sounded ‘great’ until he quoted me his ‘most economical’ price for the job, which guarantees a 25% energy savings, at almost….$6,000!!!! Am I out-of-touch with prices or do you too think this is a TAD hefty a price?
I am a retired widow on a fixed income and have to be very ‘careful’ with my ‘investments’. With the housing market so dreadful I might have to stay in this BIG house a few more years, so do you think this would be a good investment for me?
Ed,
I live in the Houston area and have been investigating radiant barriers to install. I would like to know if I installed the radiant barrier to my rafters along with laying radiant barrier on top of my insulation if this would have a cumulative beneficial result or would I just be wasting my time. What are your thoughts on this?
David
David,
I’ve had many customers install doing both methods with fantastic results. Installing over the attic insulation (in Houston) will have the biggest benefit in the Winter to help keep heat in. It will provide some additional benefit in the Summer. From a DIY perspective, I think the additional cost of material and labor (cheap for DIY) is usually worth it.
Your advise please: I bought a 1961 built 1500sqft so FL beach house. There is no insulation in attac or stucco walls. Do I need both radiant barrier and blown in insulation in attic? Any other advise. Thanks.
Bob,
Yes, you will want both radiant barrier and “regular” insulation. I’d install the AtticFoil® Radiant Barrier first, then add and R-30 value of insulation or better in the attic. The walls can be tricky. There are several “Drill & Fill” methods to get insulation inside the walls. I’d start with the attic, then (if needed) do the walls.
Hey Ed, I don’t have access to the attic and am planning on just stapling the foil on top of my roof on the outside. WIll the foil work as well on top of the roof and what other things should I look out for? Thanks,
-Blake
That is not a typical use of the AtticFoil® so you might be better off using a product specifically created for the outside elements. We have had some customers use the product in this way, and from our experience it works best if you create a system that will keep the foil a couple of inches ABOVE the roof; you want the foil up and away from water when it rains (over time this will cause the foil to get dirty and lose some of it’s effectiveness). If you want more information about this type of application, contact us at support@atticfoil.com.
Works great. I like it very well.
Ed, My name is Les Miller. I have been a energy efficient builder for 25 years. So much has changed since I built my first two homes. I am going back to the owners to update their home to today’s higher standards. Radiant barrier is probably the quickest payback. I am also doing low-e window films, reworking door sweeps and seals and where justified new higher SEER A/C units. Do you sell Attic/Foil radiant barrier? If so I would like a small sample to compare to foil that is available locally in Fort Worth, Texas. Thanks , Les Miller 817/475-6839, or Les@LesMillerHomes.com
Les,
Contact us at 1-800-595-8772 to request a sample.
How much would you recommend getting this in a home? I don’t understand fully what it is for. Email me please.
Jessica,
Take a look at the website, http://www.AtticFoil.com to find out more about How a Radiant Barrier Works and How to Install Radiant Barrier in an Attic. If you have any questions, call us at 1-800-595-8772 and press “2” for technical support; our phone lines are open M-F from 9am to 5pm CST.
Any installers near Plano, TX?
check out AtticFoil.com to look for installers – there is a link on the top menu bar on the right side.
I had your attic foil installed in June of 2011. I have alot of
boxes filled with decorations and things on top of the foil, There is plywood under the foil. Will the foil insulate as well where the boxes are sitting? Would it help if I elevated the boxes so they didn’t sit directly on the foil? Can I use this purchase as a tax credit for 2011? Thanks for your advice and help.
The areas where your boxes are making contact with the foil are not effective since the foil has no air gap between it and the plywood OR between it and the bozes. Yes, elevate the boxes so the total square footage of contact is diminished and you’ll be set up for better results.
For tax credits, the foil had to have been purchased and installed before December 31, 2011. This year (2012) there are currently no tax credits for radiant barrier or insulation products.
Ed
any installer in portsmouth,Virginia? I had an estimeas with the Home Energy Innovations Company $6500.00 for my 1400 sf. one floor house with the Ultramax Super R plus to fill up the R38 insulation.Would your guys will do better than that?
I don’t install the product, and I don’t have any installers that work for me. I know there are guys installing it in VA, so I’d recommend you do a Google search and see who comes up. Call and get some comparative quotes; at first glance it sounds high, but I have no idea what factors they are looking at for your space and the job. It is best to have someone who can be there to actually see what they are working with. Best of luck!
On a new home in Phoenix with concrete tiles over spaced roof battens, what is best and most effective way to install the foil? I can do any, on top of decking may be easiest and there will be an air space between the foil and the tile, staple to underside of rafters, or place over insulation. What would you suggest for best performance and ease of install?
The best way is under the battens, right before the roofing tiles. Check out this page for a video I made of this type of install, as well as tips and photos: Installing Radiant Barrier Under a Tile Roof
Before installing the Radiant Barrier Foil, I put a remote thermometer in the attic and started tracking the temperature. The afternoon temps were always about 20 degrees in the attic compared to outside. (this is from Texas. your afternoons may be cooler)
After the installation, the temp was down to about less than ten degrees hotter. I consider it a success.
During installation, I fashioned several snowshoe platforms for navigating over the fiberglass insulation in the ceiling.
cut a 4×8 piece of 1/4 inch plywood into 2×4 panels and back each one with 1×4’s. Cut hand-holes in each end. It seemed easier to move around the attic by lying on one panel and moving the other one.
Also, I have since replaced the roof and installed a ridge vent. I hope that this also makes a difference.
What would you say the cost difference using your installation as an example between doing this yourself as opposed to installation from a company?
Well, it really depends on what your time and effort are worth. For 2,000 sq ft of material you are looking at a cost of about $275-300 for material & shipping. Then you have to navigate the attic space to get it done. Installations can range anywhere from $0.25 a sq ft up to $3 or $4 a square foot (and I’ve seen higher). So really it depends on what you are looking at, if you’re willing and able to do it and what you would pay. Oftentimes the middle ground between doing it yourself or hiring a professional company is hiring a handyman or some college kids to get it installed for a price closer to a DIY project.
I tried to log into the the feedback site, but it didn’t work. I have had four months in the hot season in south Louisiana with just the second story installed. I checked for one month and it was hotter this year than last (temperature/weather history). Every month has had between 15 and 20% savings on the electrical power usage per day.
At this rate, my installation should pay for itself in about one to two years.
I installed stapling to the underside of the rafters. We have very good attic ventilation, and not much shading of the second story attic area.
I would suggest this product for a situation like ours.
Hello there ED
Its been a while since we talked and I did my install up in Sturgis South Dakota. I am the guy that installed your foil in all the interior walls and rafters of the house along with my son’s help of course. Nice you posted my pictures on your site. Its been two years now since I completed the job and here are the results of all the work, its unbelievable. Its a small house each floor is only 600 sq ft , two story. In 2012 I set my stat at 55 degrees and left end of October and Came back in may 1st 2013. It cost me $108.58 in electric, $139.73 in gas, run time of 280.7 of my Lenox forced air 95% heater I installed. This year as you know has been all time cold one. I set the stat to 50 degrees and left in the end of Sept.2013. So from Oct.13 to Feb 2014 I have $78.87 elec and $144.94 gas and 223.81 run hours so far. As I said (Unbelievable)
I have had 21 days since jan 2014 of -5 to -30 nights and most of the other ones just above freezing. I also put two data temp recorders in the house in winter so when i get there this year I will know just how much its been running per day. Well thanks for your help and a amazing product it really works and still keeping the bills down in Las Vegas in summer while i am away in Sturgis.
Thanks again Jerry
I installed 2000 sq ft of Attic foil in a Ranch style house, straight gable roof in Tampa Florida.
We installed in July and though the housewas without AC during an extesnsive roof repair, ceiling, and wall removal remodel, the house was relatively cool (like being in the shade, during the day. We installed new AC outlets, cleaned the AC system, sealed the ducts and the AC load was significantly cut by the Attic foil installation. The local electric util;ity was somewhat stunned we installed the foil, and offered us a credit for the increased blown insulation, some window replacements, and some exterior wll insulation. But no credit for the AtticFoil. The same utility told me toscrap the metal duct system since it was old. We sealed the ducts after they received a HEPA cleaning, then wrapped them with R11 insulation. The tenant says they hardley ever run the AC (since January) and the house stays cool and warm when cold. Our insulation in the ceiling is about R 40, walls R 19. Bu I know theAttic Foil makes a huge diffrenece based on last summer’s felt heat.