Page 1 of 2

Shed Insulation

Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 1:44 pm
by n_dorphin
Hey Guys,

We have built a 6X9m shed and have found the roof gets very hot.
Whats the best and easiest way to insulate a shed roof?
Was thinking batts but did not want to gyprock the whole roof.

Could stryofoam esky lids be cut down and used or would this be uneffective?

Thanks

Jason

Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 1:55 pm
by 75 cruser
you could use the roof batts and put mesh up under the batts to hold the batts up, or use roof blanket like we put under colorbond roofs but that would invole taking the roof off and laying blanket under roof sheets to do it correctly, does your roof have sarking ( silver paper ) on it ?????

just a few ideas

rob

Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 2:02 pm
by Mr DJ
The easiest way I can think of is a whirlybird or 2.
Won't insulate the shed as such but will allow the heat buildup to escape and will be heaps easier than taking the roof off to put fibreglass insulation with a silver sarking backing (builders/roof blanket) which would be the best + whirlbirds IMO.

Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 3:58 pm
by v6hilux
The radiated heat is the main issue. A second skin for air gap or insulation bats are the go. I know that second hand cool room panels are great if you can find them.

Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 11:27 pm
by macca81

Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2007 7:01 am
by V8Patrol
Replace the ridgecap with a vented ridgecap..... this is probably your cheapest option with an excelent cooling ability.

Dont attempt to glue batts or polystyrene foam to the roofing iron as the condensation will cause corrosion much quicker & the glue will eventually release on a hot day anyway.

Panels of 'cement sheet' screwed to the underside of the perlins can also be a great way of baffling roof heat, looks great but an absolute bytch to install unless you have a plasterer mate to help you
:armsup:

Your only other 'real' alternative is to line the bottom of the perlins with mesh ( chicken wire for example ), and then fit a batt between the roof and wire, if its as hot as you say then do it mid winter ;)
NB: you can obviously line the shed with cement sheet and then add the batts to...... lota work !

Kingy

Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2007 9:54 am
by chunderlicious
they make and sell a thing called a straw batt. they will slide between the purlins allready there. other than that whirlie birds are the best thing ever

Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2007 11:34 am
by super jeep
use a air cell product it's sort of a tarp type of material with air gaps they use this for roofs and also the under side of floors by screwing to joists.
this would be a easy solution as to fit it just run a liquid nails along the underside of existing batten, then hold up the air cell then run some washered screws to hold until the liquid nails dry, this will also leave the air gap between the roof and insulation, admitadly it's best under the sheeting like the fibre glass stuff but this is how we've done it before so we didn't have to take the roof off.
remember if your going to line the ceiling you have to have a batten to fix to at least every 450mm so to just screw to existing roof battens would not be suitable, we normally batten out with a 20mm ceiling batten screwed to the roof battens this will support your fibro sheets.
imho a whirly bird is the go unless your roof is low also some windows in the shed to create a natural breeze flow through would also help to escape trapped heat.
http://www.air-cell.com.au/

Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:23 pm
by KiwiAngler
Spray on polyureyhane foam - highest R (insulation) value for the thickness

Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2007 8:32 pm
by fatassgq
Does it matter what colour the roof is???

There is a insulpaint available that is easily applied and works so well. Expect up to 12-15 deg drop in roof temp. Really good clean of the roof and an airless paint gun and your on ya way.

Only real downer is it is white so if ya can see the roof and it matters this can be a prob.

Good option though.

Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2007 3:05 pm
by Guy
I am planning to insulate mine .. walls and all, for reasons of both hot and cold .. It would have to help with noise (Reflected noise as well as noise escaping and upsetting the neighbours/wife)
I have blanket in the roof and that makes a bit of a difference.
I was planning on using some of that perforated masonite stuff, or chipboard with glass bats behind it (I can get the chipboard in pallet size for the cost of diesal to pick it up)

Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2007 6:03 pm
by 80's_delirious
If you are considering using glass batts, Id suggest polyester batts instead.
Slightly more expensive, I insulated walls and roof of my house for $900 using R3 rated batts. (overkill by most standards) glass batts would have been $700.

Polyester batts are easier to work with, safe to handle, (you could sleep in the polyester stuff), and just as effective as glass batts. Glass batts break down over time into loose fibres that would come through a perforated board

best bit is you dont cop all the glass fibres in the skin, lungs, eyes etc when you install it or if you have to get into the roof space
I believe glass batts are banned in many countries, if you have to dump glass batts it is treated the same as asbestos waste ie dangerous @#$%

Posted: Mon Dec 10, 2007 6:07 pm
by 80's_delirious
Air cell and similar products rate well for insulating against heat, but Im pretty sure they are much less effective in insulating against cold temperatures

Posted: Thu Jan 22, 2009 2:41 pm
by bogged
love_mud wrote:I am planning to insulate mine .. walls and all, for reasons of both hot and cold .. It would have to help with noise (Reflected noise as well as noise escaping and upsetting the neighbours/wife)
I have blanket in the roof and that makes a bit of a difference.
I was planning on using some of that perforated masonite stuff, or chipboard with glass bats behind it (I can get the chipboard in pallet size for the cost of diesal to pick it up)
did you do it?

Posted: Thu Jan 22, 2009 3:20 pm
by 65Mog
super jeep wrote:use a air cell product it's sort of a tarp type of material with air gaps they use this for roofs and also the under side of floors by screwing to joists.
this would be a easy solution as to fit it just run a liquid nails along the underside of existing batten, then hold up the air cell then run some washered screws to hold until the liquid nails dry, this will also leave the air gap between the roof and insulation, admitadly it's best under the sheeting like the fibre glass stuff but this is how we've done it before so we didn't have to take the roof off.
remember if your going to line the ceiling you have to have a batten to fix to at least every 450mm so to just screw to existing roof battens would not be suitable, we normally batten out with a 20mm ceiling batten screwed to the roof battens this will support your fibro sheets.
imho a whirly bird is the go unless your roof is low also some windows in the shed to create a natural breeze flow through would also help to escape trapped heat.
http://www.air-cell.com.au/
We've also used this quite a bit, and it's a great product.

Posted: Thu Jan 22, 2009 6:50 pm
by ausyota
Good thread.
I am about to build my shed and Im wondering whether to use the foil with the thin bat attached (commonly called anticon i think) or the air cell under the tin before we put the roof on.

Posted: Thu Jan 22, 2009 7:26 pm
by Hoppy11
insuate it and gyprock i, its $18 for a 1.2m x 3m sheet, about $ 270 for your area, I did it to my shed, My mates said that I pooftrerised my shed, but its cool in summer

Hoppy

Posted: Thu Jan 22, 2009 7:37 pm
by LuxyBoy
fatassgq wrote:Does it matter what colour the roof is???

There is a insulpaint available that is easily applied and works so well. Expect up to 12-15 deg drop in roof temp. Really good clean of the roof and an airless paint gun and your on ya way.

Only real downer is it is white so if ya can see the roof and it matters this can be a prob.

Good option though.
Good thread i want to do my shed.

I have heard differing reports of these paints :? Was looking at getting the house roof done and several guys rubbished it and some others said it was great but would not give a guarantee of an improvement :?

For the colour couldn't you just add a tint :?:

Posted: Thu Jan 22, 2009 7:57 pm
by its aford not a nissan
KiwiAngler wrote:Spray on polyureyhane foam - highest R (insulation) value for the thickness

dont use this crap , termites love the stuff , treated a house with this stuff under the floor boards and where ever this stuff was termites were going mad into the floor

Posted: Sat Jan 24, 2009 10:04 pm
by Bad_Zook
I'm a roofer.. and what i'd advise to you.. is what I've done to my own shed ->Pull roof off, run safety wire (depending on the span between purlins x and battens.. ), either 50mm (my case 75mm) Anticon blanket.. re-install roof. I'd also run a whirlybird(one is heaps for 6x9).. make sure you get a good quality one with sealed bearings etc..
walls: i put sisalation on all external walls then sheeted the external.. then lined the internals with polyester batts.. then lined the inside with corro(cheap and i have..LOTS).. short of putting in A/C.. thats the best you'll get.. you should also think about double glazed glass ..but thats posibbly a bit pedantic, especially seeing as there isn;t much you can do about your doors..
I have used aircell in the past.. and like the way it works in theory.. but am yet to see it produce similar results to anticon in practice..

Posted: Sun Jan 25, 2009 10:25 pm
by 6.5 rangie
Aircell is definately the way to go, used it on my shed (330sqm of the stuff) and on 30degree days it stays around 24 inside, huge difference compared to non insulated. With sheds you need to use the foam stuff not the airbubble stuff (well thats what the rep told me), and it also makes a difference on cold days aswell keeping it warmer.
Its not cheap at around $280 a 30sqm roll but worth it, i'm using it when we build our house aswell.
Rated at 2.7 i think

Posted: Mon Jan 26, 2009 11:43 am
by hilux79
LuxyBoy wrote:
fatassgq wrote:Does it matter what colour the roof is???

There is a insulpaint available that is easily applied and works so well. Expect up to 12-15 deg drop in roof temp. Really good clean of the roof and an airless paint gun and your on ya way.

Only real downer is it is white so if ya can see the roof and it matters this can be a prob.

Good option though.
Good thread i want to do my shed.

I have heard differing reports of these paints :? Was looking at getting the house roof done and several guys rubbished it and some others said it was great but would not give a guarantee of an improvement :?

For the colour couldn't you just add a tint :?:
We had the hanger I work in done in a product like this. It made a noticeable difference. As for colour yes it makes a difference. Most aircraft are white because lighter colours stay cooler. I used to have a chart that showed difference between different colours, black being the worst.

Posted: Mon Jan 26, 2009 12:41 pm
by 03turbo
I took my roof sheets off a couple at a time and put the perforated sisalation from gutter to gutter. I can now work in the shed ok with a fan going on a hot day. Car stays cool too.

Posted: Mon Jan 26, 2009 5:10 pm
by virtha21
go with the air cell product my joint has this stuff and it is awesome at keeping the heat and cold out, and it's good to work with too, house doesn't get above 25* and thats with no polyester or fibreglass bats in the ceiling either.

Posted: Mon Jan 26, 2009 7:11 pm
by fester2au
Whatever you decide do as much as you can afford, a hot shed is crap. We made the mistake years ago of matching the shed roof to the house - RED.

In summer up in Gympie it's often unbearable but i cannot afford to do anything at present. Oh and depending on your roof colour 1 whirlybird is crap. They are not that dear I would say put one in each bay. I have an opening in every wall, either the 2 roller doors or 3 house sized windows and it's still crap due to the roof colour. Been tempted to paint it just to get rid of the red.

If starting from scratch I'd recommend:
White, cream or silver roof - for matching the house colour your doors and trim bits.
Wall height at least 2.7 preferrably 3 metres.
Pitch 15 degrees rather than 10.
Whirlybird in every bay.
House sized windows not those crappy ones they usually put in sheds. I think about 1300.
And make sure you keep enough aside for roof insulation of some sort.

Posted: Mon Jan 26, 2009 7:52 pm
by ausyota
Do the whirly birds create cold drafts in winter though?
I know they are the ducks nuts in summer but what happens in winter when you have the potbelly or gas heater going to get a bit of warmth on a cold night?

air cell insulation

Posted: Mon Jan 26, 2009 8:01 pm
by Team80
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/airfoil-t2-Insul ... dZViewItem


found this on ebay mite be what u looking for

Posted: Mon Jan 26, 2009 9:20 pm
by just cruizin'
That's the stuff and from when I did my shed 8 years ago that's damn cheap, from memory I paid about $400 a roll and very happy I did. My shed never gets hot even with a red roof. With the red door down you can feel the heat off that but step back 2 steps and it's cool.

Posted: Mon Jan 26, 2009 10:43 pm
by jessie928
ausyota wrote:Do the whirly birds create cold drafts in winter though?
I know they are the ducks nuts in summer but what happens in winter when you have the potbelly or gas heater going to get a bit of warmth on a cold night?
put a flap on it for winter

i just cardboard mine up

Posted: Mon Jan 26, 2009 10:51 pm
by pongo
For a quick fix just wack up a sprinker on the roof and have it set fairly low so that it just does the job nicely.

Works really well and know a few blokes that use it every summer.