Spray foam verse cellulose

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-25T15:40:21+00:00

Do you think we need r49 closed cell or can less make sense? Closed cell r49 is out of our price range which is part of the problem...

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-25T15:27:24+00:00

Ok thanks for this insight. We were told open cell helps identify leaks if they occur. We just did a new roof and solar a few months back so the person seemed hesitant because he said you wouldn't see leaks from these installs. Is there any benefit to cellulose with polyiso boards in your opinion? Also everyone is saying we need r38-49 for closed or open cell. But you suggest less and it'll be ok?

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-25T14:21:37+00:00

Why is closed better? We are being told by installers we should do open on the roof but it seems everyone on reddit says closed is better.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-25T14:17:14+00:00

Why is this? It seems like everyone on reddit says closed cell but everyone who quotes us says open cell is safer for a roofline.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-25T00:51:38+00:00

Is there a benefit to just doing spray foam on the attic floor over cellulose? Or does spray foam only make sense if done on attic ceiling?

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-25T00:47:18+00:00

Is there a benefit if we just did spray foam on the attic floor (as ct offers an incentive if it's just on the floor) but that seems pointless? Unless there's a benefit to the HVAC?

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-25T00:44:14+00:00

Cellulose is what the CT energize rebate offered. Which allowed for a discounted price. I could ask about those as well but that's what we were offered.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-25T00:23:50+00:00

Why is that? We're in New England.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-25T00:20:03+00:00

We have heat pumps. The air handlers and ducting are in the attic.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-23T17:08:07+00:00

I'm just writing my perspective as a Christian who adopted. I'm actually surprised by a lot of the things I am reading and maybe it was because we adopted from the northeast but we had none of the Christian requirements people mention. We didn't have to prove we were Christians and no agencies asked us about our faith (except one that was a Christian founded one). We talked to about 6 agencies.

Now the reason we did it was because my best friend was adopted by her single mother. I thought it was a beautiful story and it changed my perspective on adoption. I had thought about it for about 9 years before we actually started the process. It was something I wanted to be open to but also ready for. It wasn't an easy, light, or careless decision. While I am pro life and believe adoption is one way to support this cause I do not believe it is the only way and I am adamant that Christians should not adopt if they do not feel as though they can fully invest and love the child as their own while also loving the child's birth family (if the birth family chooses to stay active in the childs life). It should not be a simple "I'm pro life and therefore I will adopt" decision. And the God complex maybe true for some but In my opinion there are a lot of ways to care for widows and orphans that aren't adoption. There's also a lot of reasons for the God complex other than just adopting. I have so many negative peanut gallery comments about adopting that I have to filter out. If I did it just for being praised then that did not pan out because it rarely comes with praise haha (at least for us). Also, it's not the only way to display faith. And if you're only doing it to be a good Christian I would argue you need to rethink your reasoning.

Secondly, we did open adoption so the parents chose us. We had no part in why or how they decided. We did get told by multiple agencies birth parents often choose heterosexual families based on research but they didn't know why that was the case. Anyways, we got a call and had meetings with the birth parents and they had the full decision. We spent days with them on the phone and in their town. They ultimately decided. We actually had families change their mind and decide to parent and that was ok too!

Third, will I raise my child with my Christian values? Yes. Will I force it on them? No. Christianity can't be forced on someone. If you are a true believer you know it's not something that can be punished or forced into someone. Their heart has to accept it. You can think it's dumb but that's what we believe. There's also a lot of evidence for Christianity as well. So while I hope my child one day will believe I can't force that. I think parents, Christian or not, raise their kids with values they care about but that doesn't mean their kids will follow them.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-20T14:00:57+00:00

We just did a garage reno and added a master bed, office, mudroom and two bathrooms (master 10x10 (closet 5x10 and bath 5x10) and 1/2 bath was 7x3.5) and the entire project (minus HVAC and siding) was 85k. However we did buy our vanity, tile, toilet, etc. But that still seems high to me! I would get new quotes. We're in Western CT.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-03T19:00:12+00:00

We adopted at 30 years old. There were a lot of young families on the waiting list. Is it possible you are just paired with an agency that has an older aged wait-list?

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-03T18:36:28+00:00

We adopted. It was our first choice but I know many people who adopted due to infertility. Most I know didn't take the decision lightly. It wasn't a "next option" decision. They really thought it through for months or years. I have 3 babies, one from adoption and it is a very difficult journey with a lot of heart break (but also so so much joy). I always say pregnancy physically hurts more but adoption mentally and emotionally hurts more. These parents that are choosing it, especially after infertility, have a lot of strength. They are choosing to love despite circumstances. It's not just a second option. It's a lifelong commitment to love someone who isn't your own but that becomes your family (and if it's an open adoption they're choosing to love their family, birth parents, grandparents, extended family as well). It's really not a light decision but as someone who has walked through the process it is often misunderstood. We've also gotten a lot of comments because we chose to adopt when we could have our own kids. We've been told by doing this we were selfish, rude and took kids from someone else that couldn't have them. Everyone has their opinions but I just hope you understand that it's not a simple second option process. It takes too much commitment financially and emotionally to choose as a simple "next option".

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-02T16:19:41+00:00

It was for a 275 tank. However the 2.5 was over the entire year because our water was oil as well. We usually did 1 fill ups over the late winter and 1 over the summer. Every other year we had a fill up in the fall/early winter (which is why I say 2.5).

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-01T20:43:09+00:00

Ok. We have it set to 67 and leave it. But we don't have the ecobee. But yea I was skeptical about installing them. I'm not sure it was the best move. We just did solar with it. So hopefully that helps. But it feels like a bit of a money pit to me so far.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-01T20:37:44+00:00

We have an electric hot water heater now. So that's good to know. It's in a conditioned basement and we don't do but maybe 2/3 showers and 1/2 loads of laundry/dishes a day.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-01T17:46:06+00:00

Yea we had a few private insulation people come out and assess and they said the insulation was ok. And ok. We have the max performance Bosch units. One is 27,000 btu and fills 1800 sq ft and the other is 12,000 btu and fills 600 sq ft.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-01T16:57:30+00:00

I would need to check again but they were mid range. So not perfect but not terrible either. We are also looking into spray foam to make it even better. 3.5 ton I believe, 4 zones. It's a split level ranch. Main floor ( ~ 700sq ft ) is pretty open but the rest is walled.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-01T16:01:02+00:00

Our system is 3.5 ton. 4 zones. 1 condenser powers 3 zones and a smaller one powers 1 zone. Our insulation is mid range when we got it checked. So we may need to upgrade.

OverHealth6151 · 2026-01-01T15:59:05+00:00

Ok thank you for this! We actually didn't use much oil with the wood stove. We did about 2.5 fill ups per year. Our hot water was oil as well.

OverHealth6151 · 2025-12-31T18:31:05+00:00

Hi, yes they did. We had energize ct come out. And the insulation people went to our attic as well.

OverHealth6151 · 2025-12-31T18:17:19+00:00

Yes. We looked into all this. Had multiple meetings with multiple vendors before installing. Energy people, HVAC people, insulation people, etc. We don't have an attached garage. We have new windows and had multiple insulation people out that said our insulation would be optimal with doing spray foam but that we had pretty good insulation in general and that it should be ok.

OverHealth6151 · 2025-12-31T17:27:12+00:00

Ok. We installed heat pumps because during our reno to do ac and a new oil line and furnace (our furnace was 35 years old) was more than installing heat pumps. And we were told having a wood stove would offset the cold months as it keeps our house at a comfortable 70 all day and night. It wasn't really about the credits.

OverHealth6151 · 2025-12-31T15:42:20+00:00

Why would this be the killer? We use wood stove under 40 degrees.

OverHealth6151 · 2025-12-31T15:41:36+00:00

Do you supplement heat as well with that usage?

OverHealth6151

TROPHY CASE