O.T. Shop-built insulation blower?

No, not a modified leaf blower.

Been there, done that.

It works, but it’s easily two people.

I’m thinking along the lines of a reverse engineered copy of a rental unit commonly found at Home Depot, etc.

It would allow a few hours (after work) each night to result in progress, not standing in line at Lowe’s

Which one did you want to copy ?

A thru blower type ? or a rotary lock style ?

Blowing what ? Cellulose ? Glass, Rockwool ?

Attic fill ? Wall fill ? BIB ? Commercial wall spray ?

digger doug said:

Which one did you want to copy ?

A thru blower type ? or a rotary lock style ?

Blowing what ? Cellulose ? Glass, Rockwool ?

Attic fill ? Wall fill ? BIB ? Commercial wall spray ?

Click to expand...

Ah, a member of the cognoscenti!

Just blowing into an attic space, most likely cellulose.

Load up the hopper with a bale or two, grab the remote, the hose, and let er rip.

SteveBausch said:

Ah, a member of the cognoscenti!

Just blowing into an attic space, most likely cellulose.

Load up the hopper with a bale or two, grab the remote, the hose, and let er rip.

Click to expand...

Lemme now when you get it to be able to suck that messy s**t OUT.. chopped fibreglass and 40+ year worth of seasonal rearrangement into mouse nest and turd, specifically - so I can place crossed layers of proper roll fibreglass.

SteveBausch said:

Ah, a member of the cognoscenti!

Just blowing into an attic space, most likely cellulose.

Load up the hopper with a bale or two, grab the remote, the hose, and let er rip.

Click to expand...

I've helped on a couple of friends "Rent it from Lowes" jobs.

I was the guy stuffing the bales.

I have run different machines, all seem to lack the "break up" part
and so you can't just "stuff a bale on top" and let it grind
away. You have to hand break up the bales into at least
baseball sized pieces.

I have only seen one machine capable of what you want and it was:
1. German made with a feeder conveyor, load sensing drive, and radio remote control, of all functions. Just set the bale on the conveyor.
2. portable just like ours, can be wheeled thru a man door.
3. ran on 380 v 3 phase
4. is $38,000

SteveBausch said:

No, not a modified leaf blower.

Been there, done that.

It works, but it’s easily two people.

I’m thinking along the lines of a reverse engineered copy of a rental unit commonly found at Home Depot, etc.

It would allow a few hours (after work) each night to result in progress, not standing in line at Lowe’s

Click to expand...

How long are you planning on this taking total? I did my new construction house in a morning. One helper to feed the bales. Fiberglass insulation 18 to 24" deep. Local lumber yard lent me their enclosed trailer with equipment at no charge if I bought the insulation from them. Insulation from them was a buck more per bale than Menards or Home Depot.

Ended up getting 130 pieces of fiberglass in my eye. Had a nice emergency visit to the eye doctor to get that all picked out.

After that I have just called Menards and asked them who the hungry young insulation contractor of the moment was. That dude did 1200 ft^2 of shop for about $250 more than what I could have bought the material for. They even swept up when done. And I didn't have to go to the eye doctor.

Monarchist said:

Lemme now when you get it to be able to suck that messy s**t OUT.. chopped fibreglass and 40+ year worth of seasonal rearrangement into mouse nest and turd, specifically - so I can place crossed layers of proper roll fibreglass.

Click to expand...

....and here we go...off to the races.

IIRC their are studies showing cellulose superior
to fiberglass (loose fill) and much better than
batt.

They were even showing how cellulose applied on top
of batt will help with the air sealing that batt
insulation fails at. Plus, anything spray applied will fill
in irregular spaces much faster and better than batts.

As far as animal infestation, any insulation will harbor
mice/rats/chipmunks/squirrels/bats etc.

I re-did the parents house (built in 1900) by vacuuming
all the insulation out, it was full of junk.

Vermiculite was the insulation of choice in this house.

After I vacuumed it all out (long hose to tank outside)
I then went in with a shop vac, and a bristle brush
attachment, and got out all the "black" that old houses
have.

Took (2) full cleanings, backbreaking work down on my stomach, but it was worth it.

Afterwards, I replace it with loose fill cellulose.
I would have liked to try a light misting of water on top
to form a "crust" to keep it from moving around,
seen it done with a fancy nozzle attachment into the hose.
However, I think an ordinary pump sprayer would be just fine.

I would like to try loose fill Styrofoam sometime,
would need a PVA misted on top to keep it in place.

FWIW Fiberglass is very similar to asbestos as far
as the lung damage problems, and I hear that the
rules might be clamping down on it in the near future.

In 40 years, I’ll be 100 years old

Or dead

If you really want to speed things up.....

I would borrow a sileage blower along with the tractor.

Use 4" corrugated pipe to reach up into the attic.

I figure it would blow a bale as fast as you can toss them in.

Monarchist said:

Lemme now when you get it to be able to suck that messy s**t OUT.. chopped fibreglass and 40+ year worth of seasonal rearrangement into mouse nest and turd, specifically - so I can place crossed layers of proper roll fibreglass.

Click to expand...

I did mine 20 years ago... Why? I need to remove 1500 Sq ft sheet rock ceiling, with 5 inches of blown in crap above. $100 1.5hp (or so they say) Chinese sawdust extractor/blower with 4 inch inlet hose. Blew it 50 feet with another 4 inch hose into a huge "bag" made from three or four old king sized sheets. I'd have blown it all into the woods but SWMBO intervened.

1/2 of it I pumped into another part of the attic. So... you can use this for placement if you like.

Hmm... start with a snow blower?

Lakeside53 said:

Why? I need to remove 1500 Sq ft sheet rock ceiling, with 5 inches of blown in crap above.

Click to expand...

Aye, half or less the Sq Ft, but yes, same reason. 40+ years, the old SR is brittle and has sag waves.

$100 1.5hp (or so they say) Chinese sawdust extractor/blower with 4 inch inlet hose.

Click to expand...

Thanks! That sounds like a plan, even have the king bedsheets left-over from downsizing to Queen. Getting old. If I have to chase the Wife long distance I'll have forgotten why before I catch her.

And No Fine Way that s**t is going into any other part of my house once I get it out! You do that to a house to sell "real soon, NOW", not to a house to live-in.

digger doug said:

FWIW Fiberglass is very similar to asbestos as far
as the lung damage problems, and I hear that the
rules might be clamping down on it in the near future.

Click to expand...

No its not your body can break glass down, it can not break asbestos down. Very very different materials. What concerns most people with fibreglass is the bonding agent releasing chemicals - its solvents at low concentrations for damn near forever, not a problem if you fit and properly ventilate a house. Comes a point when everything is so well sealed - draft free you have to add positive ventilation, but then you add on heat recovery to keep the warm inside! Insulation and draught proofing is just step one.

adama said:

No its not your body can break glass down, it can not break asbestos down. Very very different materials. What concerns most people with fibreglass is the bonding agent releasing chemicals - its solvents at low concentrations for damn near forever, not a problem if you fit and properly ventilate a house. Comes a point when everything is so well sealed - draft free you have to add positive ventilation, but then you add on heat recovery to keep the warm inside! Insulation and draught proofing is just step one.

Click to expand...

I'm telling you what an industrial, professional Hygienist related to me.

He said, that the litigation flood should be starting soon.

Read up on fiberglass workers and their ailments.

BTW the "bagged" roll fiberglass insulation is worse for air infiltration, as it can't seal very good against the sides, worse
than paper backed "loose" fiberglass batting.

The recent surge in DIY "blown" fiberglass is a going to cause
a health nightmare.

I have done a half dozen insulation removal jobs from places of worship. I use bags from wasteremovalbags.com. they are about 4' diameter, and 6' high when full. The vacuum is a Billy goat leaf vac with 12 inch inlet and a 20 hp engine, gotten from an auction for cheap. I use pvc drain pipe into the attic, two 6 inch pipes up, then split into four 4 inch pipes, with 4 hoses-about 20 feet long. With a volunteer crew of 10 people, 2 on each hose, 1 dealing with pipes in the attic, and me on the ground with the vacuum changing bags every 15-20 minutes, 5000 square feet gets done in a day. The mouse-crappy insulation is cleanly bagged and hauled away. Not a fun job, but quick and effective

One thing to add here.

None of the insulation companies VENTILATE
while they are up there, either removing,
nor installing.

I bought a large "barrel fan" and stuck it in the window,
to pull a negative pressure in the attic.

It did the job pretty well, there was no dust in the rest of the house.

I’m a non-drinker, but a job installing fiberglass insulation would have me going home, showering off the itchy stuff, and settling into a recliner with a six pack of beer.

SteveBausch said:

In 40 years, I’ll be 100 years old

Or dead

Click to expand...

Both, more likely.

adama said:

No its not your body can break glass down, it can not break asbestos down. Very very different materials. What concerns most people with fibreglass is the bonding agent releasing chemicals - its solvents at low concentrations for damn near forever, not a problem if you fit and properly ventilate a house. Comes a point when everything is so well sealed - draft free you have to add positive ventilation, but then you add on heat recovery to keep the warm inside! Insulation and draught proofing is just step one.

Click to expand...

Prezacktly! I lucked into two used-but-good industrial air filtration units from a PM member relocating his shop. That takes care of the fresh air and the particulates down to serious-fine sizes.

Part Two is the heat (and humidity, even) exchange/recovery box.

They aren't all that costly if you keep in mind that a slow but steady rate is all it takes for keeping a residence sweet.

digger doug said:

BTW the "bagged" roll fiberglass insulation is worse for air infiltration, as it can't seal very good against the sides, worse than paper backed "loose" fiberglass batting.

Click to expand...

Each has its place. I use that variety on interior walls. No, there isn't much to gain by insulating between two bedrooms, even if the unoccupied one is dialed-down to 55 F, the adjacent one at 65 F.

But.. as I've opened up the walls - most of them by now - I put in extra "fireblock" crossmembers, then the bagged fibreglass, "stuffed" a tad. The goal is slowing the spread of fire if/as/when, and hopefully never. A small gain in sound-deadening is also welcome, and it is nice to "thump" a wall and get a solid feel, rather than an echo.

Up-top, I can't see wrassling 12" or 14" insulation between 4" or 6" structurals and hoping their edges ABOVE will touch. SO I use two easier to handle layers. First one between the rafters, second, thicker one atop either at right-angles or staggered overlap.

Placing involves a long Tee - ten feet or so long, tad short of rafter spacing wide at the Tee - fabbed of whippy CPVC tube.

Wrap roll, rather than bat, FG around the cross of the tee, push it out as a long "U". Release the top end. Drag the lower end back toward you 'til what had been atop is just a smidge long of final position. 'Tamp' the end into place with the tee.

If/as/when any cutting is needed, it is right at yer knees.

Has worked a treat under low-overheads at greatly reducing the monkey-crawling, head-bumping, and exposure to nastycrap, skin or lungs.

Chopped insulation, any tribe, might insulate better, and for-damned-sure goes IN faster. But the 'solid' stuff is sooo much nicer to deal with when maintenance or renovation comes along. As it does do, closing in on 30 years in the same home.