Hi. I'm considering adding insulation to my basement's sill plate and header (immediately above the concrete block and below the 1st floor's subfloor). I've read plenty of posts and books that suggest I use spray foam or rigid/extruded polystyrene sheets. The problem I see is that many (a little less than 1/2) of the "bays" between floor joists have baseboard heat water pipes going up to the first and second floor. The pipes are *right* against the header and therefore there's no way I could add insulation between those pipes and the header. The header looks to be a 2x10, and there's sheathing and aluminum siding beyond that. No exterior insulation. My question is, if I insulate those bays, will I increase the risk of having one of those baseboard pipes freeze? Insulating those bays will pretty much seal off the pipe from the "warmth" of the basement. Anyone encounter the same situation? Thanks Theodore.
- posted
13 years ago