Heat Security

Submitted by Ana White on Tue, 12/11/2012 - 10:15

Ever wonder what the Interior of Alaska looks like in November?

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Well, here you go ... our winter wonderland, with the sun setting at 3:22 on a balmy afternoon. Temperature -35F.

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This is what November looks like in Interior Alaska.

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And this is what shaking a tree in Interior Alaska looks like in November.

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And this is what working inside a not quite insulated Momplex looks like.

Down coats, insulated bibs, snow boots, gloves. This is a warm day.

On a cold day, it looks the same ... just no workers.

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We can do temporary heat, and borrowed this heater from my brother. But the exhaust is awful and require ventilation, and it burns alot of fuel. It's good for spot heating, but not reasonable for our situation as a main heat source.

We have this temporary heat source today to heat the ceiling up to allow us to spray foam. Spray foam is a warm weather creature and doesn't quite work right when it's -35 below out ... and inside too.

Yes, today's the big day!!! We are putting the ceiling insulation in and will have the Momplex fully insulated today!

This is a big day for us!

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Of course, we got to get all dressed up for this special occasion!

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White tie.

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And up the ladder he goes.

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In the attic, we have the spray foam kit.

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You can buy the little bottles, but you would need so many, we opted for the box.

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All ceiling electrical boxes get spray foamed to prevent any heat loss through the boxes.

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Bathroom vents are spray foamed as well.

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This place is a high security prison for heat. Every possible opening is spray foamed.

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And we've got the heat source plumbed up to make sure it sets up right.

But the spray foam is just for the open cracks that will allow moisture to escape and build up in the attic. We also have to insulate to prevent the warm air temperature from escaping.

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We will be blowing in insulation. With the blow in insulation, we get a free rental of the blower, which fluffs the insulation and blows in up a pipe into the attic.

Insert insulation here.

The bags get cut in half.

And stuffed into the opening, half a bag at a time.

Easy?  Yes.  Fast?  No.  

One bag down, 74 to go.

This process took much longer than expected, and when finally done, it was well past dark.  

Everyone was too tired to celebrate that night, but we all felt a huge burden lifted from our shoulders.  Whatever Alaska brings us, we can keep working inside the Momplex for the rest of the winter.

Thanks for seeing us to this huge milestone!  

PS - A special thanks to our dear friend who helped us insulate who insists on being anonymous.  

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