Hey all, I'm in the process of fixing up a dirty old metal barn to make the loft into a livable comfortable space while my partner and I work on building a home and homesteading over the coming years.
Couple of questions:
Any ideas on inexpensive and effective insulation? Priority on ease of installation, non-rodent friendly (lots of mice in a barn, they can and will get anywhere), safety/non-toxicity, and cost in no particular order.
After cutting down the previous insulation that was infested with mice I'm left with the metal roof and exposed rafters. I looked at a product called NEST insulation from GreenDepot. Looks about right
but costs $1.10 per square ft. If I use it on the walls of the loft too I'm looking at 600 bucks to get two rolls of it. I'd have plenty left over for future projects.
I've also done some natural building where we stuffed straw in between chicken wire on a conventionally framed wall. Then earthen plaster over the top. Concerned about the side against the metal
siding and condensation and moisture as that would surely cause problems with the straw as well as the infiltration and homebuilding of rodents.
The wall and ceiling covering are another issue I'm pondering.
Once I've got things insulated how should I best cover it up. I'd like to use recycled or cheap materials that are safe and natural and don't involve too much time as I've got plenty of other projects to
tend to.
One thought was the chicken wire and plaster method. Messy and time consuming but natural and cheap. Also looks and feels good.
Another to use wood lath or or something. Potentially tack up bamboo since I have quite a bit laying in a pile outside but not sure how to make that look nice and work well.
I'd like to avoid new Drywall and OSB or plywood because of the offgassing.
Any good ideas?
Thanks for the help!
