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We need more storage space in our house, so I'd like to put some folding
stairs into the hall ceiling and lay down some plywood in the attic to add
space to put stuff
QUESTION:We need more storage space in our house, so I'd like to put some folding
stairs into the hall ceiling and lay down some plywood in the attic to add
space to put stuff. I've perused the net and this groups archives enough to
convince myself that I could get the stairs in, but there's a couple things
I'm wondering about.
First, our house was built in 1971 and has popcorn ceilings, so I'm
concerned about asbestos. Should I scrape the ceiling clean before cutting
a hole?
Second, do I have to do anything special when putting plywood in the
rafters? There's some kind of loose insulation between the rafters. Should
I put some kind of plastic down before the plywood to keep moisture out (or
would I just be locking it in)?
Any other considerations about this kind of job?
ANSWER: If you wear a respirator (not merely a dust mask)
and clean up after yourself promptly, you shouldn't
be making enough dust for it to matter if there's
asbestos in the ceiling coating or not.
You'll want to check whether the rafters are
big enough to support the load you expect to
put on them.
There should be a vapor barrier UNDER the current
insulation. THis would be a good time to consider
adding more insulation, if you don't like your
heating bills. And check around for air leaks into
the attic.
Does anyone build pre-fab insulated decking that's
designed to be walked on? All I found on a superficial
search was structural panels designed for walls and roofs.
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