Garage with 2x4 construction, planning to finish, should I fir it out?

[Cheetah]

Hello Everyone,

I have a large 3-car attached garage with concrete floor that I am going to insulate and rock this summer. I am also considering adding nat gas heat as well after I get some estimates back on that.

It is 2x4 construction walls and I am wondering if I should stick with that, or fir them to be 2x6 thickness so I can have better insulation?

Thanks.

[Scott K]

If you plan on heating it to 72 degrees year around, then it may pay off to have 6 inch. But if you are just planning on keeping it to 50 most of the time, and crank it to 70 when you are in there a few nights a week, it wouldnt be worth the time or money. Mine has 2x4 walls, I leave mine at 50, except when I am in there maybe 10 hours a week, and my gas bill is maybe $10 higher a month, compared to having the heater off.

You may have plans on an air condition in there as well, so it may help with your cooling bill, but I dont condition mine, I just open the doors.

[Todd S.]

I just insulated the 2 x 4 wall, I think it was r19, can't remember for sure, it was the most R value I could find for 2 x 4 walls. It warms up quickly and stays warm with garage furnace, I keep it at 50 in the winter, I blew in the attic insulation. I also added two ceiling fans in my garage that help with pushing the heat back down.

[PurpleFloyd]

For the time and money you would spend firring it out you could just have it spray foamed and have more r value without losing any interior space

[BoxMN]

My garage has 2x4 walls and I think the highest r glass insulation I could find was r15. I keep it at about 34-36ish, just high enough to keep from freezing in winter, but can be cranked to 70 in short order.

Biggest loss will be around your doors. I used 2" quality insulated steel doors and try to keep no gaps. Also built a little rigid foam "house" over my attic door.

I will say this, making jerky out there with 4 dehydrators and the furnace going rather high for days in January/February cold will make the gas and electric meter spin, haha! But it was tasty and fun

[Cheetah]

Thanks for the tips everyone!

[11-87]

Use a high performance batt. Don't be stupid and try and stuff 6" in an 2x4 wall. Compaction will reduce the insulation values of the product

[crothmeier]

^^ What he said. Jamming a thicker batt in the cavity will give you less r-value. You can get an R-13 batt for a reasonable price. Heat rises. Go heavier on the attic and leave the walls at 2x4.

[BoxMN]

FWIW the R15 that i used was made for 2x4 walls. Menards doesn't have it stock but HD did. I did not stuff it, nor was it much more $$. Can also find it for 2' widths.