Anyone use EPS rigid foam insulation in their floor, between the joists?

[fishnaked]

Was planning to lay down some salvaged carpet and call it good. However, I'm quite fond of how my 2x6 decking looks, so, would rather keep it exposed and insulate from underneath. My first thought is cutting 1-1.5" thick EPS foam to fit between my floor joists, fastening to the underside of aforementioned decking. It has a great per inch R-value and I can get it relatively cheap direct from the local factory.

My only concern is mice. There are a lot of mice where my yurt sits. Not sure they will/can bother it...but I'd hate to have small beads of this foam littering the place.

Anyone have experience with this type of foam for yurt floors....in a mouse haven?

[Jafo]

I have never heard of mice eating through this stuff myself.

[yurtgirl]

May I suggest getting some cats? That might help with your mice haven problem.

[fishnaked]

Originally Posted by yurtgirl

May I suggest getting some cats? That might help with your mice haven problem.

Great idea. And I love cats. However, between the coyotes, bears, cougars, and wolves, I think they would be short lived. Maybe I need more rattlesnakes. Nah, there are more of those than I'd care to have already. If only I could get those existing snakes to eat more....

[Mike & Heather]

I have used 1.5" EPS Foam board to insulate just as you have described, between the joists. We used long screws, with a large flat washer at the end to attach to the underside of the plywood floor. No mice have bothered it and it has been installed since 2000

[fishnaked]

Originally Posted by Mike & Heather

I have used 1.5" EPS Foam board to insulate just as you have described, between the joists. We used long screws, with a large flat washer at the end to attach to the underside of the plywood floor. No mice have bothered it and it has been installed since 2000

That's good to hear. Thanks! Got it done this weekend. 1" EPS cut from the factory to fit between the joists. They only charged me $60...and I have some left over. I used some old 1x2's I had laying around in lieu of washers. Joists are 24" on center. I cut the 1x2's at 21" and placed them perpendicular to the joists with a grabber screw in each end. All worked great and I could see an immediate improvement in the yurt's comfort. Very pleased.

[camptc]

I've never used this EPS in this particular application, but I've seen it cut to fit between the joists after a

moisture

barrier is stapled up. Then, you cut something like treated plywood to cap the underside of the joists. That would be a bit more expense, but would seal out any critters and add some rigidity/ insulative value to the structure. Just my two cents

[Bob Rowlands]

Installing sheathing under yurt deck framing? Just an educated guess but I've never seen sheathing under floor framing in 41 years of carpentry.

It's not likely anyone would make the effort to sheath the bottom of a floor frame, but in case someone gets the idea to attempt it, consider that fabric covered yurts have the potential to leak, especially in wet climates. Water and water vapor that can't evaporate and pools on the sheathing installed to the bottom of the floor framing could potentially trap alot of

moisture

over time. Mold rot termite damage to the floor frame could ensue as time goes by, especially in wetter climates.

Sheathed walls and roofs is different than flat below the floor. In particular under bath and kitchen I'm thinking isn't such a red hot idea. I've done extensive repairs to the framing below the baths and kitchen in my sister in laws house in CA from serious termite action, mold and rot due to the foundation not breathing.