We live in Manotick, Ontario our house was constructed in the 1970s, and the walls are 2x4 construction. Three walls are brick; the back wall is Cedar clapboard. I find the house drafty at least the furnace seems to come on a lot. (We had some work done on a window in the back and noticed there was not much insulation in the wall.) I was thinking of re siding the back of the house, I would probably use the hard board siding (looks like wood) ..My question is would it be worth while to remove the old siding re-strap the wall and add the extra 2 inches of insulation. Or just put the siding over the existing cedar siding etc.
Answer:
I'm not a believer in installing siding over siding so I would certainly remove the old stuff and then add insulation carefully. If rigid foam insulation (which is what most people think of in cases like this)is an inch and a half thick or thicker, it becomes a vapour barrier and you do not want that on the outside of the house.
