Phil writes from Toledo, Ohio: "I have an unfinished attic space off an upstairs bedroom. The house is 1-1/2 story. The attic space rafters slope down to the front of the house. The floor is covered with plywood. The living room is under this attic space. Originally, there were only old batts in the rafters. I added batts to the wall of the bedroom. Then, I pried up the plywood and added batts in the floor. Now, there is insulation in the bedroom wall and in the ceiling above the living room. The batts in the rafters are probably 40+ years old and seem to be deteriorating. There does not seem to be any type of rafter vent under the insulation. Now the questions: 1. Do the rafters need to be insulated since this area is not lived in? 2. If the rafters need to be insulated, should I take out the old batts and replace with new batts? It does not appear that I can to the rafters. I would compress the batts."

Answer: 1. If the floor is properly insulated between the attic and the living space below, there is no reason to insulate the rafters. 2. As long as there is proper ventilation space between the rafters and the roof deck, there is no reason to take out the insulation.