Jennifer writes from Milford, Massachusetts: "We moved into this house 1.5 years ago and it has a four season porch located off the living room. The porch is carpeted and has electric baseborad heating but is very cold during the winter. There is a storage space under the porch (not a crawl space) I can stand upright and walk under it. The insulation that is currently in place is falling down. The insulation is being held in with coat hangers currently (nice, right?). I was wondering what type of insulation we should use to re-insulate and also what type of cover we should put over it (plywood, plastic, etc). We don't want animals living in the insulation and want to prevent the drafts from coming thru the floor. We moved to MA from FL and we are clueless when it comes to cold weather stuff. Also, how can we check to see if the walls and ceiling are insulated? I saw on a TV show that you take a hole saw and, well, saw a hole in the wall. Is there any other way to check?"

Answer: We recommend using Kraft-faced R-25 Fiberglas™ batt insulation under the floor. Make sure to install the paper vapor retarder toward the warm-in-winter side of the floor. It may then be covered with any breathable material. Cutting a small whole is a typical method of checking for insulation. Insulation may also be visible from the top of the wall if you have attic access.