I have a small garage converted to a minihouse..in back of my parents house. My question is its still gets pretty cold in here. I have a electic heat. Now we are getting ready to put siding on it, will this help with the heat? Also what else can I do to make it warmer? I already have storm windows. Thanks

Yes Sam, it will help to some degree (no pun intended).

When you put siding on, it does two things. First, there should be a foam backer. This will add a little to the insulation factor of your walls.

Next, it will help block the wind from blowing it the cracks of the old siding. This can rob heat from your walls making your walls on the inside cold.

I always recommed checking to see if you have insulation in the walls before putting on siding. It is much easier to insulate before you side. It can be blown in through little holes in the walls from outside or inside if needed. One quick check is to feel the temperture of an inside wall. One that is between rooms with no exposure to the out side. Next feel an exterior wall. You should feel little on no difference between the two. The colder the outside wall, the less it is insulation. The colder it is out side, the more noticeable this will be.

Next, check the insulation in the roof or ceiling. You should have a minimum of 6 inches. As you know, heat rises and you lose 80% thorugh the roof. You can use the same method here but because heat rises, I won't be as noticeable. Room heat will keep it warmer.

Without seeing the house, it is hard to make better recommendations. I know this is long, but there is so many items to conserve heat, and these are just the major ones.

Hope this helps,

WoW

Another area of heat loss is the floor. You said this was a converted garage. The floor most likely is concrete which holds the cold very well. I suggest some very carpeting with padding to give insulation. Another idea is to put in a flase floor, (the carpeting is quicker).

Insulation for the ceiling and walls. As described before. For the floor you can get relatively thin sheets of foam/polyurethane then put carpet on top of that. Make sure any gaps on the outside walls are sealed - can do this from the inside if aesthetics would be a problem. When insulating remember to leave a gap between the outside and inside walls and make sure you have a vapour barrier installed otherwise you may get wet internal walls afterwards.

hey guys thanks so much for all the tips..We already have carpet and pad underneath, but, hopefully with the siding and intallation will help lots..othersise I live with lighting my keronse heater to keep the ice off of me...