In my research on insulation for our new home, I stumbled upon the concept of “California T’s & Corners”. The concept refers to framing techniques that allow for exterior walls to be better insulated than with common framing methods. Here’s how it works:

Wood is a poor insulator. In your walls, studs are located every 16″. In addition, at each corner and intersection of walls, there are normally two studs installed. The result is that there is a substantial portion of the exterior walls that are poorly insulated. You can’t eliminate studs on your exterior wall; structurally they are required.

However, you can utilize advanced framing techniques such as California T’s & Corners to allow more insulation to be installed behind the walls. The pictures below will do a better job explaining the concept than I can.

Source: http://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/info/documents/pdfs/26449.pdf

These techniques don’t require additional cost, just good communication with your builder. After utilizing these techniques, we were able to insulate many areas on our exterior walls that would not otherwise have been insulated.

Photo credit:  crisderaud