I'm looking at increasing my storage by fixing up some space in the attic. The construction stuff I can handle, but have a question about the insulation. My attic has "blown in" insulation. I was wondering if I should (1) smash it down under the flooring or (2) push aside the excess so what remains at the floor line would have a "natural loft". Or, (3) would it be better to go with the pink stuff? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Mashing it down defeats the purpose. I'd put some batt insulation under the storage area and if there any voids left, fill those with the blown in. Then you can construct your storage area.

Imho, not the best place to put stuff, extreme heat and cold, depending on where you live.

Probably depends on the R rating of the insulation already in place. At best, I'd level it out. Do you plan on running electrical or plumbing under the floor? Might be best to take it out if so. Of just take it all out, if the attic is over the house (you don't insulate between 1st and 2nd floors, so why between the attic and the level below?)

Don't forget to insulate the more important part, the ceiling!

What kind of "blown-in insulation?"

It's very important, health-wise, to know exactly what you have. Do not disturb this material until you know. Seriously.

If it's a loose, granular material, popular through the 1950s-60s, be very, very careful. There is a possibility that it's the type of vermiculite (or similar mineral-derived material) that has asbestos in it.

Not all vermiculite products have this problem, but IIRC one mine in the U.S. shipped out huge amounts and basically kept their mouths shut.

So you need to CYA. Just a heads-up.

Depends, fiberglass and mineral wool, blown in, as yours is, or batt loses R-value if compressed more than slightly. Cellulose, typically gray shredded paper, handles a fair amount of compression while maintaining R-value. It is tolerant of compression to the extent that I'm not sure you could reduce the R-value much pressing on it with your hands.

Also, to avoid confusion you might need to know that R-value is simply the inverse of U-value. U is the older term. A R-value of 2 would equal a U of 0,5. R replaced the older U because it was thought that people would be more comfortable working on the larger side of the decimal point.

Are you just wanting to put items in the attic or insulate the items in the attic?

Compressing or altering the insulation currently in your attic will create a dead spot allowing hot air in the summer to enter the living area and cold air in the winter to do the same more easily. Look at the housing code in your area for the minimum R-value for your region of the country. For instance R-19 is for use in walls with 2X6 construction or abourt 6 inches thinck of insulation.

If you are just putting items in the attic you may want to build a small platform to store the items on. You could do a simple sheat of plywood across the rafters or a more advanced setup. However you decide to do it you need to know the rafter spacing and you may want to support the rafters with cross bars or spacers to prevent fexing and possible celling damage in the room below the storage pad/area.

Advanced would be 2X4's across the rafters (attached so they do not fall over and help stablize the house rafters) with insulation inbetween the 2X4's then lay the plywood on top and attach it to the 2X4's so it stays put.

PINK STUFF...
If you add the pink stuff are you talking pink fibergalss based blow in insulation or batts or rolls of fiberglass based insulation? If you are using batts or rolls you need "Unfaced" insulation (unfaced means it has no craft paper on one side.) since you already have insulation in the attic the faced or with paper type will trap moisture and may cause mold/mildew as it will not breathe (or it, the craft paper facing, is a vapor barrier when inbetween layers of insulation). The faced stuff is mostly used in walls for being able to tack it to the studs or otherwise attach it.

hope this ansers your questions.

You are in Virginia,North/South,N.E./S.W.? Yes,It makes a Difference!Arlington doesn't Snow as Much as say-Blacksburg,Norfolk is Warmer than Arlington,Year round!Plenty of Variables,& Insulation/Vapor Barrier/Roofing is Different per North/South etc. I did Construction work in Virginia,for a Time!