The technically correct approach depends on a number of factors.
Insulating a hip roof attic.
The attic is uninsulated.
A finished attic should be insulated much like the rest of the house with insulation in the walls and ceiling.
If your attic is often used or perhaps you plan to convert it in the future you will need to insulate the inner surfaces of the roof.
No outlet venting found.
If you have a flat garage roof and an attic above you can install the garage insulation from below using a standard ladder.
The 2nd story ceiling insulation is a blown in cellulose and the walls 2nd story down is a blown foam.
There is only about three feet of non hip ridge.
Most codes require a specified minimum amount of headroom and it s tough to meet this requirement when insulating a finished attic especially since most.
To meet all three goals insulating your finished attic ventilating the roof and maximizing headroom use a combination of dense batt insulation rigid foam sheeting and air chutes.
With a finished attic insulation must help keep the attic areas comfortable.
Whether or not there is an inner roof lining and the total thickness of the roof structure.
I would recommend that you install them the full length from the lowest part of the attic to where there is an adequate air space existing.
In either case you will need to follow the general steps below to insulate your garage roof.
Insulating the pitched roof.
That means insulating the attic floor only not the walls and having vents in the roof.
However if you have a cathedral style garage roof you will need a scaffolding to get into the upper areas of the roof.
How to insulate a finished attic.
Insulating in and around your roof attic space also prevents long term damage from moisture build up or ice damming which results from the warm air trying to escape through the apex of the roof but instead heating up the snow.