Attic Insulation Houston, TX area

The purpose of attic insulation Houston, is to provide a continuous thermal barrier to minimize heat flow through the walls, ceiling and floor.
Insulation serves to keep a home comfortable and reduce costs for heating and cooling. The home will not be as comfortable and energy costs will be increased if insufficient insulation is installed, or it is installed incorrectly, such as being compressed or installed with gaps.

Recent studies have found that over a third of new homes have lower levels of insulation installed than specified and an additional fifth have serious installation problems that will result in significantly decreased effectiveness of the insulation. In addition, virtually all of the homes studied were found to have numerous insulation installation defects that reduce the performance of the insulation well below its rated R-value. All of these can lead to defect litigation. These cost-effective procedures will improve comfort, reduce energy use, and reduce potential defect liability exposure.

When it comes to making your Houston home more energy efficient and comfortable,
Attic Insulation is the most effective, least expensive application.
This is the starting point and should be done before all other measures are considered.

What Kind of Attic Insulation is Right for My Houston area Home?

You have several choices when considering what type of attic insulation is right for you.
There are two basic types of attic insulation, Blown-in Insulation, or Rolled-in style Insulation, also known as Betts, or Blankets.

Blown-In Attic Insulation Houston, TX

The more economical of the two is Blown-in Insulation.
This process is quick and easy, with the typical home usually taking one to two hours.
There are two kinds of Blown-in insulation product available to you, either fiberglass or cellulose.
Our experienced installers will pull a hose connected to state of the art blowing machine, through the access point, to the far end of the attic cavity.
Most homes have a central access point that allows entry to the attic crawl space, usually in a hallway or closet.
Working back toward the access point, the installer will then lay down a layer of loose fill insulation.
Using fiberglass or cellulose, the entire attic floor is covered from corner to corner and side to side, with a continuous layer of energy saving insulation. Once the process is completed, we replace the access panel; remove the hose and ladder from your hallway being careful to leave your home clean and tidy, just as we found it.

Rolled-In Attic Insulation Houston, TX

While Rolled-In Insulation and Blown-In Insulation perform the same from a thermal point of view, Rolled-In insulation is definitely the “Cadillac” of attic insulation. That said, Rolled-In Attic Insulation is more expensive than blown-in insulation and not for everyone however, there are some definite advantages to this option.
Rolled-In Insulation is installed onto the attic floor between your homes ceiling joists.
While blown-in insulation is sprayed in from a hose, Rolled-In Insulation is laid in by hand piece by piece. Each 4’ length is applied end to end, and side by side until the attic floor is completely covered.
The advantage to the Rolled-In Insulation over the blown-in type is that it is easy to remove, replace or re-arrange should any work need to be done in your attic such as, electrical work, plumbing, or inspections.
That said, all of this work can be done with the blown-in insulation in place however, while you can simply move the Rolled-In Insulation out of your way for the moment, if it is necessary to work through the blown-in type of material. Either way you decide to go, Attic Insulation is your first line of defense when it comes to home energy conservation, and a more comfortable home environment. Heat rises, and Attic Insulation will dramatically reduce the loss your home’s heat in the wintertime, and keep the summertime heat trapped in your attic from effecting your overall personal comfort .

How Much Attic Insulation Do I Need for my Houston area Home?

The performance of an insulation material is measured by "R-Value", where the "R" stands for Resistance.
The thicker the insulation, the greater/higher it's R-value.
The standard building code for attic insulation in Los Angeles County is R-30, but this code has been around since the 1970's back when gasoline was less than a dollar per gallon! Today we're seeing more counties and areas adopt a thicker rating, and that would be the R-38. It's the same insulation material, just different thicknesses. R-19, R-30 and R-38 is just like a Quart, Pint or Gallon of water. Same stuff, just different amounts of it!
If you live near the coast or in an area that has a mild climate, you probably would do fine bringing your attic up to a total of R-30, but further inland and in warmer areas we strongly recommend R-38, as it can keep a home an additional 5-8 degrees cooler in the summer as compared to the R-30.

Some people equate the R-30 and R-38 with an automotive analogy, one engine option offering 30mpg and the upgrade engine offering 38mpg, so if you live in a more moderate climate or plan to be in your home for a long time, the R-38 is probably a worthwhile choice!

Also, we generally charge only enough to cover our material cost when installing an R-38. Most homes have some old or "existing" attic insulation already in their attic. Typically we just add more insulation to what you already have in order to bring the attic up to an R-30 or R-38 rating. Many homeowners presume the old insulation needs to be removed, but this is rarely the case. The existing insulation may be dusty, filled with old roofing debris and look quite tattered, but it's just old material; it doesn't contain asbestos nor contain anything that wouldn't be rendered safe once new & fresh material is installed over it. Also, there's no chemical interaction or problem with mixing various insulation materials either. We actually can save you money by using your existing insulation as a base and installing enough additional material over it to bring the attic up to R-30 or R-38.