Attic Insulation: Will It Lower Your Energy Bills?
When it comes to energy savings, proper attic insulation is the first step every homeowner should take, especially if they live in an older house that wasn’t built according to current strict energy codes.
The amount of money we waste each year on heating and cooling is downright obscene. In fact, about 70% of our energy bills account for making our home comfortable to live in.
The hard truth is that our energy bills shouldn’t be that high. It isn’t sustainable in the long run, especially since weather conditions are more unpredictable than ever.
Therefore, to stop wasting energy and keep the warmth or coolness inside our homes, we ought to work on our energy efficiency. The best way to do that is to tackle the highest point through which air will try to escape — the attic.
Attic Insulation 101
For most homeowners, opting for attic insulation is a no-brainer if heating their whole house seems to be taking way too long and costing way too much. When the attic is left bare, i.e., without insulation, the heat can travel to it and leak through. Thus, creating more warmth is practically inevitable but somewhat futile in the end.
In the best-case scenario, insulation can reduce energy loss by up to 30%. However, for it to work its magic, we have to consider the R-value.
Not all insulation is created equal, with some materials offering low insulating properties and poor heat transfer resistance. The R-value tells us exactly how much insulation we need, as well as which materials to choose.
In general, an attic’s R-value should be anywhere from R-38 to R-49.
How It All Works
Once the contractor inspects our attic and determines which insulation would work best, they’ll install it under the roof rafters. That will prevent the air from escaping the attic. Consequently, it will allow our cooling and heating equipment to work more efficiently and remain cost-effective.
On top of that, the insulation will prevent mold, rust, and any other type of damage related to excess moisture getting trapped in the attic. Thus, our roof will stay in good shape for many years to come.
Should You Opt for Attic Insulation?
Since this endeavor is a significant investment, we have to determine whether attic insulation is even necessary for our house. Of course, everyone is looking for extra energy savings. However, without asking a reliable expert to evaluate our attic, we cannot know for sure whether the project would pay off in the long run.
Fortunately, there are some telltale signs that clearly show our attic needs some extra maintenance.
For example, it needs more protection if icicles or ice dams are a common occurrence. Similarly, we ought to deal with hot spots as well. These may be a bit tricky to notice, so we ought to compare our roof with others in the neighborhood. Hot spots are clearly visible when there’s snow, as some parts of the roof won’t be covered at all.
Finally, to verify whether our attic has been leaking out heat, we should compare our current energy bills with previous statements. Sometimes, people don’t even notice they are wasting their money until it’s way too late to do anything about it. Keeping a good track of our expenses is, therefore, the best way to resolve a problem before it becomes a real nuisance.
Our heating or cooling equipment could also point out that something’s amiss in the attic. If we’ve been cranking up the heat more than usual or leaving the A/C running all day long, the devices may not be working at peak efficiency. That doesn’t just waste our money; the equipment will need frequent maintenance checks and repairs if it’s on all the time.
The M&M Team Is Ready to Help You Out
In the end, homeowners can expect serious savings if they invest in attic insulation. They won’t have to rely on their cooling or heating equipment to make up for the loss of energy. At the same time, they won’t have to replace the devices often and will be able to put the money they’d otherwise spend on repairs and maintenance to better use.
We do know that starting a home improvement project can be quite stressful, not to mention expensive. Because of that, we’re ready to give you a reasonable price and ensure that you save money by becoming a genuinely energy-efficient household. Call now to get a free estimate — deal with poor insulation issues head-on!
