If your attic insulation is soaked, moldy, smelly or full of droppings, we take out what's ruined and get the space ready for fresh insulation.
Insulation removal in Rohnert Park means taking old insulation out of your attic, walls or crawl space so new insulation goes onto a clean, dry surface, and most of the time I only recommend it when the old material is ruined.
Most calls start with something you noticed. Maybe it's a musty smell in the hallway, a stain on a ceiling under the attic, scratching at night, or a room upstairs that never feels right. Some of that is a reason to pull insulation, and some of it just means you need more on top, so the first job is figuring out which one you've got.
The price moves with how much of the attic is affected, how deep the old layer is, how bad the mess is, how tight the space is to work in, and what goes back in afterward. The schedule turns on whether a permit is needed and whether a specialist has to deal with vermiculite first. Your own picture comes after I've been up there, taken photos and walked you through what I'd do first.
Some jobs we hand off on purpose. The state licensing board says asbestos work on 100 square feet or more of material containing it needs a contractor classified for asbestos abatement, or one whose qualifier passed its asbestos exam, so that kind of work goes to a specialist and not our crew.
Pulling insulation fixes nothing if whatever ruined it is still there. These are the things I look at up there before I recommend taking anything out of your house.
Wet insulation usually traces back to a roof leak, a bathroom fan venting into the attic or a plumbing drip. If fresh insulation goes over that without the source fixed, it just soaks again, so I'll show you where the water came from and what has to happen before new material goes in.
Droppings and nests mean there's a way in, usually a gap at the eaves, a torn vent screen or a hole where a pipe comes through. Fresh insulation over an open entry is just new bedding for them, so the openings get dealt with first or the mess comes right back.
Once the attic floor is bare, every gap around can lights, pipes, wires and the hatch is right there to see. That's the best time for air sealing, closing those gaps before insulating, because otherwise the new insulation spends its life fighting a draft coming up from the rooms below.
From your first call to the walk-through at the end, here's who does what and what you'll know before any work starts on your house.
Give us a call or fill out the form and tell us what you're seeing up there, like stains, a smell or droppings. We'll get back to you and set up a time that fits your week.
I come out myself, go up into the attic or down into the crawl space and take photos. Then we sit down together, and I show you what I found, what can stay and what I'd do first.
On the day of the work, our crew protects your floors, handles the prep and does the job, with me on site or one of our lead installers running the day.
Before we pack up, I walk through the finished job with you so you can see what was done and ask about anything up there while it's all still in plain view.
A lot of old insulation can stay right where it is. If it's dry, clean and doesn't smell, new insulation can go on top, and paying to pull good material is money better spent sealing gaps or adding depth. I only recommend removal when it's soaked, moldy, smells bad or has rodent mess in it, because at that point the old layer is the problem.
The same thinking applies below the floor and inside the walls. In a crawl space, old batts, the pre-cut blanket rolls, often sag, pick up moisture and fall, and pulling those is usually the first step of crawl space insulation. Walls hide their insulation, so we only open them for a real reason, and wall insulation covers what goes back in.
Anything that looks like old vermiculite stays put. We leave it alone, point you to a separate asbestos specialist for the licensing reason above, and pick up the rest of the job once that's sorted. It's not something I'll eyeball and then go ahead with anyway, because the cost of guessing wrong lands on your family.
When a leak ruined one corner, we can pull just that section and blend new insulation into what's left. When droppings or mold are spread across the attic, patching around them doesn't make sense, so the whole floor comes out.
Foam costs more but seals air while it insulates. For most attics, sealing the gaps and topping up with blown-in, loose fill blown through a hose, is the better buy, unless your ductwork runs up there, where foam earns its price.
Tell us how the insulation looks and whether you've noticed water stains, mold or signs of rodents, and we'll reply within one business day to set up a time. The estimate is free, done in person at your home with no obligation, and I'll come out, take photos and show you what I'd do first. Satisfaction guaranteed.
(707) 576-6028I can't tell you up front that insulation removal needs a building permit here, or that it doesn't, so we check before work starts. Rohnert Park's Building Division takes permit applications, and contractors and owners can file them online. When it's unclear, we ask that office first, and if one's needed we apply, keep you posted and set up the inspections.
Asbestos has its own rules. The Bay Area Air District lists thermal insulation among materials that might contain asbestos, and within its area it must be notified at least 10 business days before a renovation removes 100 square feet or more of asbestos. Homes with four or fewer units can give 72 hours' notice for an added fee. That's the specialist's side, but it can push back when we start.
We're based in Rohnert Park and work across the cities around it in Sonoma and Marin counties, including Cotati, Santa Rosa and plenty of others nearby. The calls are much the same everywhere, older attics with flattened batts, droppings along the eaves, and stains from a roof leak that got fixed years ago while the wet insulation stayed.
I started out hauling bags and crawling through attics on a small crew, and the lead I worked under taught me to look at the whole house before selling anybody anything. That's still how I work. I come out for every estimate myself, and I'll tell you straight when your old insulation is fine and pulling it isn't worth the money.
I opened this business in Rohnert Park in 2021, so we've been at it five years, and we're best known for attic and crawl space work done in the right order. Our crew does the work, with me on site or one of our lead installers running the day. We're licensed and insured.
If you've got a smell, a stain or droppings up there, call (707) 576-6028 or send us a message and tell me what you're seeing. A quick look through the hatch with a flashlight is plenty, so there's no need to go digging around in it before I've had a chance to see it.
If the trouble is under the floor rather than above the ceiling, fresh insulation in the crawl space is how you get warmer floors back.
When a room stays hot or drafty even after the attic's sorted, the walls may be the gap worth filling, and we can look at that too.
We're based in Rohnert Park and handle insulation removal across Sonoma and Marin counties, including the cities below and plenty of others nearby.
Usually not, because new insulation can go right over old insulation that's dry and clean. The condition of what's up there decides whether you're paying for a removal or only for adding more, which is why I check it before recommending anything.
There's no fair number until I've seen your attic, because the biggest factor is whether anything has to come out at all. If the old layer is in decent shape, you skip removal and only pay for adding more. If it does come out, the size of the area, how soiled it is and what goes back in set the price.
Vermiculite is a pebble-like, pour-in fill, usually gray-brown or silver-gold. The EPA says it may not need to come out if it's confined and won't be disturbed, and advises a professional asbestos contractor before any work that would disturb it. It also suggests the remover be independent of whoever assessed it, so ask each company about any tie.
No. The CDC warns that vacuuming or sweeping rodent urine, droppings or nesting material can put tiny droplets carrying viruses into the air, so an attic with droppings needs a cleanup that leaves that waste unswept. The CDC also advises bagging soiled insulation in plastic for removal, which is one more reason to leave it alone until it's been looked at.
Zero Waste Sonoma says all kinds of ordinary insulation are accepted as garbage at the county's refuse disposal sites, at regular garbage rates. Loose blown-in material needs to be bagged, and fiberglass batts should be rolled and tied if possible. That rule is written for ordinary insulation.
Time on site depends on the size of the attic and how much has to come out, so it varies a lot from house to house. What usually stretches the calendar is waiting on a specialist if vermiculite turns up, along with the Air District notice period mentioned above, or a permit if the city wants one.
Clear a path to the attic hatch or crawl space access, and empty the closet or shelf right under it so the crew can get in. Keep kids and pets out of that part of the house while we work. Our crew protects your floors along the way, so you don't need to cover anything yourself.
Call (707) 576-6028 any day of the week until 10 PM, or use the form, so you're not paying for new insulation that ends up covering a problem you'll have to dig back out.
