Drafty rooms, a hot upstairs or an attic you've been putting off for years? We seal the gaps, then add insulation that stays put.
Retrofit insulation in Rohnert Park means adding insulation to a house that's already built, usually by blowing loose fill across the attic floor or into closed walls, with the gaps sealed first so the new material actually does its job.
A lot of older homes have very little insulation in the attic, and some have none at all. The usual fix is blown-in insulation, loose cellulose or fiberglass blown through a hose and spread evenly over the attic floor. Walls can be done too, but that's a separate decision, and I'll help you make it once I've been up there and seen what you've got.
The price comes down to how much attic floor you have, how many inches are already up there and whether the old material can stay or has to come out first. The schedule turns on the same things, plus how much sealing the house needs, and wall work adds drilling and patching. The estimate visit is where you get the number for your own house.
Most retrofits that disappoint people go wrong in the same few places. Here's what I look for up there, because getting these right matters as much as the insulation itself.
Blowing fresh material over old insulation that got soaked or is full of droppings just buries the problem, and it's still there under the new layer. I check what's already up there and how deep it is, and if it needs to come out, we handle that first with our insulation removal work.
Your attic breathes through vents along the eaves, and when insulation gets piled over them, moisture can start showing up in the framing. Baffles, simple channels set at the edge of the roof, keep that airflow open and stop loose fill from spilling down into the eaves where it does no good.
A common mistake is a deep pile in the middle of the attic and a thin skim at the edges, which leaves the rooms along your outside walls shortchanged. Blown insulation should be as even as it can be, covering the whole ceiling right out to the top plate, the framing where the wall meets the roof.
Here's how a retrofit job goes with us, from the first call to the walk-through, so you know who you'll see and what you'll get at each step.
Call (707) 576-6028 or use the form, tell us a little about the house and what's bugging you, and we'll get back to you to set up a time for me to come out.
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 and what I'd do first.
On the day of the work, our crew protects your floors, handles the prep and does the install. I'm on site, or one of our lead installers is running the day.
Before we pack up, I walk through the finished work with you, so you can see what got sealed, where the new insulation went and how the eave vents were kept clear.
With an older house, the first question is where to start, the attic or the walls. I help you decide that based on what I find on the visit, not on a standard package. The attic is usually the easier place to begin because it's open and reachable, but if it's already in decent shape and the walls are empty, the walls may deserve the first look.
Before anything gets added, we check the recessed lights, because a can that isn't ICAT rated, the rating for lights that can touch insulation and hold back air, needs a cover first. If you're not sure how yours are rated, I'll look on the visit. Then we block off open spots so the new insulation stays where it belongs. The usual approach is solid blocking over big holes and open soffits, and metal blocking with collars around hot flues.
People ask me about foam a lot. Spray foam insulation costs more, but it seals air and insulates in one pass. For most attics, sealing the gaps and topping up with loose fill is the better buy, and that's what most of our attic insulation work looks like. The exception is when your ductwork runs through the attic, because foam at the roofline brings those ducts inside the insulated space.
Most older homes get the most from starting overhead, since the attic floor is open and easy to seal and fill. Walls can follow later without redoing anything up there.
If the attic already has a decent layer and the walls feel cold, the walls may come first. Which side we work from depends on how much access there is and the condition of what's behind your siding.
Send the form and we'll reply within one business day to set a time. I'll come out for a free on-site estimate, go up into the attic or crawl space and show you what I'd do first. There's no obligation to go ahead.
(707) 576-6028In Rohnert Park, the city's Building Division issues permits for alterations and repairs to buildings. Its list names things like reroofs and fireplaces but not insulation, so whether a retrofit needs a permit isn't spelled out. When a job does need one, we apply for it, keep you posted and set up the inspections. When it's unclear, we check with that office before work starts.
Only a licensed California contractor or the legal property owner can be issued a permit here, and the division takes applications online from either one. California licenses insulation installers under its C-2 class, which covers putting in any insulating material for temperature or sound control. The state's Energy Code also sets efficiency rules for alterations to existing homes, not just new ones, which is part of why we check before starting.
Most of the older houses we get into, in Rohnert Park and nearby cities like Cotati and Petaluma, have attics nobody has touched in years. We usually find thin, settled insulation, cans with no covers and eave vents half buried, which is exactly the kind of house a retrofit is made for.
I come out for every estimate myself, and I go up into the attic instead of guessing from the hallway. 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. I still work that way, and I'll explain what's going on up there in plain words.
I opened this business in Rohnert Park in 2021. We're licensed and insured. Every job comes with our promise, satisfaction guaranteed. If there's an attic you've been meaning to deal with for years, call (707) 576-6028 or send us a message, and I'll come take a look.
Worth a look when ducts or the furnace sit up in the attic, since foam sprayed under the roof deck brings that space inside the insulated part of the house.
For a hot upstairs or a room over the garage that never feels right, sealing and filling the attic floor is often the first job worth doing.
We're based in Rohnert Park and work across the cities around it in Sonoma and Marin counties. The cities below have their own pages, and we work in plenty of others nearby too.
Across the US, installing blown-in attic insulation usually costs about $4 to $7.50 per square foot. That's the general market figure, not our price. Your number depends on how big the attic is, what's already up there and how much sealing comes first, and I'll give you yours after I've been up in the attic.
Yes, the air sealing, closing every gap that goes through the attic floor, should happen before any insulation goes down. Sealing saves energy, lowers your power bill and helps head off moisture problems up there. Once the insulation is in, those gaps are buried and hard to reach, so it belongs in the same job.
The common way is drill-and-fill, where small holes go in near the top of each wall cavity and the space gets filled with blown-in insulation. Working from inside leaves the drainage plane, the water barrier behind your siding, alone. Working from outside cuts through it, so it then has to be patched or replaced.
Leave it alone and don't try to remove it yourself, which is what the EPA advises. If planned work would disturb it, a professional asbestos contractor needs to handle or remove it first, and we won't blow anything over it until then. In the meantime, keep stored boxes out of that attic and keep kids from playing up there.
Clear a path to the attic hatch or crawl space door so I can get up there. It helps to jot down roughly how big the attic floor is and whether you have recessed can lights or any vermiculite you know about. Anything you've noticed, like a hot upstairs or cold floors, is worth mentioning too.
It depends mostly on the size of the attic, whether old insulation has to come out first and how much sealing and blocking the house needs. Wall work adds drilling and patching on top of that. I'll give you a straight answer on timing at the estimate, once I've seen what's up there.
Call (707) 576-6028 or send a message, and you'll know whether your attic or your walls should come first before you spend anything on either.
