When it comes to home improvement projects or building a new home, it’s hard to know if you’re choosing the best contractor for your job. How do you know the company is reputable and will be there to handle a problem that could come up down the road? Can you trust them to show up on the day the work is to be performed?

Don’t let the process of hiring an insulation contractor become overwhelming. Here are some tips to help ensure you are making the right choice:

• Experienced. There are many contractors who have limited insulation experience. It’s important to know your contractor has detailed insulation experience, particularly on your type of project. Check references and work history to be certain you are choosing a qualified contractor.
• Understands building science. A good insulation contractor will have a deep knowledge of building science. They will be able to speak clearly about your home’s overall energy performance and answer questions about topics like air sealing, mechanical ventilation, indoor air quality and more.
• Licensed and insured. A quality contractor should carry the proper insurance and licensing to work on your home or other project. If you have any doubt, ask.
• Customer focused. It is never too early to receive great service! A professional contractor will return your calls in a timely manner, answer your questions and fully explain your project estimate.

ABS Coastal Insulating has over 25 years of insulation experience. They are current on new insulation technologies, are properly licensed and insured, and care about providing great customer service. To schedule a free estimate for your insulation project, contact our office.

Looking for a product that will increase your home’s R-value and seal air leaks in one step? Spray foam insulation is the answer. The combination of insulating and air sealing is one of the best ways to save money on energy bills, improve indoor air quality and make your home more comfortable.

Air sealing is the process of reducing the amount of air that leaks in and out of a home. Homes have natural penetration points that result from the construction process. These penetration points are found around ducts, vents, chimneys, windows and more. These leaks allow outside air to enter the home and heated or cooled inside air to escape the home. This uncontrolled airflow can allow too much or too little air to enter or leave the home and provide entry points for pests and allergens. Sealing air leaks is an important step to reduce energy costs, help to keep out pests and allergens, and increase the overall air quality in your home.

Air sealing is an important part of home energy efficiency. It doesn’t eliminate the need for proper insulation. Spray foam insulation is a perfect solution to insulate and seal air leaks in one step. Spray foam insulation expands to completely fill a cavity. It is applied as a liquid and expands to 100 times its volume, allowing it to completely fill a cavity and seal any leaks in that cavity. Your home is insulated and air sealed with one application!

Interested in spray foam insulation and ready to get an estimate for your next project? Contact us today to learn more. 

If you are building a new home, now is the time to think about energy-saving products and features. By choosing the right building materials and products now, you’ll experience increased indoor comfort and lower energy bills beginning on day one. Here are three areas of your new home where smart energy investments will pay off:

1. Insulation
   Properly insulating the envelope of your home will help keep conditioned air inside your home and save on energy bills. Consider upgraded attic insulation, wall insulation and basement or crawl space insulation during the construction of your new home. Adding a professionally installed and complete blanket of insulation around your home’s exterior will help keep energy dollars in and exterior noise out.
2. Air Sealing
   Air sealing works in conjunction with insulation to seal off penetration points through which conditioned air can leak. Some penetration points are visible to the eye while others are more difficult to identify. Choose spray foam insulation for your new home to add R-value and fully seal air leaks in one step.
3. Doors and Windows
   Choose proper exterior doors and windows. Different sides of your home can be impacted by various weather factors including wind and sun. Consider the energy rating for windows and doors and the side of the home on which they will be installed. Be sure your insulation contractor also fully air seals around all doors and windows.

Do you have questions about insulation and air sealing for your new home? Could your existing home benefit from air sealing and upgraded insulation? Contact our office — we can help!

When it comes to home insulation, one of the first areas that come to mind is the attic. Do you know why attic insulation is important? Buildings have a natural airflow that draws inside air up and out. Adding insulation and sealing air leaks in an attic helps keep air that has already been heated inside your home, keeping your HVAC system from running unnecessarily and helping keep energy bills in line.

There are many ways to insulate an attic, with each option offering different levels of performance. Here are three ways to insulate your attic:

• Good: Adding blown-in fiberglass insulation. Adding blown-in fiberglass insulation to an existing attic increases R-value by adding a fresh blanket of insulating protection to your home. This is a basic method of upgrading attic insulation and a cost-effective option.
• Better: Adding insulation and sealing air leaks. Sealing air leaks and upgrading insulation dramatically improves home energy efficiency. In an existing home, attic insulation is removed and penetration points around the attic floor are sealed. After air sealing is complete, a fresh blanket of blown-in fiberglass insulation is installed. In a new home, penetration points around the attic floor are sealed before insulation is installed.
• Best: Insulating with spray foam. Spray foam insulation can be installed in an existing attic or the attic of a new home for optimal energy protection. Insulation is removed from the attic of an existing home and spray foam is installed along the roofline. This creates a thermal barrier along the attic ceiling to allow for storage along the attic floor. Spray foam insulation can be installed along the roofline of a new home as part of the construction process.

Adding insulation to your attic is one of the most cost-effective ways to save money on your energy bills each month. Are you wondering which insulation method is right for your home? Contact us to talk with one of our estimators.

Homes built on crawl spaces face unique challenges. If your home is built on a crawl space, you know firsthand the problems a crawl space can cause. Crawl spaces become naturally moist and are ideal living spaces for pests. A damp crawl space can cause odor inside the home and also compromise the structure of your home. These problems can be reduced by insulating and sealing your crawl space. Sealing your crawl space can also improve your home’s comfort, help reduce your energy bills and improve the quality of air inside your home.

Winter is a great time to insulate and air seal your crawl space. Here are three reasons to insulate and air seal your crawl space before winter:

1. Better Indoor Air Quality
   There are penetration points in the ceiling of your crawl space that connect directly to the main floor of your home. These penetration points are a natural part of the construction process and exist around wiring, plumbing holes and more. As your home breathes, damp air from your crawl space flows into your home’s living space. This brings the damp, polluted air directly into your home and the air your family breathes. Air sealing and insulating your crawl space can help improve air quality inside your home.
2. Reduced Energy Bills
   Your home’s natural airflow draws damp, cool air from your crawl space into your home. This air then has to be heated to your comfort level, requiring additional effort for your HVAC system – and additional energy use. Sealing your crawl space can help keep energy bills in line and help your HVAC system maintain a longer life.
3. A More Comfortable Home
   An unfinished crawl space affects your home’s everyday comfort. Are your floors cool during the winter months? Is your main living area cooler than the upper level of your home? Sealing and insulating your crawl space can help moderate the temperature in your crawl space and keep cool air away from your floors.

Crawl space problems don’t go away, but they can be corrected! Don’t let another season go by with a damp crawl space. Contact our office with your crawl space questions or to schedule a free crawl space estimate.

Don’t let another season of cool temps drive up your energy bills and make your home uncomfortable. If now is the right time to save money on energy bills, we can help! Here are five steps that can help keep your energy bills in line and keep your home comfortable:

1. Reverse Your Ceiling Fan.
   Let’s start with the easiest thing first! It’s common for this step to be overlooked. Change the direction of your ceiling fan to create an upward draft. This redistributes warm air and can make your home more comfortable.
2. Upgrade Attic Insulation.
   The majority of a home’s heat loss occurs through your attic. Adding insulation to your attic is a cost-effective way to save money on energy bills.
3. Check Your Gutters.
   Water can cause huge damage to a home! When you’re removing leaves from your gutters, check that they are fully functioning so they can properly drain water away from your home. (Tired of cleaning your gutters? Consider adding gutter leaf protection).
4. Air Seal.
   Air sealing helps prevent conditioned air from escaping. By sealing penetration points around the shell of your home, you’ll keep conditioned air inside your home and reduce wear and tear on your HVAC system.
5. Check Your HVAC System.
   Your HVAC system will work more efficiently and have a longer life if it’s regularly serviced. Having your system checked can also help prevent a system break down.

Interested in upgrading your attic insulation, upgrading your gutters, or sealing air leaks? Contact our office to schedule a free estimate!

It’s the time of year when a homeowner starts thinking about cleaning up leaves from their yard. Don’t forget about your gutters! Leaves easily collect in gutters, causing a variety of problems. If you’re tired of cleaning gutters every fall, consider adding leaf protection. If your gutters don’t have leaf protection, follow these steps to properly clean your gutters:

Clean out debris.
Carefully remove debris from the gutters to keep water moving away from your home. When cleaning your gutters, wear work gloves to keep your hands protected from sticks or any other objects. Washing out any remaining dirt can help the gutters perform better.

Check the installation.
The next step is to check that the gutters are properly secured. If there are loose areas or pieces missing, this is the time to replace them.

Check for damage.
Damaged gutters can damage your home. If you are need of a temporary fix, caulk can help until you can get new gutters installed. Also remember to check the rivets that are near the down spouts. The rivets help water flow properly to and through the down spout rather than running over the sides and down to your foundation.

If you notice problems with your gutters, it’s time to have them replaced. Contact our office to discuss your questions and schedule a free estimate. 

When you think of upgrading your home’s insulation, the attic is often the first area that comes to mind! This is the first area of a home that should receive an insulation upgrade. Do you know why it’s important to upgrade your home’s attic insulation?

1. Air Flow. Air naturally moves upward through your house (from the ground to the sky). This means your home’s interior air that’s already been cooled or heated is naturally drawn up and out of your house.  Adding insulation creates a thermal barrier to help keep air in. Air sealing your attic is an additional layer of protection to prevent air from moving around insulation and flowing out of the home.
2. Energy Savings. Heating and cooling costs account for up to 50-70 percent of the energy used in an average home. Taking steps to improve your home’s energy efficiency and keeping conditioned air inside your home will help reduce energy bills and wear and tear on your HVAC system.
3. Low Cost and High Return. Insulation has a high return on investment. Upgrading your home’s insulation will begin to pay back through lower energy bills on the first day it’s installed. To save even more, consider fiberglass insulation as a low cost option.

Upgrading attic insulation is cost-effective and helps you save money on your energy bills. Wondering if your home could benefit from additional attic insulation and air sealing? Contact us for a free estimate.

Is your home built on a crawl space? If so, there may be hidden problems that affect your home and your family. If your crawl space is not insulated and air sealed, here’s what could be in store:

1. Moisture Damage
   Moisture is the number one enemy of a crawl space and often goes unnoticed. A damp crawl space can affect the integrity of your floor joists and impact the structure of your home. The first step is to be sure water is properly draining away from your home. Next, insulate and air seal your crawl space to further help the space remain dry.
2. Pests
   Damp environments create ideal living conditions for pests. Wet or damp wood framing provides an excellent food source for termites and other insects. Air sealing and insulating your crawl space helps close access points to your crawl space. It also reduces moisture – one of the factors that draws in pests in the first place.
3. Poor Air Quality
   Your home naturally breathes. Airflow in a home goes from the ground, up through the house and out through the roofline. If your home is on a damp crawlspace, that damp air (and everything in it) is drawn up through the home and into the air you and your family breathe.  Air sealing your crawl space keeps that air below your home and out of your indoor air.
4. Lost Energy Dollars
   Need one more reason to insulate and air seal your crawl space? An unfinished crawl space affects your monthly energy bills. An unsealed crawl space can lead to uneven temperatures between rooms as well as high heating and cooling bills. Insulating and air sealing your crawl space can help keep your home comfortable and save money on monthly energy bills.

If you have questions about your crawl space, contact our office. We are happy to provide an estimate to insulate and air seal your crawl space.

Upgrading insulation often comes to mind when a homeowner wants to save money on their energy bills. Investing in upgraded attic insulation is an important energy upgrade for any home! Insulation reduces heat transfer and can reduce monthly energy bills.

Did You Know Air Sealing Your Attic Prior to Adding Insulation Could Save Even More Money?

The shell (also known as the envelope) of a home contains penetration points. These exist around places like windows, doors and electrical outlets. In an attic, these penetration points can be found around light fixtures, vents, chimneys and other similar points. There are many benefits to air sealing:

• Reduced energy bills. Air sealing a home is one of the most cost-effective ways to reduce energy bills by keeping air that has already been heated or cooled inside. ENERGY STAR estimates a homeowner can reduce heating and cooling costs up to 20% by upgrading their insulation and sealing air leaks.
• Reduced wear and tear on your HVAC system. By keeping heated or cooled air in your home, your HVAC system runs less often. This helps reduces wear and tear on the system and can extend its life.
• Better indoor air quality. Sealing air leaks can reduce the number of outside pollutants that enter a home. Not only can it keep your home cleaner by keeping out dust, pollen and even insects, it helps keep these out of the air you breathe.

Spray foam insulation is a great option to both insulate and seal air leaks in one step. In one step, foam insulation can air seal, create a thermal barrier and can even help control moisture. If you’re looking to air seal and insulate, spray foam is a great product to consider.

Interested in air sealing and insulating your home. Contact us to learn more.