Spray Foam Insulation in Evansville, IN

Spray Foam Insulation in Evansville means working with older houses. The city sits on a meander of the Ohio River, which gives it the nicknames Crescent Valley and River City. It was founded in 1812 as McGary's Landing, renamed in 1814 and incorporated in 1817, and its biggest growth came in the late 1800s on river trade, coal and hardwood furniture.

Old housing stock

Point2Homes' census summary puts Evansville's median build year at 1961. About 22% of homes were built before 1940 and another 11% in the 1940s, and about 64% of units are detached single-family houses. Pre-war homes often have balloon framing, plaster walls with empty cavities and stone or brick foundations. Post-war houses tend to have shallow attics, basements or crawl spaces, and rim joists that have never been sealed.

Two seasons

Wikipedia lists Evansville's January average at 32.5F and July at 78.0F, about 41 days a year at 90F or above, roughly 45 inches of rain, and about 12 inches of snow. A leaky house loses heat all winter and gains it all summer, so sealing the attic and the rim joist pays off year-round.

Levees and damp basements

The 1937 Ohio River flood covered about 500 city blocks, and the city built higher levees afterward; on the east side they closely follow I-69. Homes on low ground can deal with damp basements and crawl spaces. Water gets handled before insulation goes on.

Code and foundations

The 2020 Indiana Residential Code lists Vanderburgh County in seismic design category C with a 24-inch footing depth. For insulation, the energy provisions call for R-38 ceilings and R-10 continuous or R-13 cavity on basement walls in Climate Zone 4.

Costs

HomeGuide puts rim joist foam at $2,000 to $2,500 and a typical attic job at $1,000 to $2,700 nationally. The written estimate after our visit is the price.

West side and east side

Evansville's west side is built on low rolling hills, while the east side developed in the valley behind the levees. Houses on the hills tend to have drier basements; houses in the valley are more likely to see damp walls after heavy rain. That changes the order of work: on the east side we look hard at basement and crawl space moisture before quoting foam.

Call (812) 965-6169 or get a free estimate to set up a visit.