The Upstairs Should Not Be Ten Degrees Hotter

Because we are already in the attic on every job, and because insulation and ventilation are the same conversation. Insulation slows heat moving between the house and the attic. Ventilation moves air through the attic itself. Getting one right and the other wrong is how attics end up with rotted decking and shingles that age years early.

Rooms that never hold temperature, upstairs noticeably hotter than downstairs in summer, and rising heating and cooling bills without a rate change. In the attic itself, look at whether the insulation sits below the top of the ceiling joists, and whether it is evenly spread or has been pushed around by decades of people stepping through it.

Not on its own, and this is the part that surprises people. Insulation slows heat crossing between the attic and the rooms below. It does nothing about heat and moisture already in the attic, which is what ventilation handles. An attic packed with insulation and starved of airflow is a common and expensive combination.

Yes, and it is one of the most common problems we find. Blown insulation pushed out to the eaves buries the soffit vents and closes off the intake completely. The fix is a baffle in each rafter bay, which holds a clear air channel open from the soffit up to the attic while letting the insulation sit at full depth everywhere else.

It is the sensible time. The attic is already open, the ventilation is already being measured, and the intake and exhaust are already being corrected if they need it. Doing insulation separately later means paying for access twice and risks burying vents that were just put right.

It depends on where you are and what assembly you have. The region spans two climate zones and the target changes with them, with what is already up there, and with whether the attic is vented. We measure the existing depth and coverage during the free inspection and tell you what your house is short by, rather than quoting a number that may not apply to it.