Reliable Insulation & Radon Testing Company in Ashford, CT

This homeowner in Ashford, CT called us hoping that we would be able to help him with his basement insulation. He stated that he had a cold, damp basement that had an odor. It needed new insulation. In a basement, the “rim joist” is the perimeter of the floor framing system along the exterior of the house. The joints and gaps between all the framing members allow for a lot of air leakage into the house. The rim joist is seldom insulated and never air sealed. Basement ceiling insulation, especially fiberglass batts, doesn’t stop the flow of cold air into the home. Results - cold floors, drafty, uncomfortable rooms, cold basement/lower level, higher heating and cooling bills and more condensation in the basement or crawl space in the summer.

We had the perfect solution for this customer. In this solution, we spray foam the rim joist in the basement in order to seal and insulate it. Two part expanding spray foam is installed on the rim joist and over the sill plate to seal all air leaks from the outside and insulate this important area of the home. Our spray foam has a high insulation value per inch of R7, and because it expands, it seals all cracks and gaps and joints where air from the outside enters the home. Results - warmer floors, less drafts, more comfortable rooms, the house is easier to heat and costs less to heat, less summertime condensation on cold basement surfaces.

The old thinking in crawl space construction was to vent the crawl space and create the thermal boundary (insulation layer) at the crawl space ceiling. It doesn't work. Insulation is pulled by gravity away from the sub floor you're supposed to be insulating. The same cold air under the insulation flows into the space on top of it - rendering the insulation useless. As the insulation gets heavier with moisture content, it falls away from the sub floor even more and can even fall to the floor. Fiberglass batt insulation has paper facing and organic material in the resin used to set the fibers into a batt - both are mold food. Results - mold, smelly insulation that is not providing any insulation value and has sagged or even fallen. Fogarty's Home Services will remove existing fiberglass batts from your crawl space. It's not fun laying on your back in a tight crawl space. Insulation has hostile fibers when it's disturbed. the insulation is very bulky and takes up a tremendous amount of space in trucks and our dumpsters which must be emptied. But it's necessary to have a healthy home in the end. Results - now the crawl space is ready to be fixed properly with other Dr. Energy Saver® solutions. The thermal boundary will likely be moved to the crawl space walls and vents eliminated. No more nasty fiberglass insulation!

Problem: 

Homeowner reached out to us to renovate their crawl space. 

Solution: 

Our team went right into action to make sure the homeowner was happy. Our team first cleared out all the old moldy/damaged insulation boards. Then sprayed the rim joists with spray foam and sealed up the walls and ceiling with SilverGlo foam insulation boards to ensure all the energy stays in the home and none gets outs. Lastly the team did a final check and cleaned up everything.