Chicopee, MA's Leading Insulation & Mold Removal Company

This homeowner in Chicopee, MA called us hoping to talk about his insulation. He did not have much attic insulation, so he wanted it removed and replaced. He had a bad problem with ice damming that he wanted fixed before winter. Additionally, he had mold in his attic that he wanted remediated. His home was not energy efficient at all, and he had a lot of energy loss. Part of that issue was because he had ducts in his attic. A vented attic is the worst possible place to locate ducts. Attics are the extreme opposite temperature of the air the ducts are trying to distribute to rooms. They are 30˚F in winter when the air in the duct is 120˚F, and 125˚F in summer, when the air inside the duct is 55˚F. Ducts are very poorly insulated with fiberglass insulation - and air passes right through fiberglass. In winter the attic cools the duct and air in it. So instead of having 120˚F air that the homeowner paid to heat coming out of the registers into their rooms, it may be only 90˚F - making the homeowner uncomfortable, and the furnace run longer to heat the home - which costs more money. In the summer, the 120˚F + attic heats the ducts and air in them, and instead of 55˚F air that the homeowner paid to cool coming into their rooms, it may be 70˚ - reheated by the ducts in their hot attic. Their AC has to run longer to make them comfortable. Ducts have lots of joints, gaps and holes. These are not only air leaks into the vented attic when the air handler is OFF, but they are POWERED air leaks when it’s on. Air the homeowner paid to heat and cool and wants to go to their rooms is leaking out of the ducts into their attic and is lost! Return duct leaks suck in very cold dusty air to try to heat, or very hot dusty air to try to cool. Result - Uncomfortable rooms, some rooms (farther from the air handler) won’t heat/cool, higher fuel and electric bills, more dust, more noise.

We had the perfect solution for this customer! In this solution, we seal and insulate the ducts right over the existing insulation with 1” of closed cell foam insulation. Air cannot leak through the foam. Not only does Tite ‘n’ True Foam Duct Encapsulation have a superior R-value per inch, but it recovers some insulation value from the existing duct wrap by making it air tight. Any inaccessible areas on the bottom of ducts can’t be sprayed with foam, but when this solution is combined with TruSoft™ blown insulation, the ducts are often substantially buried in cellulose insulation as well. Now, when the furnace or air conditioner heats or cools the air, that heating/cooling is delivered to the rooms without loss along the way! Results - More comfortable rooms, warmer in winter and cooler in summer, less dust/noise, lower fuel/electric bills, longer furnace/AC equipment life.

This homeowner in Chicopee, MA called us hoping to get his basement insulated. He owned the home with his mother, and it had some comfort problems. There was no insulation in the rim joist. 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.

This homeowner in Chicopee, MA approached us at a home show hoping that we would be able to help him with his attic insulation, as he was having some problems with air leaks. When our Home Comfort Specialist came out to the home, he noticed that they had a metal chimney pipe, which led to a gap between the chimney and insulation. A metal chimney pipe can get hot. This is why the building code requires that combustible materials (wood, insulation) be kept 2” away from the pipe. This leaves a space around the pipe from the basement (or lowest level) to the vented attic. This is a big air leak where warm air from inside continually leaks out, including incidental heat from combustion appliances that would warm the house otherwise. Once the heat is in the vented attic, it is lost to the sky. Air that leaks out of the home is replaced with new outside air that leaks in. Results - greater overall air leakage, heat loss, more drafts, more uncomfortable home, higher fuel and electric bills.

We had the perfect solution for this customer. First the opening around the metal chimney is sealed with sheet metal and fire caulk to stop air flow. In order to fully insulate the attic with TruSoft™ cellulose insulation, a “Rock Wool” sleeve is installed around the metal chimney pipe. Rock wool is completely fireproof. Now there are no air leaks and no gaps in the insulation around the metal chimney where air the homeowner paid to heat can leak out! Results - a more comfortable home, less drafts, lower fuel and electric bills.

This homeowner in Chicopee, MA called us hoping that we would be able to help him with his attic. He had mold in the attic that needed to be treated. When our Home Comfort Specialist came out to the home, he noted that part of the issue was the inadequate insulation. Since attics are vented, we should think of them thermally as outside in the winter. In summer because of the suns radiant heat, they are much worse than outside, reaching 130˚ on summer days. Clearly, we need to keep an absolute boundary between our living space and the attic so inside air doesn’t move to the attic in the heating season (convection), and heat doesn’t pass up through our ceilings in winter (conduction), and down from our ceilings in the hot summer (conduction, radiation). To reduce overall air leakage, the attic is the first priority because warm air rises to the top of the house and finds any and all holes to leak out into the cold vented attic and is lost. Holes, gaps and joints include between drywall and framing at the top of walls, around pipes, wires, electric boxes, fixtures, duct, penetrations, ceiling grilles and joints in framing. And the only reason cold air leaks in from the outside at the lower levels of the house, is that warm air leaked out of the top and created a suction at the bottom. Attics are dramatically under insulated compared to today’s standards. Result - cold drafty rooms downstairs, colder floors, house is harder to heat and keep comfortable, higher fuel and electric bills.

We had the perfect solution for this customer. Adding insulation in an attic without sealing all air leaks first should never be done, because it is just burying air leaks and making them impossible to seal later - and insulation DOES NOT STOP air leaks. That’s why, in this solution, we first carefully air seal the many various points where air from the home leaks up into the attic and is lost. Our premium TruSoft™ cellulose insulation is blown to the optimum R-value (typically R60). TruSoft™ will not burn, get moldy, or attract pests. Blown insulation fills all gaps and odd shaped voids, and by filling over framing members, “thermal bridging” is avoided. Results - a warmer, more comfortable, less drafty house that the homeowner notice everywhere - even downstairs! House is quieter. Fuel and electric bills are lower.

This homeowner in Chicopee, MA called us hoping to replace his old basement windows. When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived, he noticed that the windows that were there were very inefficient and thin. This was making the homeowner's home cold in the winter. “Clear”, single pane glass lets heat escape by conduction through the cold glass. And old wood windows leak a lot of air because the house has lower air pressure at the bottom, and sucks lots of cold air in from outside. Basement windows are near the ground or even in window wells, where the damp environment causes rot and paint to peel. Rotted sills let outside air and even pests into a home. And often old wood windows don’t look very good at all, especially from a finished basement. Results - cold basement, cold floors upstairs, drafts, less comfortable home, more condensation in the basement in the summertime, higher fuel and electric bills

Luckily, Fogarty's Home Services had the perfect solution for this customer. We were able to replace his windows with more efficient and attractive Everlast™ windows. First, the old windows and frames were removed. New Everlast™ basement windows were installed. The sliding windows have double pane glass with a special metallic “Low E” coating to reduce heat flow in or out through the glass. The frame and sashes are made completely from vinyl - the perfect material for a window so close to the ground in a damp environment - they will never rust, rot, or need paint. Results - warmer basement, warmer floors above the basement, less drafts, less condensation in summer, lower overall home air leakage, lower fuel and electric bills.

This homeowner in Chicopee, MA called us hoping we would have the answer for her cold floors. Our Home Comfort Specialist came out to take a look and noted that she did not have a door at the bottom of the steps leading to her basement. Steps from the basement to the outdoors are convenient, but the (metal) hatch doors that cover them are completely uninsulated and leak lots of air. Cold winter air gets sucked into the home continually in winter. In summer, warm humid air enters the basement and causes condensation on cool floor, wall and duct surfaces. Results- Cold basement, cold floors on first floor, drafts, higher heating fuel costs, condensation in summer, higher electric costs for A/C.

Fogarty's Home Services had the perfect solution for this customer. We installed an insulated exterior door at the bottom of the steps. Proper framing was installed and a new insulated exterior door with weather-stripping and locking knob was installed. Now “inside” the house is inside the door, and “outside” is outside the door, so it doesn’t matter that the hatch door is uninsulated and leaks air. Result - warmer basement and floors over the basement, drier basement in summer, lower fuel and electric costs, less drafts, house easier to heat, more security.

This homeowner in Chicopee, MA called us due to his high electric bills. When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived in the home, he noticed that one of the issues with the home were the very old, inefficient windows he had. Some were even covered with taped-up cardboard in order to try and keep some of the cold from coming in during the winter. They also had brown metal frames on the windows. Obviously, this was a situation in need of attention. Single pane clear glass lets heat from the home escape by conduction through the cold glass. Metal is highly thermally conductive and a poor material for a window frame. And metal rusts in the damp environment near the ground. Perhaps the worst part is that these basement windows leak air - lots of it, because the house has lower air pressure at the bottom and sucks cold outside air into the home, causing a cold basement and cold floors above. Results - cold basement, cold floors upstairs, drafts, higher fuel and electric bills, more condensation in the basement in the summertime, less comfortable home.

Fogarty's Home Services had the perfect solution for this customer's needs. This solution was to replace the windows with Everlast™ high efficiency vinyl window inserts. The window sashes were removed and Everlast™ basement window inserts were installed and sealed airtight. They feature 2 panes of high performance “Low E” glass, which lets visible light through but blocks most of the heat flow with a special metallic coating on the inside of both panes of glass. The sash features a vinyl frame - the perfect material for a window in the damp environment near the ground. The vinyl looks great and will never rust, rot or need paint. Results - warmer basement, warmer floors above the basement, less drafts, less condensation in summer, lower overall home air leakage, lower fuel and electric bills.

This customer in Chicopee, MA called us with concerns about his electric bill going up significantly. When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived, he noted that the insulation was the original insulation, installed over 60 years ago! Due to that, the insulation was insufficient, and there were several parts of the house that were not insulated to current standards. One of these things was the scuttle hole. A scuttle hole is necessary to access an attic. The problem is they leak a LOT of air that the homeowner paid to heat from their home to the vented attic where it is lost. All this air leaving the top of the house is replaced with cold outside air entering at the lower levels of a home, causing drafts, cold floors and uncomfortable rooms that are hard to heat. In addition to these problems, a scuttle hole is a big area in a ceiling that is not insulated - and an attic can be 30˚F in the winter and a blazing 130˚F in the summer!

Fogarty's Home Services offered several solutions to this homeowner. One of them was to air seal and insulate the scuttle cover. The scuttle cover is weather-stripped to stop air leakage. Then the cover is insulated with a SilverGlo™ foam insulation panel. SilverGlo™ has graphite infused into the foam which bumps up the R value (insulation value) by 24% over standard EPS foam. In addition, it has a radiant barrier on top to reflect heat from a hot summer attic. Result - a tighter, more comfortable, less drafty home you’ll notice. Rooms easier to heat and lower fuel and electric bills.

This homeowner in Chicopee, MA called us due to drafts and extremely cold rooms in her home. When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived at the property, he noticed that one of the issues with her home was that her crawl space was not insulated. Millions of homes were built with vented dirt crawl spaces. Now all building scientists agree - that was a big mistake. Now building codes are changing. In the winter, vents let cold air directly into our home. Floor insulation sags away from the sub floor and the cold air gets above it - rendering the insulation useless. In the summer the vents let warm humid air in which is cooled by the subterranean crawl space. This caused the relative humidity to go way up and condensation to form all over the crawl space surfaces including floor joists and ducts. Mold grows and wood rots, while insect and other pests flourish. Musty odors can be noticed upstairs as mold spores travel upwards into the living space. Eventually rotted floor joist must be replaced and mold must be remediated. An unending stream of water vapor comes up from the ground adding to the moisture load in the crawl space and house. The damp air is harder to heat and cool. Result - condensation, mold, rot, pests and odors, cold floors, drafts, uncomfortable home, higher fuel and electric bills.

Luckily, Fogarty's Home Services knew exactly what to do to help this customer. We installed our CleanSpace™ encapsulation system with drainage matting, TerraBlock™ floor insulation and SilverGlo™ insulation on the walls. Your vents and other air leaks to the outside are sealed, often using our insulated vent covers. Walls are insulated with SilverGlo™ insulation with a reflective radiant barrier face. SilverGlo™ foam has graphite infused into the foam to increase the R-value by 24% over standard foam. A dimpled plastic drainage matting is installed across the floor to create an airspace and thermal break, and TerraBlock™ floor insulation is installed over it. Finally the heavy duty, 20 mil thick CleanSpace™ crawl space encapsulation liner is installed permanently across the dirt floor - sealed with mechanical fasteners to the walls and spiked to the floor. CleanSpace™ features Ultrafresh™ anti-microbial ingredients in the product. Results - much lower humidity, much warmer floors upstairs, less drafts, more comfortable house, lower fuel and electric bills.

Our customer in Chicopee, MA called requesting help with re-insulating of his home. Our Home Comfort Specialist went out to see the current state of the insulation and found uninsulated rim joists.  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 your 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

The homeowner requested one of Fogarty's Home Services' solutions in order to seal up the rim joists in his home. Two part expanding spray foam is installed on the rim joist and over sill plate to seal all air leaks from the outside and insulate this important area of your home. Dr. Energy Saver’s 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 your home. Results - warmer floors, less drafts, more comfortable rooms, your house is easier to heat and costs less to heat, less summertime condensation on cold basement surfaces.