Local Insulation and Home Energy Company in New London County, CT

This homeowner in Lebanon, CT called us out to their home to help resolve some comfort issues they were experiencing. They were worried about their pipes that had been freezing during the winter.  We sent our Building Science Specialist to the home to perform our Free Home Energy Evaluation to get to the root of these comfort issues.

This home had a nasty dirt crawlspace that was negatively affecting their home. Millions of homes were built with vented crawlspaces and now that building codes are changing, building scientists agree that was a bad idea. In the winter, vents let cold air directly into the home. This was what was causing the pipes to freeze! This crawlspace had no pre-existing insulation so there was nothing to stop the air from entering the home.

We sat down with the homeowner to propose the treatments that would stop their pipes from freezing and keep their home comfortable all year round. They decided to move forward with those treatments!

This home called for our Crawlspace Encapsulation System. Click here to see a before and after of this crawlspace. First, all vents are sealed with our vent covers. Next, walls are insulated with our SilverGlo foam insulation boards which have a radiant barrier. The barriers consist of a highly reflective material that reflects radiant heat from the sun. A dimple drainage mat is placed on the floor of the crawlspace. Next, our TerraBlock floor insulation board. Finally, a heavy-duty 20mil thick anti-microbial liner is installed permanently across the floor. This results in no more frozen pipes, and lower fuel and electric bills. Thanks to Dr. Energy Saver by Eco Energy Solutions this house is more comfortable, and energy-efficient!

The photo shows the finished Crawlspace!

This homeowner in Norwich, CT called us out to their home to help them become more comfortable in their living space. They were having very cold, drafty rooms! We went to their home for a Free Home Energy Evaluation to see what we could do to get them comfortable! We saw they had no insulation in the home at all! This allows for mass amount of air to travel in and out of the home where you are paying to heat/cool the space! We proposed a Crawlspace Encapsulation System to them to completely turn the crawlspace into an efficient usable storage space! 

We insulated the walls with out SilverGlo EPS foam board and put down dimpled matting to create an airspace. We then sealed the rim joist and any air leaks and placed TerraBlock floor insulation over our matting. Now, we installed our encapsulation liner which is an antimicrobial vapor barrier to keep out moisture. Lastly, We install our spray foam insulation around the perimeter of the basement on the rim joist to seal all gaps and cracks!

Thanks to Dr. Energy Saver by Eco Energy Solutions, this home is now more comfortable, and Energy Efficient!

In the photo you can see the finished crawlspace!

This homeowner in Groton, CT called us out to their home to help them update the insulation in their home. We sent out our Building Science Specialist to conduct our Free Home Energy Evaluation. They discovered there was very old, inefficient insulation in their attic and crawlspace! They also discovered mold! Mold can be very dangerous. It is harmful to have in your home, especially for pets, young children, and older people.

Since attics are vented, we should think of them thermally as outside in the winter. In the summer, because of the suns radiant heat, attics reach a much higher temperature in their attic, higher than 130º ! Knowing this, we need to keep a boundary from the attic to our living space, so that air that you pay to heat and cool does not travel up into the attic, and get lost! To reduce overall air leakage, the attic is the main priority because warm air will rise to the top of the home and fine any and all air holes to leak out of. This resulted in overall drafty rooms, and high heating/cooling bills. 

We knew the right treatments to help this homeowner become efficient in their homes!

First, we attacked the attic. We spray our Mold-X Mold Killer in the attic on any and all areas, nooks, and crannies. This will get rid of the mold and make sure new mold spores do not start growing. Now we are able to air seal, and insulate!

We first seal up all top and end plates with foam to make sure there is no air able to escape, and so that the insulation is not trying to work all on its own. Insulation needs to be paired with proper air sealing, otherwise you are burring air leaks with just insulation! Next, we blow in our TruSoft Cellulose insulation. This fills in all cracks, gaps, and voids where air could escape through!

Now we can get to the crawlspace! We started off by clearing out this old insulation. We install our SilverGlo graphite infused foam board onto the walls to insulate the crawlspace to keep heat in during the winter. We then got to work on the dirt floor of the crawlspace. We laid down our dimpled drainage to create an airspace and thermal break. Then we put down our TerraBlock floor insulation, and finalize our sealing off the crawlspace with our vapor barrier liner to keep moisture from getting into the crawlspace and creating any mold issues. Finally, we seal off the rim joist, otherwise know as the perimeter of the floor framing of the house, to stop cold air from creeping in with spray foam insulation.

Thanks to Dr. Energy Saver by Eco Energy Solution, this home is now healthier, more comfortable, and energy efficient!

In the photo you can see the after of the attic treatment we did for them!

Problem:

This homeowner called us because his attic was poorly insulated with old fiberglass batt insulation and was in need of an upgrade.

Solution:

Our Building Science Specialist confirmed quickly that the attic insulation certainly needed an upgrade. We would perform this service by removing and disposing of all existing fiberglass batt insulation. The attic is then to be cleaned and prepped for new insulation. We then air seal and blow in TruSoft™ Cellulose Insulation to the proper R Value. This project is now complete and the attic is upgraded and the homeowners will be able to enjoy the benefits of a more energy efficient home and lower energy bills. 

Problem:

This homeowner called us because he wanted to have insulation installed in a partially finished room over his garage. There are existing 2X4 walls that needed to be insulated and ready for sheetrock.

Solution:

Our Building Science Specialist went to the home and met with the owner to discuss this project in further detail. In a case like this, where the customer wants to finish the area himself and just have us do insulating, we would air seal all penetrations with spray foam then Install & secure InsulWeb™ fabric webbing across the rafters and studs. We then create holes where we blow in TruSoft™ Cellulose Insulation. We finish up by leaving the area fully prepped for sheetrock, tape and paint to be completed by the customer.

Problem:

This homeowner wanted to be more comfortable in their home during the summer during previous years heat gain through the attic. Making the home very uncomfortable in the Summer.

Solution:

Our building science specialists explained to the home owners that we have a Superattic advance conversion system. We first start by removing the old insulation and removing the gable and fan. Then installing SilverGlo across room rafter and gable. Next the Team installed the rock wool chimney wrap. Now the home is less drafty and will be warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer and will help these homeowners save on fuel and electric bills.

Problem:

Home Owner contacted us about an animal that used to be living in their crawl space and ripping down insulation and a result of that they are spending more on energy bills.

Solution: 

Our team gathered up the materials to use which include Moldx2 cleaner and Moldx2 Botanical, Spray Foam for the Rim Joist, Foamax boards and other amazing materials. After we finished with this job the crawl space was fully insulated and clean as can be. This resulted saving energy and lower energy bills for the homeowners. 

Attic insulation in your home can get pretty nasty. Over many years it sits there collecting dirt, dust, pollen, bugs, rodent feces (from mice, squirrels, bats, etc.), bird droppings and nests of all kinds of undesirable things. It's possible that old insulation like this can be moved aside for a proper air sealing job that must be done prior to adding enough TruSoft™ blown cellulose insulation to today's standards - but why not remove the old, nasty insulation from your home and start fresh? Fogarty's Home Services will conduct the unpleasant task of removing the damaged, soiled insulation in your attic. Batt insulation is bagged and then the attic is vacuumed to remove pieces, parts and dust. Loose fill insulation is vacuumed with a giant vacuum located outside with giant filter bags and a very long, fat hose. Result - Now your attic is clean! It's ready for proper air sealing and installation of clean, new, fresh TruSoft™ cellulose insulation or one of our other Dr. Energy Saver strategies to make your home comfortable and energy efficient.

Attic hatch pull down stairs are necessary to access your attic. The problem is that when closed, they leak a LOT of air that you paid to heat from your home to the vented attic where it is lost. All this warm air leaving the top of the house is replaced with cold outside air entering at the lower levels of your home, causing drafts, cold floors and uncomfortable rooms that are hard to heat. In addition to these problems, your pull down stairs are a big area in your ceiling that is not insulated - and your attic can be 30˚F in the winter and a blazing 130˚ in the summer!  This leads to, cold drafty rooms that are hard to heat, high overall home air leakage, and and higher heating and cooling (fuel and electric) bills.

Dr. Energy Saver’s exclusive “David Lewis Hatch Cover™” (named for our engineer who developed it) rests right over your pull down stairs. It stops air leakage and insulates over the stairs. Made of lightweight SilverGlo™ foam insulation, you just lift it aside to go up into your attic, and set it back in place when you leave. You don’t see anything from the finished area of your home. SilverGlo™ foam insulation has graphite infused into the foam which bumps up the insulation value by 24% over standard EPS foam. It also has a radiant barrier (foil) on the flat lid to reflect heat back in during winter and out in the summer, so the insulation isn’t doing all the work by itself.  The result, a tighter, more comfortable, less drafty home you’ll notice. Rooms easier to heat. Lower fuel and electric bills.

The second floor of a Cape suffers from inadequate insulation, and air leaks from the soffits into poorly insulated kneewall spaces. This results in cold drafty rooms in winter that are harder than necessary to heat, and hot rooms in the summer as roof heat radiates in unchecked.  Knee-wall spaces are dusty and too cold or hot and unsuitable for clean storage.

First, our SilverGlo™ foam insulation panels are installed on the bottom of the rafters in the kneewall spaces and the ceiling joist bays are blocked and sealed with foam to stop air leakage. Then the roof slopes are dense packed with TruSoft™ cellulose insulation to stop air flow and insulate. Finally, the flat ceiling is insulated with TruSoft™ cellulose insulation. The result, rooms are comfortable all year and need much less heat and air conditioning. Drafts are eliminated as kneewall spaces are airtight and clean and suitable for storage. Summer roof heat is far less

This homeowner in Pawcatuck, CT called us due to worries he had regarding his lack of attic insulation. Upon arriving, our Home Comfort Specialist realized that the homeowner had a cathedral ceiling -- meaning he did not have an attic space. In most areas of the United States, homes need R60 insulation in their attics - the equivalent of a 20” deep fiberglass batt. But cathedral ceilings only have the depth of the rafters (6”-11”) for insulation. Two factors relating to the optional vented roof design make the situation much worse. First, some of the rafter space is used for airflow (cold in winter) - which means even less space for insulation. Second, this air flow “wind washes” open faced fiberglass batts, reducing the R-value of batts that were designed and rated to be used in closed cavities with no airflow whatsoever. Result - your cathedral ceiling is dramatically under insulated. Air in your home that you paid to heat, hits the cold ceiling and descends, creating a “convective” loop making your room feel cold and drafty. In the summer, the roofing heats up to 160˚ and the roof heat radiates through the ceiling and heats up the room.

Luckily, Fogarty's Home Services had the perfect solution for this homeowner. We decided the solution was to dense pack the ceiling with our TruSoft™ Cellulose insulation from the soffit vent. The soffit vent is blocked with a continuous board which may need painting along with the fascia by the homeowner. The gutter and fascia board are removed and a TruSoft™ cellulose insulation is “dense packed” into the rafter bays through a long fill pipe inserted deep into the ceiling/roof. Dense packing fills all air spaces, compresses existing batt insulation, and stops air leakage. The ridge vent remains and functions not as an air vent, but a vapor vent. Result - Room is warmer in winter, cooler in summer, less drafty, more comfortable, lower heating and cooling bills, easier to heat and cool.

This homeowner in Pawcatuck, CT called Fogarty's Home Services about the fact that his attic insulation was ineffective and smelly. Upon arriving, our Home Comfort Specialist noted that there was an overwhelming amount of mold on the attic insulation. Mold in an attic is not normal, not healthy, and a sign that there is another problem in your home causing the relative humidity in your attic to go above 75% so mold can grow on wood and insulation. 

There is a very easy solution to this problem. Mold-X2 Cleaner effectively eliminates mold and mildew stains on contact. It is non-abrasive and non-flammable, and is sprayed on effected areas. There is a temporary odor from the product, so we recommend that homeowners leave the house for a few hours, depending on how well the space can be ventilated. Once Mold-X2 Cleaner is applied, mold disappears instantly, leaving wood surfaces looking nearly new. Mold-X2 Botanical, a plant-based disinfectant with a pleasant, temporary scent, is sprayed or fogged on surfaces, which prevents mold from growing back. Now, his attic was ready for other solutions. Result - Mold eliminated, no odors or wood rot.

This homeowner called us with concerns regarding the insulation in his attic. When we got to the home, we noticed that it required multiple forms of insulation. They had a sloped cathedral ceiling that was very hard to insulate. Therefore, it was very poorly insulated. 

Luckily, Fogarty's Home Services knew exactly how to help this customer. Blocks of SilverGlo™ foam insulation are installed between the ceiling joist bays. Outside the blocks, the surface of the ceiling is sealed with sprayed foam or SilverGlo™ foam. Silver-Glo™ foam insulation is installed under the rafters and sealed at the top with foam sealant. SilverGlo™ is expanded polystyrene foam insulation with graphite infused into the foam, which increases the R-value by 24% compared to regular EPS foam. SilverGlo™ also has a radiant barrier on both sides to reflect roof heat out in the summer and house heat back in during the winter. The addition of this radiant barrier gives some thermal benefit so the insulation isn’t left alone to do all the work. After installation, inside air can’t get out of the house and outside air can’t get in. Insulation is added, with integrity, to the correct surfaces. Results - significantly warmer upstairs room in the winter, cooler room upstairs in the hot weather, less drafts, more comfort, less dust. Lower fuel and electric bills. 

This homeowner in Lebanon, CT called us with concerns regarding his attic insulation being insufficient. When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived, he noted that one of the issues in this home was that there was an uninsulated chimney. As we were installing a SuperAttic™ system that would directly touch the chimney, we had to figure out a plan. There is scarcely a better strategy to make your home more comfortable and energy efficient than to create a conditioned attic with the SuperAttic™ system. However one installation detail that needs to be addressed is a masonry chimney - which cannot be touching combustible materials such as wood, plywood, fiberglass insulation or foam.

Our solution was to use a Rock Wool chimney wrap. Rock Wool is a non-combustible fireproof mineral fiber. Then the foam SilverGlo™ insulation used in the SuperAttic™ system can be installed and sealed against the Rock Wool. Results - The SuperAttic™ system can be installed safely around the chimney.

This homeowner in Voluntown, CT called us when he realized that his attic was extremely moist and his temperature-controlled air was going into the attic. When our Home Comfort Specialist examined the home, he noted that the attic was a multi-level attic. This presents a number of problems. First, multi-level attics can be hard to insulate properly. Additionally, attics can be 30˚ in the winter, and 150˚ in the summer! When one room under the attic has a higher ceiling than another room it leaves a short section of interior wall exposed in the freezing cold/baking hot attic. Since this wall is an interior wall, it’s not insulated. Even if the short exposed wall is insulated above the ceiling, fiberglass batts do nothing to stop air flow. This leaves cold air from your vented attic to descend down into the interior wall between the two rooms, and warm interior air to leak up into the vented attic. You have a major air leak and a cold wall bisecting the middle of your home! Result - colder rooms in winter, hotter rooms in summer, harder to heat and cool rooms, more drafts, higher heating and cooling costs.

Luckily, Fogarty's Home Services has the perfect fix for a multi-level attic. We utilize our SilverGlo™ insulation board. SilverGlo™ is installed on the wall and sealed with expanding foam to stop air leaks. It is expanded polystyrene foam with graphite infused into the foam to increase the R-value by 24% over standard EPS foam. In addition, SilverGlo™ has a radiant barrier on the face to reflect heat, adding to the insulation value. Result - Adjacent rooms are warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer, more even temperatures, less drafts, more comfort, lower heating and cooling costs - saving money.

This homeowner in Voluntown, CT called us due to insufficient insulation in his home. The issue was, he also wanted to be able to utilize his attic for storage. A vented attic is not a good place to store things because it heats up to 130˚ in the summer, gets down as low as 30˚ in the winter, and it’s dusty. Still, many homeowners value attic storage space for appropriate items. But when having your attic insulated well with blown insulation up to 17” deep, how can an attic still be used for storage? And if you have cooling or heating equipment in your attic that needs to be accessed for service, how is this possible with a thick blanket of blown insulation on the attic floor?

Our team at Fogarty's has a great solution for this issue. Our solution is installing a SuperPlatform™ and insulation dam. First our exclusive SilverGlo™ board foam is installed across the ceiling joists or existing plywood storage area. SilverGlo™ is EPS foam with graphite infused into the foam, which bumps up the insulation value by 24% over standard EPS foam. The Oriented Strand Board (OSB) is installed over the SilverGlo™ with very long screws and 3” washers. To keep blown insulation away from the new storage deck, we install dams made of oriented strand board approximately 18” higher than the drywall ceiling. When TruSoft™ cellulose insulation is blown into the attic, any space beneath SuperPlatform™ is filled. Result - A clean, useful, insulated storage deck separated from the TruSoft™ blown insulation in the attic.

This homeowner in Voluntown, CT was building a new addition to his home and reached out to us for insulation for the exterior walls. It's important to insulate all exterior walls. When you don't, the problems this would cause are obvious. If uninsulated, heat flows from more (inside) to less (outside in winter) right through the walls, and the opposite in summer. Nearly all walls leak air, insulated or not, causing drafts. The cold wall surface cools interior air which then sinks and travels across the floor and up the warmer interior wall, and across the ceiling back to the exterior wall. This is called a “convective loop” and makes rooms feel even draftier. Result - cold, drafty rooms, uncomfortable home, heating and cooling systems run much more and need more service, difficult to keep house at comfortable temperature, higher fuel and electric bills, dry home in winter, more dust/pollen, more humidity in the house in summer when air conditioned.

If you have uninsulated walls like this homeowner, Fogarty's Home Services has the perfect solution. We dense pack the walls with our TruSoft™ cellulose insulation. Siding is removed temporarily as necessary and 2-3” holes are drilled through the wall sheathing. A fill tube is inserted up (and down) into wall cavities to not only fill, but dense pack the wall cavities. Dense packing is a technique that packs the insulation in very tightly - so tightly that all irregular shaped cavities and crevices in the wall cavities are filled, and air will not penetrate the dense packed cellulose. Dense packed cellulose stops air flow through the wall and insulates. TruSoft™ Cellulose is treated to be highly fire, mold and pest resistant. Holes are plugged and siding is put back. Result - A less drafty, warmer, quieter, more comfortable house, less dust/pollen, house not so dry in winter, lower fuel/electric bills, heating system runs less - less maintenance.

This homeowner in Griswold, CT called us with concerns about his lack of attic insulation in his home, which he described as an "old farm house". When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived at the home, he noticed that the homeowner had high cathedral ceilings, which can make insulation a challenge. In our area of the United States, homes need R60 insulation in their attics - the equivalent of a 20” deep fiberglass batt. But cathedral ceilings only have the depth of the rafters (6”-11”) for insulation. Two factors relating to the optional vented roof design make the situation much worse. First, some of the rafter space is used for airflow (cold in winter) - which means even less space for insulation. Second, this air flow “wind washes” open faced fiberglass batts, reducing the R-value of batts that were designed and rated to be used in closed cavities with no airflow whatsoever. Result - the cathedral ceiling is dramatically under insulated. Air in the home that the homeowner paid to heat, hits the cold ceiling and descends, creating a “convective” loop making your room feel cold and drafty. In the summer, the roofing heats up to 160˚ and the roof heat radiates through the ceiling and heats up the room.

Luckily, Fogarty's Home Services was able to solve his problem. We dense packed his ceiling with TruSoft™ cellulose insulation. The process to do this is simple. The soffit vent is blocked with a continuous board which may need painting by the homeowner. The ridge vent is removed along with two courses of roof shingles and the roof sheathing is cut back approximately 4”. A long fill tube is inserted to reach the bottom of the ceiling plane and TruSoft™ cellulose insulation is “dense packed” into each rafter bay. Dense packing fills all air spaces, compresses existing fiber-glass batts, and stops air leakage. The plywood and roof shingles are re-installed. The ridge vent is re-installed and functions not as an air vent, but a vapor vent. Some touch-up (patching and painting) of the ceiling may be required by the homeowner if nails pop, which doesn’t always happen, but can happen if the drywall is not secured well. Result - Room is warmer in winter, cooler in summer, less drafty, more comfortable, lower heating and cooling bills, easier to heat and cool.

This homeowner in Jewett City, CT called us looking to get his crawl space insulated. When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived in the home, he noted that there were multiple crawl spaces that needed insulating, all on the same property. He also noted that the rim joist was not insulated. 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. Simple 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.

Fogarty's Home Services had the perfect solution for this customer's needs. Our solution is to spray foam the rim joist in order to seal and insulate it. Two part expanding spray foam is installed on rim joist and over sill plate to seal all air leaks from the outside and insulate this important area of your 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 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.

This homeowner in Stonington, CT called us because he believed that the home he had recently purchased did not have insulation. When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived, he confirmed that the kneewalls in the home did not have insulation. A kneewall space is created when a finished room is built within a sloped roof. A short wall called a “kneewall” forms a triangular space which may or may not be accessible with a short door or access panel. The floor of the kneewall space forms the ceiling of the room below it. The floor and kneewall itself are open to the kneewall space side with exposed fiberglass batts. Since fiberglass does not stop air flow, the insulation does next to nothing to air seal and insulate. The floor of the upper level, the ceiling of the lower level and the kneewall are all cold in winter and hot (from radiant roof heat) in the summer. The kneewall space is not suitable for storage since it is dusty and very cold or hot.

Fogarty's Home Services had the perfect solution for this lack of insulation. In this situation, we create a "Super Kneewall" with SilverGlo™ insulation. Blocks of SilverGlo™ foam insulation are installed between the ceiling joist bays. Outside the blocks, the surface of the ceiling is sealed with sprayed foam or SilverGlo™ foam. SilverGlo™ foam insulation is installed under the rafters up to the kneewall and sealed at the top with foam sealant. SilverGlo™ is expanded polystyrene foam insulation with graphite infused into the foam, which increases the R-value by 24% compared to regular EPS foam. SilverGlo™ also has a radiant barrier on both sides to reflect roof heat out in the summer and house heat back in during the winter. The addition of this radiant barrier gives some thermal benefit so the insulation isn’t left alone to do all the work. After installation, inside air can’t get out of the house through the kneewall spaces and outside air can’t get in. Insulation is added, with integrity, to the correct surfaces. Results - significantly warmer upstairs room in the winter, cooler room upstairs in the hot weather, less drafts, more comfort, less dust. A kneewall space suitable for clean storage. Lower fuel and electric bills.

This homeowner in Stonington, CT called us when he realized he needed additional insulation due to his very cold floors. When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived in the home, he noticed that this home did not have a crawlspace or basement -- instead, the home was built with floors that were open to the outside underneath them. Some homes or additions are designed with floors that have the outside air under them. Other times a home or addition was originally used as a summer home or “three season room”, and was converted to all season heated space later. When the outside air flows under a floor it feels very cold and uncomfortable in the winter - especially with ceramic tile, linoleum or laminate floors. Since the floor is the surface of the room we are in contact with most, it’s very important to fix, in order to be comfortable. There are two issues - air leakage through the floor, and conductive heat loss through the floor, because heat moves from more to less through solid materials. Even if there is fiberglass batt insulation in the floor, because it sags down away from the sub floor, the same outside air gets over it (“thermal bypass”) rendering it useless. Mold on the floor joists and sub floor is also a concern. Results - cold floors, drafts, uncomfortable rooms, greater overall home air leakage rate, higher fuel and electric bills.

Fogarty's Home Services has the perfect solution to this issue. We utilize our SilverGlo™ insulation board. SilverGlo™ foam insulation board is installed across the bottom of your floor joists with special long screws and 3” washers, SilverGlo™ is expanded polystyrene foam with graphite infused into the foam, which bumps up the insulation (“R”) value by 24% over standard EPS foam. Further, SilverGlo™ has a radiant barrier to reflect heat, so the insulation isn’t doing all the work by itself. All seams are sealed. If necessary a skirt board can be installed around the perimeter of the insulation so the edge is not visible. The skirt board may require painting after we are complete. Result - Much warmer floors, less drafts and more comfortable rooms, quieter home, lower fuel and electric bills.

This homeowner in Stonington, CT called us because she needed insulation done on her home she had recently purchased. When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived in the home, he spoke to the homeowner about what she was hoping for. She was hoping to get attic, wall, and crawlspace insulation done. When the Home Comfort Specialist went to the crawlspace, he noted it was poorly insulated and unencapsulated. 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.

Fogarty's Home Services had the perfect solution for this homeowner. In these situations, we utilize our CleanSpace™ encapsulation system. The vents and other air leaks to the outside are sealed. 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.

This homeowner in Groton, CT called us when she found out that her insulation was falling out of her crawl space ceiling. She also had sagging floors in parts of the home that were sagging into the crawl space. When our Home Comfort Specialist came out to the home, he noticed an extreme moisture problem that was causing both of these issues -- and was also causing a lot of mold. High relative humidity or high amounts of moisture in a crawl space will cause mold to grow on the surfaces of framing lumber, sub floors, insulation, and everywhere. Spores are the airborne seeds of mold, which are produced when the mold is growing and active. These spores float on airstreams up from the crawl space into the living space, and people with sensitivities can react to them. When we fix a crawl space properly, the crawl space will dry out enough so mold will not continue to grow. But what can be done to treat and eliminate the mold that’s already there?

Luckily, Fogarty's Home Services has the answer to that problem. For moldy surfaces, we utilize our Mold-X2 cleaner and Mold-X2 botanical treatment. Mold-X2 Cleaner effectively eliminates mold and mildew stains on contact. It is non-abrasive and non-flammable, and was sprayed on the effected areas. Once the Mold-X2 Cleaner was applied, the mold disappeared instantly, leaving wood surface looking nearly new. Mold-X2 Botanical, a plant-based disinfectant with a pleasant, temporary scent, was sprayed on the surfaces. Mold-X2 Botanical prevents mold from growing back. Now, the crawl space is ready for other solutions. Results – The mold is eliminated, with no odors or potential for wood rot. The crawl space is now ready for a permanent repair to keep humidity low.

This homeowner in Bozrah, CT called us with an insulation concern. She had a cantilevered floor between two stories of her home, which is a tricky spot to insulate with some products. In this person's home, a cantilevered floor stuck out past the wall below it. This building detail allows air to leak in, creating cold floors above and cold ceilings below. Insulation is inadequate does not fill the bay, and can not stop air flow. 

Luckily, Fogarty's Home Services had the perfect solution for this home. Our solution is to dense pack the cantilever with our TruSoft™ cellulose insulation. In this solution, 29/16” hole is drilled in each joist bay of the cantilever soffit. A special mesh bag is inserted into the hole and filled with TruSoft™ insulation via a hose and fill tube connected to a special blowing machine. Once packed full, the bag is pushed back towards the house and the cantilever spaces are “dense packed” with TruSoft™ cellulose insulation which stops air flow and insulates. Dense packing fills all spaces, however odd shaped they may be. Holes are plugged. Result - warm floors and ceilings, less drafts, increased comfort, quieter home, lower fuel and electric bills. 

This homeowner in Bozrah, CT called us with concerns about her attic insulation being insufficient. Our Home Comfort Specialist arrived in the home and was able to confirm that her home had old loose fill fiberglass insulation. Attic insulation in a home can get pretty nasty. Over many years it sits there collecting dirt, dust, pollen, bugs, rodent feces (from mice, squirrels, bats, etc.), bird droppings and nests and all kinds of undesirable things. Old insulation like this needs to be removed for a proper air sealing job, which must be done prior to adding enough TruSoft™ blown cellulose insulation to today’s standards.

Luckily, Fogarty's Home Services does this every day. Loose fill insulation is vacuumed with a giant vacuum located outside with giant filter bags and a very long, fat hose. Result - Now the attic is clean! It’s ready for proper air sealing and installation of clean, new, fresh cellulose insulation or one of our other strategies to make the home comfortable and energy efficient.

This homeowner in Bozrah, CT called us hoping to get her attic insulation checked. She feared it was insufficient. However, she also knew that she used parts of the attic for storage - and did not want to have to sacrifice that to get proper insulation.

Luckily, Fogarty's Home Services had the answer! We are able to build a SuperPlatform™ complete with insulation dams! First our exclusive SilverGlo™ board foam was installed across the ceiling joists. SilverGlo™ is EPS foam with graphite infused into the foam, which bumps up the insulation value by 24% over standard EPS foam. The Oriented Strand Board (OSB) is installed over the SilverGlo™ with very long screws and 3” washers. To keep blown insulation away from our new storage deck, we installed dams made of oriented strand board approximately 18” higher than the drywall ceiling. When TruSoft™ cellulose insulation was blown into the attic, any space beneath SuperPlatform™ was filled. Result - A clean, useful, insulated storage deck separated from the TruSoft™ blown insulation in the attic.

This homeowner in Colchester, CT originally called us due to the fact that water was leaking from the attic into the bedrooms of the home. When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived in the home he noted that as a result of the roof leaking, there was water coming into the unsealed attic and destroying the insulation. 

Luckily, we were able to help this customer out. We had to remove the damaged insulation first before we were able to air seal and replace with TruSoft™ cellulose insulation. As this was loose insulation, we were able to vacuum it out into a giant filter bag outside. Now, he will be able to get fresh insulation put in his attic!

This homeowner in North Stonington, CT called us hoping that we would be able to help him. He had a large basement that he was interested in getting insulated and then finished. Our Home Comfort Specialist came out to the home and noted that his basement had almost no insulation and poured concrete walls. Poured concrete basement walls are buried in the cool earth and are perpetually cold - about 17˚F cooler than we like the interior of our homes to be. In the winter the part of the foundation that sticks up above the ground is much colder than that. Heat moves from more to less. The dense concrete has a lot of mass and heat from our basement constantly flows into and through the wall by conduction. In the summer, warm humid air from outside hits the old basement walls and condensation forms, supporting mold. Results - cold basement, cold floors above the basement, higher fuel bills, more difficult to heat the house.

We had the perfect solution for this homeowner. In this solution, we utilize our Foamax polyisocyanurate (Polyiso) foam insulation board. It is installed on the basement walls with our proprietary Foam-Tite fasteners. But not just any foam - Foamax polyiso foam has the flame retardant properties to satisfy building codes to leave it exposed in a basement - unlike expanded or extruded polystyrene foam (EPS, XPS). In addition, the Foamax polyiso board has a foil facing to reflect heat so the insulation isn’t doing all the work by itself. Results - warmer, more comfortable basement, warmer floors above basement, less condensation in the summertime, lower fuel bills, house is easier to heat.