Westfield, MA's Leading Insulation & Mold Removal Company

This homeowner in Westfield, MA called us stating he was having issues with the ceiling in his garage. Specifically, the garage in the ceiling was falling down, and he was hoping that we could help, as there were finished rooms above it. When our Home Comfort Specialist arrived in the home, he noted that insulation would need to be reinstalled after the ceiling was fixed. Garages are not heated, but the finished rooms above them are. So the garage ceiling must be insulated. If left uninsulated or poorly insulated, the result is cold, drafty floors upstairs and excess noise from the garage heard upstairs.

Once the work repairing the ceiling was done, we were able to insulate the garage ceiling. We were able to do this using TruSoft™ cellulose insulation that had been densely packed. The siding was removed in the appropriate places.. Holes were drilled into the rim joist (outer edge of ceiling/floor framing) from the outside, a very long pipe was inserted into the joist bays all the way to the other side. Cellulose was blown in and dense packed into the floor. The density stops airflow through the floor from air leaks. Results - warmer floors above, more comfortable rooms, quieter floors upstairs without that hollow sound, and lower heating and air conditioning bills.

This customer in Westfield, MA called due to their worries regarding a lack of insulation in their crawl space. When our Home Comfort Specialist came out to evaluate, he noted a large amount of mold in that crawlspace directly under a bedroom. High relative humidity in a crawl space will cause mold to grow on the surfaces of framing lumber, sub floors, insulation, and everywhere. Spores are the airborn 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. 

Luckily, Fogarty's Home Services has the perfect solution for the mold they had. Mold-X2 Cleaner effectively eliminates mold and mildew stains on contact. It is non-abrasive and non-flammable, and is sprayed on effected areas. Once Mold-X2 Cleaner is applied, mold disappears instantly, leaving wood surface 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 your crawl space is ready for other solutions. Results – The mold is eliminated, with no odors or potential for wood rot. Your crawl space is now ready for a permanent repair to keep humidity low.

Our customer in Westfield, MA called us due to mold issues she was experiencing in her dining room. Our Home Comfort Specialist came out to assess the home and find the cause of the mold. When he arrived, he noticed that there was a vented crawl space that had not been encapsulated. 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 was able to help this customer. We decided to encapsulate the crawl space. 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.

A cantilevered floor sticks 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.

A 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 Westfield, MA called us to schedule an appointment for a Free Home Energy Evaluation because they were experiencing extreme ice damming on the roof of their home. This was happening due to a lack of proper insulation. We got them on the schedule and sent one of our Building Science Specialists to the home to evaluate why they were having this issue. We conducted our Full Home Energy Evaluation and noticed that they had very old, fiberglass insulation in the kneewalls. This was making cold air easily able to leak through the outside of the home, in to the home. This also will allow air to leak out of the home, causing high electricity bills. We proposed they choose to go with out Super KneeWall Treatment. They agreed to help become more comfortable in their homes by having this treatment done.

We sent out production team out to start the work. They installed our foam boards to them bottom of the rafters in the kneewall spaces. The ceiling is blocked and sealed with foam. This will stop the air leakage. The roof slopes were dense-packed with our cellulose insulation. This stops air flow and insulates. These homeowners called us with a problem, and we gave them a solution. The blocking, air sealing, and insulating made it so that cold hostile air from the outside cannot enter the attic, leaking out of the attic into the home. They have noticed a decrease in their energy bills and are no longer cold in their bedrooms. We fix uncomfortable homes!

This is a photo of a kneewall space finished.

These homeowners in Westfield, MA called us out to assess a problem they were experiencing in their home. The big problem they were having was that the room above their garage was super cold and drafty all winter! They were having trouble keeping this room cool during the summers as well. Upon arriving to the home and performing our full Home Energy Evaluation we noticed there was little to no insulation in the ceiling of the garage. Garages are not heated or cooled, but the bedrooms directly above them are. When the garage ceiling under a bedroom is not sealed and insulated, air that you pay to heat or cool is escaping back into that hostile environment in the garage. These customers were paying to cool their bedroom, and noticing that their room never stayed as cool as they wanted it to be since air was so easily leaking out into the garage. During the winter, these customers were always freezing in their bedroom, paying to heat air that was escaping out into the cold garage. In order to fix this issue we have to densepack TruSoft cellulose insulating into the garage ceiling from the exterior of the home. We have to carefully remove the siding off of this spot on the home. We drill holes into the rim joist, the outer edge of the ceiling, from the outside. A very long densepacking pipe is inserted into the holes we drilled, going all the way to the other side of the garage ceiling. This will compress any existing loose insulation that existed and adds much insulation value. The density of densepacking cellulose stops all airflow through the floor, making it easy to heat, and or cool the bedroom above the garage. Thanks to Dr. Energy Saver by Eco Energy Solutions, these customers can not live comfortably, happy, and more energy efficient in their homes!!