The 52-Degree Home

An anecdote that comes to mind is “The 52 Degree Home.” No, we are not kidding. A client of ours owns a classic Chicago workers’ cottage. This 1890’s home is truly a vintage beauty. The couple loved their home. They had raised a family there. During that period they did various remodels to keep the house in the best possible condition.

The 52-Degree Home

One upgrade they did involved replacing the original first-floor furnace with a larger model and adding a second furnace for the upper floor. The couple was more than perplexed when the temperatures dropped. Even with the first-floor furnace running on high, they could never get the kitchen or living room to reach above 52 degrees. After years of enduring the frigid winters, after their children had grown and moved out, the couple decided they simply could not stand their freezing first floor any longer.

Closed-Cell Foam in Crawl Space

They called me to see if I could figure out what the problem was and whether I could help them. As is typical of these types of homes, the cottage was built above a crawl space. That crawl space was vented to the outside. The ducts for the first-floor heat ran right through this vented uninsulated crawl space. Yikes! As hard as that furnace worked, the air was simply being cooled as it traveled through the ducts. By the time the heated air reached its destination, the air was no longer warm.

The day my crew started working at the home, it was 5 degrees below zero outside and below zero in that crawl space. They applied 3 inches of closed-cell spray foam to the exterior walls of the crawl space. In just a few hours, temperatures rose to 60 degrees in the crawl space and a toasty 72 degrees in the living room and kitchen.

Success! For the first time, these homeowners could enjoy the downstairs, and it came at a cost of about $2,500. They most likely spent far more than that in heating bills over the years.

For the first time, these homeowners could enjoy the downstairs, and it came at a cost of about $2,500. They most likely spent far more than that in heating bills over the years.

How is Your Heating so Far this Winter?

Do you feel as if most of your household budget is going towards your heating costs? Is everyone still freezing despite the investment? Are you using electric blankets to watch TV and wearing coats at the dinner table?

Don’t be embarrassed! Most people don’t want to pay for something they will never see, can not touch or tangibly use.

However, the thing about spray foam insulation is that it gives back more than you could imagine. Like many things, spray foam insulation has improved drastically over the years. Today spray foam insulation is the most energy-efficient, eco-friendly and innovative insulation material available on the market.

Spray foam insulation is not for everyone. About twenty percent of clients that inquire about an estimate will not benefit from our products. In those cases, we have a list of trusted contractors we can refer you to. Our goal is to get you what you need, not just sell you our product.

Do not feel as if you somehow should have known. Many of my clients tell me they wish we had known about spray foam insulation years ago! We get calls all the time from homeowners who have spent half the year, for many years, being chilled and wondering what they should do.

By spring, those cold rooms will be a dim memory, a bad dream. By summer it will be hot and muggy. You will have completely forgotten about those electric blankets. If you are cold now, you will be cold again next winter.

Call us today! Me and my team of experts can help you assess if spray foam insulation will work in your home. We will help guide you through what can be done and the results you can expect to see. You have nothing to lose except high heating bills and cold hands?

Comfort is only a FOAM call away!

REQUEST AN ESTIMATE

About the Author, Tom Decker

With ten years of experience selling spray foam insulation in Chicago, Tom Decker is THE person to call and the Chicago Green Insulation is the organization to hire when you are looking for top notch quality and performance as well as someone who can deal with the needs of code officials, home owners and general contractors. Call the others in Chicago, if you are interested in the cheapest price, call Chicago Green Insulation if you are interested in using your dollars to make Chicago a better city for all of us!