Crawl Space Insulation & Winterization in Greater Rochester

Avoid this crawl space mistake. Fiberglass batt insulation installed between joists in a crawl space will not provide adequate or long-lasting protection against frozen pipes or cold floors.

Improve your home's comfort, lower heating costs and prevent frozen pipes

The arrival of winter brings uncertainty about the weather, fuel prices, and snow accumulation. While we can't control Mother Nature, there are ways we can protect ourselves and our homes from frigid temperatures.

Improving insulation levels and sealing air leaks within a home's "building envelope" are two very effective ways to keeping our homes warmer in the winter, while also reducing heating expenses.

Crawl spaces deserve special attention

Paying attention to insulation and air-sealing standards is especially important if your home has a crawl space foundation. Crawl spaces are often neglected because they're "out of sight (and therefore) out of mind."

Unfortunately, this neglect often causes cold floors, high heating costs, and even frozen pipes -especially in vacation homes that go unoccupied during winter months.

True Energy Solutions can help you avoid these problems with targeted, permanent improvements that will make your crawl space an asset rather than a liability.

Important energy-saving details for the crawl space

A smart & permanent solution. Insulating crawl space walls with rigid foam insulation creates a thermal barrier that can't be damaged by moisture and won't degrade in appearance or R-value over time.

• Insulate crawl space floor. For greater comfort and energy savings, we can insulate a dirt crawl space floor with TerraBlock™ rigid foam insulation. While not as important as insulating your crawl space walls, adding foam board insulation to the floor can reduce heat loss in the wintertime.
• Installing rigid foam insulation on crawl space walls. Many crawl spaces have fiberglass batt insulation installed between floor joists. Fiberglass has always been inexpensive, widely available and easy for unskilled laborers to install. Unfortunately, fiberglass insulation doesn't perform well in crawl space environments, as shown in the photo above. Unlike fiberglass, rigid foam insulation is immune to moisture damage and won't lose its R-value or fall out of place once installed. This crawl space insulation upgrade brings the crawl space within your home's building envelope. For additional energy savings, the crawl space floor can also be insulated.
• Insulating & air sealing the rim joist. Left untreated, this thin layer of framing will allow heat to escape and frigid outside air to infiltrate. A professionally installed foam insulation upgrade from True Energy Solutions eliminates these problems.
• Installing pipe heating cable if necessary. If water lines are in danger of freezing in the crawl space, they can be wrapped with a thermostatically controlled pipe heating cable. However, if other recommended energy-saving upgrades have been performed, use of the heating cable will be minimized.

Related Pages

• Insulation
• Crawl Space Insulation