Insulating Roosevelt.
Roosevelt sits on the hill east of I-5, a settled neighborhood of mostly mid-century homes from the 1940s through the 1970s. These houses were built better than the pre-war stock, but still to a code that wanted far less attic insulation than we use now, so the attics are usually under-code. The other recurring issue here is bonus rooms and spaces over the garage that freeze in winter, because the garage below is unconditioned and the room's floor and walls leak air.
The recurring work in Roosevelt is straightforward: air-seal and top off the under-code attics up toward R-49, insulate the garage ceiling so the room above stops freezing, and seal the air leaks that make these homes drafty. The garage-ceiling and bonus-room work often pairs well with a bit of spray foam where the cavities are tricky. We air-seal first, then insulate to code, and we size the job to capture the PSE rebate.
What we see on Roosevelt homes.
Common home styles
1940s to 1970s homes, with under-code, garages. Bonus rooms freeze, under-code attics are the moisture issues we run into most here.
Popular jobs
Attic air-seal-and-top-off, air sealing, spray foam for rim joists and vaulted ceilings are the recurring work on Roosevelt homes, matched to the housing stock and the moisture.
Moisture & prep considerations
Like everywhere in Bellingham, we air-seal and get the moisture under control before we insulate. In Roosevelt that means paying close attention to bonus rooms freeze, under-code attics, then insulating to current WA energy code.