Eau Claire Insulation Pros handles spray foam, attic insulation and crawl space insulation for houses that lose heat faster than they should. If the furnace runs all day, the upstairs never warms up, one room stays drafty, or ice builds along the eaves every January, the fix usually starts with the insulation and the air leaks around it.
Most homes around here sit on full basements, so a lot of winter work happens down there too: cold basement walls, drafty rim joists, and attic fill that settled to half its depth years ago. Every job starts with a free on-site estimate. We measure what you have, tell you straight whether it needs to come out or just needs topping up, and put the price in writing before work starts.
Request a Free Estimate
Tell us how to reach you and we will set up a time to look at the house.
Spray foam insulation goes on as a liquid and expands to fill gaps, so it seals air and insulates in one pass. Eau Claire homeowners ask for it at rim joists, crawl walls, and roof decks. If you want a spray foam insulation contractor, the free estimate starts with which foam fits the space.
Story-and-a-half homes often have thin batts and open joist bays behind knee walls, which lets cold air reach upstairs bedrooms. We seal those bays, set baffles at the eaves, and blow cellulose or fiberglass to R-49 to R-60, the range the Department of Energy suggests for cold-climate attics. The hatch gets weatherstripped and insulated too.
A dirt or gravel crawl pulls ground moisture into the floor all year. The usual fix is a heavy polyethylene vapor barrier over the ground, lapped and taped at the seams, with closed-cell spray foam or rigid board on the crawl walls and rim. Standing water and drainage belong to a waterproofing contractor.
Basement insulation starts at the rim joist, the band of framing on top of the foundation, which in many older basements has only a stuffed-in batt or bare wood. Two inches of closed-cell spray foam at the rim, roughly R-12 to R-14, seals and insulates in one pass. Basement walls can get rigid foam board.
Plenty of houses built before the 1950s have empty wall cavities. We drill a row of small holes, usually from the outside after lifting a course of siding, and blow cellulose at about 3.5 pounds per cubic foot so it packs tight. The holes get plugged and the siding goes back on.
An attached garage shares at least one wall with heated rooms, and that wall takes the hit every time the big door opens in January. We insulate the shared wall, seal the rim and the framing around the service door, and insulate the ceiling below any living space.
A room over an unheated garage, a vented crawl space or a cantilevered bump-out loses heat straight through the floor. We fill the joist bays from below with batts held tight against the subfloor, or spray foam where pipes and ducts make batts hard to fit. Cantilevers often need the soffit opened and air sealed first.
Ice dams start inside the house, when warm air leaks into the attic around light fixtures and the hatch and melts snow on the roof. We seal those leaks, add baffles for soffit air, and bring the insulation up to depth. Shingles and flashing are roofing work, so we stay on the attic side.
Dark stains on the roof boards, frost on the nail tips in February, or insulation that feels damp point to warm, moist house air condensing in a cold attic. We fix the causes: air leaks, poor attic ventilation, and damp or damaged insulation. Wet insulation gets replaced, and mold cleanup is a separate remediation service.
Attic insulation removal comes first when old fill is bad, like cellulose soaked by a roof leak or fiberglass full of mouse droppings. A commercial insulation vacuum pulls it into large bags outside, and the top plates and penetrations get sealed before new insulation goes in. Gray-brown, pebbly vermiculite needs testing before anyone disturbs it.
A home energy audit looks at where a house loses heat and air, and air sealing closes the leaks it finds. Services and availability vary by contractor, so ask a local pro what they offer and what each step includes.
Warehouses, light industrial spaces and retail buildings lose heat through high roofs and long walls, and every loading dock door that opens in January makes it worse. Spray foam on the roof deck, an insulated liner system, or faced batts may be the right call. We can work after hours or in sections.
Steel buildings sweat: warm, damp air inside hits bare steel, condenses, and drips on equipment and the floor. Closed-cell spray foam sprayed straight onto the panels and purlins stops that because it is airtight and works as its own vapor retarder. A liner system is the other common route.
Post-frame buildings are everywhere in western Wisconsin: farm shops, machine sheds, hobby garages. Closed-cell spray foam on the walls and roof, or a liner ceiling with blown-in above it, are the two usual approaches. How you use the building and whether you heat it decide which one fits.
Closed-cell spray foam runs about R-6 to R-7 per inch, is dense enough to act as a vapor retarder, and suits rim joists, crawl walls and metal buildings. Open-cell is softer, about R-3.5 to R-3.8 per inch, seals air well and costs less per inch, so it suits rooflines and interior cavities.
Blown-in describes how the insulation goes in: loose cellulose or fiberglass fed through a machine and a long hose. On an open attic floor it fills around wires, joists and blocking where batts leave gaps. In closed walls, the same machine dense-packs cellulose.
Cellulose is mostly recycled paper fiber treated with borate for fire and pest resistance. It runs about R-3.2 to R-3.8 per inch, and its density slows air movement better than loose fiberglass. That is why it is the standard for dense-pack walls and a common choice for attic floors.
Fiberglass batts are pre-cut blankets, kraft-faced or unfaced, sized for 16- or 24-inch stud and joist spacing, and they are the usual choice for open walls in additions and remodels. A batt has to be split around wires and pipes, not crammed behind them. Gaps and compressed spots cut the rated R-value fast.
Mineral wool, also called rock wool, is spun from stone and slag. It holds about R-4 per inch, handles high heat without burning, and blocks sound better than fiberglass. It costs more than fiberglass, so it shows up on specific jobs more often than as the default for a whole house.
Rigid foam, also sold as foam board, comes as EPS (about R-4 per inch), XPS (about R-5) and polyiso (foil-faced, about R-6). It goes on basement walls, rim joists and crawl walls, and under slabs. Foam board left exposed in a living space has to be covered with drywall or another approved barrier.
We go through the attic, basement or crawl space and the walls, measure what is there, and ask where the house feels cold.
You get the areas, materials and target R-values in writing, so you know what you are paying for.
Wet, dirty or worn-out insulation gets vacuumed out and bagged outside. Good insulation stays.
Floors and the path in get covered, then the insulation goes in to the depth or thickness on the scope. The work area gets swept before we leave.
Gaps at top plates, the hatch, and plumbing and wiring holes get sealed so drafts don't undercut the new insulation.
We walk the job with you, show you what was done, and answer questions before packing up.
Insulation prices swing a lot from one house to the next. The material, the R-value you are aiming for, the square footage, whether old insulation has to come out, how hard the space is to reach, and how much air sealing the house needs all move the number. The ranges here are national averages from published cost guides, not our prices. Your written estimate is based on your house.
Attic jobs are priced by the square foot of attic floor. Blowing new insulation over what is already there costs much less than a full tear-out and re-insulate, and batts tend to run a little higher in labor because each one is cut to fit.
Spray foam is usually the highest line on an estimate. It is often priced per board foot (one square foot, one inch thick), and closed-cell costs more per board foot than open-cell because it is denser. A rim joist job is small; a full roof deck is a big one.
Topping up an attic whose current insulation is dry and clean is the cheapest way to add R-value, since the new layer goes over what is already there. A full re-insulate costs more because removal and air sealing come first and the new layer is deeper.
Crawl space insulation cost follows the size of the crawl, whether the walls or the floor above get insulated, and whether a vapor barrier goes down. A small crawl with easy access costs less than a large one that is hard to reach.
Wisconsin homeowners and businesses may qualify for rebates or incentives on insulation and air sealing through Focus on Energy, the statewide energy-efficiency program. Offers, eligibility and amounts change, so check what Focus on Energy or your utility is running now and bring it up at your estimate.
Want a number for your house instead of a national average?
Call (715) 705-4327| Project | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Attic insulation, installed | $1 to $4 per sq ft; most jobs $1,000 to $2,700 |
| Blown-in attic insulation | $0.90 to $2.40 per sq ft; $900 to $3,600 total |
| Spray foam in an attic | $1.50 to $5.00 per sq ft ($0.60 to $2.90 per board foot) |
| Spray foam project, any area | Most projects $1,455 to $4,337 |
| Crawl space insulation | $2,600 to $16,900; about $3,550 for 1,000 sq ft |
| Old attic insulation removal | $1 to $2 per sq ft for clean, dry material |
| Attic insulation, full calculator estimate | $3.74 to $7.72 per sq ft |
Sources: HomeGuide attic, blown-in and removal cost guides (2026); Angi spray foam and crawl space cost guides (2026); Homewyse attic insulation calculator (September 2026). National figures, not quotes from Eau Claire Insulation Pros.
We insulate homes and businesses across the Chippewa Valley, starting in Eau Claire, WI and reaching out to Chippewa Falls, Altoona, Lake Hallie and Menomonie.
Older houses near downtown, newer subdivisions on the edge of town, and farm shops and pole barns out in the county all get the same free estimate.
Most attic top-ups with blown-in insulation take one day. A job that includes removing old insulation and air sealing the attic floor usually takes one to two days, and spray foam on a roof deck can take longer depending on size.
No, not always. Dry, clean insulation can stay, and new blown-in goes right over it. Insulation that is wet, damaged, full of rodent waste, or in the way of air sealing should come out first. Vermiculite needs testing before anyone disturbs it.
Each one fits different spots. Closed-cell spray foam is the better choice for rim joists, crawl walls, metal buildings and anywhere you need an air and vapor seal in one step. Blown-in cellulose or fiberglass is the better value for open attic floors and dense-pack walls.
No, not by itself. Ice dams come from warm air leaking into the attic and warming the roof deck. Air sealing the attic floor, keeping soffit-to-ridge ventilation open, and then adding insulation to the right depth together keep the roof cold enough to stop most ice dams.
Yes. Dense-pack cellulose goes in through small holes drilled from the outside under the siding, or from the inside when siding can't come off. The holes get plugged and patched when the bays are full.
Yes. Focus on Energy, Wisconsin's statewide energy-efficiency program, offers rebates and incentives that can cover qualifying insulation and air sealing work. Offers and eligibility change, so check the current programs with Focus on Energy or your utility before the job starts.
Yes. Pole barns, machine sheds and steel shops are common jobs around the Chippewa Valley. Closed-cell spray foam stops the dripping condensation steel buildings get in winter, and a liner system with blown-in above is another option for heated buildings.
Cold rooms, big heating bills or ice on the eaves?
Tell us about the house or building and we will set up a free estimate.
