Insulation Contractor: Checking The Work

One of the wisest things you can do for your home is to hire an insulation contractor and get your attic sealed up tight. A professional crew can always do better than you could do on your own, and have access to certain materials and methods you don't. Going through this process can help you save on energy costs, keep your house cooler (or warmer), and even provide you with a measure of soundproofing against the outside world. Of course, not everyone is this business is going to provide you with the same level of service. Before you lay out your hard earned money, you should make sure the job was done to your standards. Here are some things to check.

The Written Contract

If you're going to hire an insulation contractor, you should certainly make sure you have a written contract in place before the work begins. Don't just sign this contract without looking closely at the details. But more importantly, you'll need to check the work performed against the details of the written contract to make sure everything has been done. You may wish to take photographs of the work in case there is a dispute later on. If the workers have made changes to the existing agreement, make sure these are changes that have been signed off by both you and them.

Gaps

While anything your insulation contractor puts down will be superior to having nothing, you're not paying to have a "somewhat better" situation. If you wanted the job done halfway, you could have easily done it yourself. Hiring a professional company should mean you get professional results. Go through the work and make sure shortcuts weren't taken in an effort to just get the job done. It would be an easy job to do if you just had a completely flat, well cornered surface on which to apply the materials. This is rarely the case, so the crew has to make concessions for electrical boxes, wirings, plumbing, and other cavities. Make sure they have closed the gaps as much as possible.

Energy Monitoring

Sometimes an insulation contractor will make guarantees or promises about how much money you can save by having their material installed. While no one can make a specific guarantee as it pertains to how much you can save (after all, a homeowner is free to run his air conditioning 24 hours a day if he so chooses), but you can certainly hold them to seeing some effect. If you don't notice the slightest change in how much you're spending after a few months, you might want to call them back and tell them your problem. If you chose a good company to begin with, they should be willing to come back out and evaluate the situation.