Old insulation soaked from a roof leak or full of mouse droppings? We clear it out so whatever goes on next actually works.
Insulation removal in Rochester, MN means taking old insulation out of your attic, usually because it's wet, matted or soiled, so new insulation goes onto clean framing and can do its job. Depending on the attic's size and how tricky it is, removal jobs generally run from about 4 hours to 2 days or more.
Most calls start with something you can see. It might be a brown stain on the ceiling, insulation that looks flat and gray when you poke your head through the hatch, a smell, or droppings left by whatever moved in last winter. Mice are not tidy tenants.
The price moves with the size of your attic and the type, amount and condition of what's up there. It goes up a lot if any of it is vermiculite, because that part needs an asbestos contractor. The schedule turns on the same things, plus whether a roof leak has to be fixed first so nobody pulls out wet insulation twice. The estimate I write up gives you the price for your attic.
You'll deal with the same few people from the first look to the last walk-through, and you'll know who's doing what at each step.
I come out for the estimate, climb into the attic or crawl space and look for leaks, damp, droppings and anything that looks like vermiculite, because any of those changes the plan. Then I write up the estimate so you can see what comes out and why.
We're licensed and insured. Our install crew does the removal, and I'm on the job to check the parts that get covered up, like the roof deck and the framing along the eaves.
When the old insulation is out, I walk you through what we found up there and what it means for the next step. Satisfaction guaranteed on every job, and the house gets left like someone lives in it, because someone does.
Old insulation comes out when it's wet or ruined, and I'll tell you if yours can stay, because pulling out decent, dry insulation just to put more on top is paying twice. When it does need to go, we protect the path through the house, vacuum the attic down to the framing and bag the old material, then look hard at what it was hiding. If it looks like vermiculite, we leave it alone, and that part goes to an abatement company.
Removal is mostly dust control and paying attention to what turns up. Here's the order we work in.
We lay down covers from the door to the attic hatch before anyone goes up, so the dust from a ruined attic doesn't end up in your hallway.
We vacuum out and bag the wet or soiled insulation, because new insulation laid over a soaked layer just keeps the problem around.
With the old stuff gone we can finally see the roof deck, the framing and the gaps around lights, pipes and the hatch. The attic usually tells on whatever soaked it, and I check it before anything gets covered again.
We make sure the eave vents are clear and clean up, so the attic can breathe and new insulation goes onto dry wood with a plan for the gaps.
Tell us roughly how big your attic is and what the insulation looks like, whether it's wet, matted or pebbly and gray-brown, because those are what shape the price. We reply within 1 business day to set up a visit, then I come out, go up and look, and write up a free estimate. No pressure, no obligation.
(507) 512-1787Usually not. A Minnesota state guide says there's no need to remove existing insulation unless it's wet from roof leaks or from too much moisture coming up from the house below. So the first thing to check is whether yours is wet, and that's what I look for at the estimate.
Across the US, attic insulation removal usually costs about $1,600 to $3,600 per job. That's a national figure, not our price, and the attic's size and the insulation's type, amount and condition all push it up or down. For a Rochester price on your attic, the estimate gives you one.
Leave it alone. Vermiculite is a pebble-like, pour-in fill, usually gray-brown or silver-gold, and the EPA advises treating it as if it contains asbestos. The EPA says vermiculite that stays sealed off and undisturbed may not need to come out, and when it does, it recommends a trained, accredited asbestos contractor that's a different company from the one that assessed it. Most insulation contractors want vermiculite with more than 1 percent asbestos fully removed before other attic work, so if new insulation is in your plans, schedule that removal first.
Hire a contractor licensed with the State of Minnesota, because Rochester requires residential building contractors to hold that license. The state requires it for contractors who offer homeowners more than one special skill.
In Rochester, a city building permit covers construction and renovation work, including alterations, repairs and demolition, and the city's Community Development office answers permit questions. We check with the city or county office that covers your address before work starts, and if our part of the job needs a permit, we take care of it. If you'd rather pull the old insulation out yourself, Rochester requires owners and occupants of single-family homes to get permits for work they do themselves, and whoever signs that permit is responsible for the work meeting all standards.
We're based in Rochester and work in Byron, Stewartville, Kasson and other cities around it. Plenty of the attics we open have been topped up more than once over the years, and the older houses are where we keep an eye out for vermiculite. The calls sound alike everywhere, ice dams in winter, a leak someone found in spring and an upstairs that won't stay warm.
A look in the attic can save you paying to remove insulation that's still doing its job, so call (507) 512-1787 or send us the form.
If you're not sure what's up in your attic, send us a message and we'll talk it through.
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