Wall Insulation in Levittown, PA

Wall insulation is the piece most older houses are missing. Levittown's homes went up between 1952 and 1958, Fairless Hills' prefab homes started in 1951, and many houses in Bristol, Morrisville and Yardley are far older. Building standards of those eras allowed thin batts or nothing at all in the exterior walls, and decades of settling, wiring work and window changes leave gaps. If the outlets on exterior walls feel drafty, or one wall is noticeably cold in winter, the cavity behind it probably is not doing much.

Closed walls: dense-pack and injection

When the drywall or plaster stays in place, we fill the cavity from small holes drilled either in the siding or on the inside surface. Dense-pack cellulose is blown in at high density so it fills the cavity and resists settling, and it slows air movement too. HomeGuide lists dense-pack at about $1.60 to $4.20 per square foot. Some houses suit an injected foam instead. Either way, we check each cavity for blocking, fire stops and wiring before we fill it, and we patch the holes afterward.

Open walls: spray foam

If you are remodeling, adding on or have stripped walls to the studs, spray foam goes straight into the open cavities. Closed-cell foam gives the most R-value in a 2x4 wall, which matters in older houses with shallow framing. Open-cell costs less and seals well for interior or sound control walls. Fixr lists spray foam in existing walls at $3.15 to $7.50 per square foot and in new construction at $2.75 to $6.50.

What the code expects for new work

Penn State's guide to Pennsylvania's alternative energy provisions lists wood-frame wall options for the southern Zone 4 counties, including Bucks, that combine cavity insulation with continuous insulation on the outside. That applies to new construction and additions, not to existing walls you are improving. For an older wall, filling the cavity completely is usually the practical goal, and we tell you the R-value the quote produces.

Siding jobs are a good time

If you are replacing siding, it is the easiest time to insulate walls from the outside. Holes can be drilled behind the old siding with no interior patching, and rigid foam can go over the sheathing before the new siding goes on. Tell us your siding timeline and we will plan around it.

Want to know what is inside your walls? We check before we quote. Get a free estimate