Wall Insulation in Tallahassee, FL

Wall insulation fills the cavities between studs so heat moves through the wall more slowly and air does not leak through gaps around outlets, windows and framing. In Tallahassee, the easiest time to insulate a wall is when it is open: a room addition, a porch enclosure, a garage conversion or a gut remodel. Closed walls in older homes can be filled too. Signs you need it: an exterior wall that feels warm to the touch on summer afternoons, drafts at outlets, or a remodel where the drywall is coming off anyway.

What the code asks for

The Insulation Institute's summary of the 2023 Florida Building Code, Energy Conservation lists R-13 for wood-frame walls in Zone 2, which covers Leon County. DOE's guidance for an uninsulated wood-frame wall in Zone 2 is R-13, or R-10 of continuous insulation on the outside. In a 2x4 wall, open-cell foam at R-3.5 to R-3.7 per inch (HomeGuide) fills the 3.5-inch cavity at about R-13, and closed-cell at R-5 to R-7 per inch can get there in less depth.

Additions and porch enclosures

Closing in a screened porch or adding a room is common in Tallahassee, and those spaces are often the hottest in the house because they face the sun and connect to a hot attic. Spray foam in the walls and the ceiling or roofline of the new room seals the joints where new framing meets old, which are easy to miss with batts. Open-cell is usually enough in walls; closed-cell makes sense where the floor of the addition sits over a crawl space or on piers.

Existing walls in older homes

Many older houses have little or nothing in the walls. Concrete block homes are a separate case: the block itself is the wall, and the options are usually furring strips with foam board or spray foam on the inside during a remodel. For frame walls that are closed up, dense-pack cellulose blown through small holes is the usual method, and the holes are patched afterward. Injection foam is another option some homes can use. We check the wall type and what is inside before recommending anything.

Wiring and moisture

Before any wall is filled, we look for knob-and-tube wiring, which should be checked by an electrician first. On exterior walls we also look at how water is kept out, since insulation should not trap water from a leaking window or siding. If we find a problem, you hear about it before the work starts.

Interior and sound walls

Some customers want bedroom, bathroom or media room walls filled for sound. Open-cell foam dampens sound better than an empty cavity and seals air around outlets. We price interior walls as a separate line on the quote. Get a free estimate