Old attic insulation that's wet, moldy or full of rodent mess comes out, so the new layer starts on a clean, dry attic.
Insulation removal in Carson City means our crew pulls old insulation out of your attic when it's wet, moldy or fouled by rodents, so the new insulation goes onto clean framing instead of on top of the problem.
Most calls start with something you noticed. It might be a water stain on the ceiling, a musty smell when you open the hatch, or scratching overhead at night. Those usually mean the insulation up there is soaked, growing mold or full of nests and droppings, and once it gets like that it stops doing its job.
The price mostly comes down to how big the attic is, how easy it is to get into, and what's mixed into the old insulation, since droppings take more care to remove than dry fluff. The schedule turns on whether rodents are still living up there and whether the leak that soaked things has been fixed, because cleanup has to wait on both. I measure and look it all over at the estimate, so you get a number for your own attic and I tell you what I found.
You'll talk with me, see the attic with me, and know who's running the job before anyone carries a bag up the ladder.
I do the estimate visits myself, and after years behind a desk I'll take a flashlight and an attic over a spreadsheet any day. I check how many inches are up there, look for water marks, droppings and pebble-like fill, and go over all of it with you before you decide anything.
Our installers do the work, and a lead installer runs each job so you have one person to ask on the day. We're fully licensed and insured.
When the crew finishes and cleans up, I walk you through the finished job and show you what came out and what we found underneath. We've been doing this around Carson City since 2017, and the promise is simple. Your satisfaction, guaranteed.
We only pull old insulation out when it's wet, moldy or full of rodent mess, because laying fresh material over that just buries the problem where you can't see it. If what's up there looks like vermiculite, we stop right there and point you to an asbestos specialist instead of touching it. When the old stuff does need to go, we figure out what ruined it first, like a roof leak or a gap the mice are using, and tell you so it gets fixed and the clean attic stays clean.
Water and rodents don't always stop at the attic. If the floors feel cold and the insulation under the house is sagging or soggy, we can look at crawl space insulation too, and if mice have been nesting inside the walls, wall insulation is usually the next conversation.
Removal is messy work, so most of the day is about keeping the mess in the attic and finding what was hiding under the old insulation.
We cover the floors from the attic hatch to the door before anything comes down, so dust and old fibers don't end up in your hallway.
The crew works from the far corners back toward the hatch, getting into the eaves where old insulation likes to hide. Everything gets bagged in the attic so it isn't carried loose through the house.
With the old layer gone you can finally see the framing, the water stains and the gaps around can lights, pipes and the hatch. We show you what we find, because those gaps need sealing before any new insulation goes in.
We haul the bags away and clean up after ourselves. The attic is ready for a new layer that goes deep at the edges, not just the middle, with the eave vents left clear so the attic can breathe.
Send us your attic's rough size in square feet and anything you've noticed, like water stains, droppings or pebble-like insulation, or call (775) 227-5588. We get back to you within one business day to set up a free visit, and most of the time it's me who calls. I look the attic over with you and put together an estimate, with no obligation.
(775) 227-5588Removing standard, uncontaminated insulation usually runs about $1 to $2 per square foot across the US. That covers ordinary removal, not asbestos or vermiculite work. Your attic's size, how tight the access is and what's in the old insulation set your own number, and I work it out with you at the estimate.
Usually yes, as long as the old layer is dry, clean and free of mold and pests. One publisher points out that this skips the removal cost entirely, and that age by itself isn't a reason to tear insulation out. So I check its condition first and only recommend removal when it's actually needed.
Leave it alone. Vermiculite is a pebble-like, pour-in fill, usually gray-brown or silver-gold, and the EPA advises leaving it undisturbed, keeping stored boxes out of the attic and keeping kids from playing up there, since disturbing it can leave fibers in other parts of the house. If you decide to remove it, the EPA says a trained, accredited asbestos abatement contractor should do the work, separate from the company that assessed it.
One publisher says a crew can usually clear an attic under 1,000 square feet in a day and a bigger one in two. Rodents change that, because hantavirus can get into the air when fresh droppings, urine or nesting material are stirred up. Clean-up guidance calls for trapping out the infestation first and then waiting about 5 days after the signs stop before anyone cleans the attic.
In Carson City, the Building Division handles construction permits, from plan review to issuing the permit and inspecting the work. The rules differ between Carson City, the counties and the cities around us, so we check with the office that covers your address, and if your job needs a permit we take care of the paperwork with them. Asbestos is its own trade here, too. The Nevada State Contractors Board has a separate license class for asbestos removal, A-23, so that's worth asking about when you call an asbestos contractor.
Disposal is part of why asbestos jobs cost more. Carson City's landfill charges a mixed load at the rate for the priciest material in it, and any asbestos-containing material at all puts the whole load at the asbestos rate. Add the containment and wetting that kind of removal needs, and it costs more per square foot than ordinary removal. We're based in Carson City and work across the cities around it, from Reno and Sparks down to Gardnerville and up to Incline Village, plus plenty of places in between.
Call (775) 227-5588 or send the form, and a phone photo taken from the attic hatch helps me know what I'm walking into before the visit.
If you're not sure what's living in your attic insulation, give us a call and I'll come take a look with you.
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