Apex State College Spray Foam InsulationApex State College Spray Foam Insulation

Insulation Contractor in State College - Sealed Attics for Older Homes

Apex State College Spray Foam Insulation is an insulation contractor in State College, PA. We seal the gaps in attics, crawl spaces and walls, then insulate them, so drafty rooms and a hot upstairs settle down.

Request a quote(814) 996-0002
Exposed wall studs and roof framing are filled with white spray foam insulation beside a door and several windows.
  • Licensed and insured.
  • Free quotes on site.
  • Replies within 1 business day.

About State College, PA

State College reaches from the older streets around downtown, where houses sit close together on small lots, out to post-war ranches, split-levels and newer subdivisions toward the edges of the city. Student rentals sit beside family homes on a lot of blocks, so our calls here come from owners of drafty older houses, people planning a remodel and property managers with units between tenants, and we do the same work out in Bellefonte and the other cities around it.

The age of the house shapes the job more than anything else here. An older home usually needs its gaps found and sealed before any insulation goes in, while a newer one often needs little more than a top-up.

Services in State College, PA

  • Attic air sealing

    In older State College houses, warm air slips into the attic around can lights, pipes and the hatch. We seal those gaps first, so new insulation isn't fighting a draft.

  • Spray foam insulation

    The room over the garage often runs cold because air leaks in around the floor. We use spray foam insulation there because it seals the air and insulates in one pass.

  • Insulation removal

    Attics in older homes and rentals often hold insulation soaked by a roof leak or fouled by mice. We clear it out first, so the problem doesn't stay under the new layer.

  • Crawl space vapor barrier

    Older homes here often sit over crawl spaces with bare dirt floors and a damp smell. We cover the floor and walls with a vapor barrier, a sheet that keeps ground moisture out.

  • Wall insulation

    Many older houses here have little or nothing in the walls, so rooms feel drafty even with newer windows. We fill the wall cavities through small holes and patch them after.

  • Blown-in insulation

    Plenty of ranch and split-level homes here have a few inches of old, settled insulation. We top it up with blown-in loose fill and keep the vents at the roof edge open.

What to know before insulation work in State College

Building permits in State College go through Centre Region Code Administration, which reviews and issues them for the Borough of State College, while the city's Planning Department issues zoning permits for altering a structure. Whether your job needs one depends on the work, so I check with the office that covers your address, and where a permit applies we prepare the paperwork, walk you through it and keep you posted, because that review can decide your start date. When you're checking out a contractor, know that Pennsylvania doesn't license most construction contractors, but anyone doing home improvements here has to register with the state Attorney General's office unless exempt, and someone doing less than $5,000 of that work in a calendar year doesn't need to. Anyone starting a business in the city also has to register with it. We're licensed and insured, and you're welcome to ask us about any of it.

Streets near campus and downtown are busy and narrow, so we plan where the truck and hose go before the day starts, and we time rental jobs around tenants. The price moves with what's already in your attic: how many inches are up there, whether wet or dirty material has to come out, how many gaps need sealing, how hard the space is to reach, and whether foam or loose fill fits. The schedule turns on permit review where one applies and on whether removal comes first, and I put your own figure in the written estimate after I've seen the house. We do the same work next door in Park Forest Village, so a house there gets the same visit and the same process.

State College, PA properties and local conditions

In a lot of the older houses near downtown, the wall cavities run open from the basement right up into the attic, so warm air rises through the house and out the top while cold air pulls in below. That's usually the drafty first floor and the hot upstairs people describe to me. Laying insulation over those openings doesn't stop the air, so we start with air sealing, closing the gaps at the top and bottom of the walls and around the chimney before anything else goes in.

Basements and crawl spaces here can stay damp, and insulation shouldn't go over wet walls. Centre County's parcel viewer shows soils and FEMA flood maps for your lot as a starting point, and the official FEMA flood maps are the reference if your flood risk is in doubt. If water is getting in, I'll tell you it needs fixing before we insulate.

Get a free on-site insulation estimate for your State College house

We reply within one business day to set up your free on-site estimate in State College. There's no pressure and no obligation, and after the visit you'll get a written estimate to look over in your own time.

How it goes when you call us in State College

  1. Call or send the form

    Call (814) 996-0002 or use the form and tell us what's bothering you, whether it's a cold room, a hot upstairs or the power bill. We'll set a time that works for you, and I'll come out myself.

  2. I look and explain first

    I go through the attic, walls, basement or crawl space, check how much insulation is there and what shape it's in, and talk it over with you before anything is written up. Then you get a written estimate that shows what drives the price, so you can decide without guessing.

  3. Permit check, then the work

    Where a permit applies, we take care of the paperwork, and the start date waits on the review. Before our installers begin, I talk through fresh air, any gas or oil appliances and whether you'll need to be out of the house, and then they seal first and insulate after.

  4. I check it with you

    Before we call it finished, I walk the job with you so you can see the depth, the sealed gaps and the open vents. The work is backed by our satisfaction guarantee.

Frequently asked questions

Does insulation work on a house in a State College historic district need extra approval?

It can, because certain alterations in the city's historic districts may need added review by the Historical and Architectural Review Board on top of any permit. That matters most when the work touches the outside of the house, like drilling through siding to fill the walls, so I check with the city before we plan that kind of work on a house in one of those districts.

What should I do if old insulation in my State College attic might contain asbestos?

Leave it alone until it's been looked at, because disturbing it is where the risk comes from. The state's Department of Labor and Industry certifies the contractors and workers who remove asbestos, so if I see material that looks suspect, like the gray-brown pebbly fill in some older attics, I'll tell you, and we'll wait to work up there until a certified contractor has dealt with it.

How long does attic insulation take in State College, and when can kids and pets come back in?

The crew's time in your attic depends mostly on its size and on whether old material has to come out first, and I'll lay out the plan for your house at the estimate. With blown-in loose fill most families usually stay home, while spray foam comes with a re-entry time, the wait before people and pets can come back inside, set by the foam's maker, so we plan that day with you ahead of time.

Is spray foam worth the extra cost over blown-in insulation for a State College attic?

Usually not, unless your ductwork runs through the attic. Foam costs more and seals air while it insulates, but for most attics here, sealing the gaps and then topping up the loose fill does the job well for less. When the ducts live up there, foam along the underside of the roof brings them inside the warm part of the house, and that's when I'd recommend it.

What causes cold floors in older State College houses over a crawl space?

Usually it's outside air getting in where the house sits on the foundation and around open vents, so the floor sits over cold, moving air with little or nothing under it. We seal those gaps and insulate the crawl space walls rather than just stuffing the floor, and I'd want to see the space first, because standing water or wet framing has to be dealt with before anything is closed in.

How do I know if my State College attic needs more insulation?

Start by measuring how many inches are up there and checking whether it's even, because thin spots, a hot upstairs and rooms that never feel warm are the usual signs. In older houses here it's common to find insulation deep in the middle and thin at the edges, which is backward. I'd want to see it before saying more, and that look is part of the estimate visit.

Service areas

Explore the services

State College, PA

Tell us about your State College house

If a remodel is coming, calling now lets us seal and insulate while the walls and ceilings are still open, which is far easier than working around finished rooms.

Request a quote(814) 996-0002
(814) 996-0002Request a quote