Hiring the best insulation installer can provide a huge relief to your budget, your comfort and your peace of mind. Why? Because insulation installation is complicated, but if done right, can provide you with years of increased energy efficiency, savings and better comfort in your home. Most contractors will say they install insulation, but it’s not something they specialize in, so you want to screen them carefully.
We have provided some questions you can ask to get a feel for your insulation contractor and how confident you can be in their services.
1. Are you a licensed installer?
In the state of Michigan, you can have a dedicated license for insulation or it is covered under a builder’s license. Most contractors that install insulation already carry and maintain a builder’s license, so they will be covered by that.
2. Can I speak with your references?
Confident and successful companies will gladly refer you to dozens of past customers that can speak to the success of their project. A company that is hesitant may be hiding something from you and is somebody you don’t want to hire.
3. What warranty or guarantee do you provide for your insulation?
A company that does not have a clearly stated warranty, in writing, is not organized and does not backup their services enough for you to hire them. The gold standard is a 25 year “no settling” guarantee on the insulation installed. Pro Home Improvement will even honor this guarantee by inspecting your insulation for free to ensure the standard of no settling is maintained.
4. What personal protective equipment do you require for your workers?
As a homeowner, you want to make sure workers are safe while working on your home. Wearing the proper gear, using the right ladders and following safe procedures is important to make sure everyone goes home in the same condition they came to work. Also, this question is important because the salespersons speed and ease of response tells you a lot. If he or she stumbles over a response regarding worker safety, you can be sure other technical details might be missed as well.
5. Do you carry liability insurance and workers comp insurance?
These are two important policies that protect you as a homeowner. Workers comp protects you against incidents at your home if somebody gets hurt while on the job site. If the company you hire does not have an active workers comp policy, you may be liable to pay for the employees costly medical bills.
Liability insurance protects your home in case the work leads to damage of your residence. If a worker accidentally breaks through ceiling drywall while installing insulation, the liability insurance policy carried by the company should pay for those repairs and not your home insurance policy.
6. What type of insulation products do you offer?
If a company is pushing for you to use a certain kind of insulation because that is all they offer, be suspect of that. Most companies offer different types and can speak to the pros and cons of each kind. The ideal situation is that a company can assess your particular case and recommend what will insulate best for that situation, not just insist that you use the kind of insulation they are used to installing.
At Pro Home Improvement, we are partial to the Pro Grade Stabilized Cellulose for attics. This is a proven technology and product proven to work well, especially when ventilation and prep work is done properly.
7. What is your ventilation and vapor barrier plan?
Sealing up vapor barrier leaks as well as providing the correct amount of continuous ventilation for attic spaces will make or break an insulation project. Anybody can toss down a bunch of fiberglass or cellulose and call it a day, since that is not the difficult part. The difficult part of getting an insulation installation exactly right is the prep to make sure the vapor barrier and ventilation calculations have been done and will be followed through to a tee.
Hiring the right insulation contractor is the most crucial step in making sure that you get the best value out of your insulation project. Use these questions as a guide to help vet the companies you talk to. If you need more help with your insulation needs, call the Pros at Pro Home Improvement 888-776-1998 or visit our estimates page to schedule an appointment. Stay warm!