Spray Foam Insulation in Dunedin, FL

Spray Foam Insulation in Dunedin has to suit some of the oldest houses on the Pinellas peninsula. The town was settled as Jonesboro in 1850, incorporated as the Town of Dunedin in 1899 and as a city in 1926. Wikipedia lists surviving buildings such as the J. O. Douglas House from 1880 and the Willis S. Blatchley House from 1916. Around that older core, the city grew from 3,202 people in 1950 to 30,203 in 1980, adding block ranches and condos.

Wood-frame cottages and block ranches

The older wood-frame cottages near downtown and the waterfront often have open wall cavities, board sheathing and attics with very little insulation. Some sit on raised foundations with a floor over open air. Mid-century houses farther from the water are mostly block on slab, with shallow attics and ducts overhead. Each needs a different plan. In frame cottages, dense-pack or foam in open walls during a renovation can help a lot; in block ranches, the attic comes first.

Respecting older materials

Older homes may have knob-and-tube wiring, vermiculite fill or patched roofs. We look for these before pricing. Foam should not cover old wiring that has not been checked, and suspect vermiculite should be tested before anyone disturbs it. If we find something like that, we tell you before any work is planned.

Close to the Gulf

Dunedin sits at an elevation near sea level on the Gulf side, facing St. Joseph Sound and the Intracoastal. The 1985 passage of Hurricane Elena sealed Dunedin Pass, joining Caladesi Island to Clearwater Beach, according to Wikipedia's Pinellas County article. Homes this close to the water see salt air, wind-driven rain and occasional flooding, so we check for past water damage in the attic and lower walls before adding insulation.

An older, owner-occupied town

The 2020 census put Dunedin's median age at 56.7 and counted 21,905 housing units, 16.0% vacant, many of them seasonal. QuickFacts shows 71.1% owner occupancy and 35.3% of residents 65 or older. Many owners want a quieter, cooler house without a big construction project, which usually points to attic sealing and insulation that can be done in a day.

Seasonal homes and condos

With 16.0% of housing units vacant at the 2020 census, many Dunedin homes are owned by people who are away for part of the year. A house closed up through a humid summer benefits from tight air sealing, since less damp air leaks in while the AC is set high. If you will be away, we can work with a neighbor or property manager for access and send photos of the finished attic.

Budgeting for a Dunedin job

HomeGuide's national figures put a typical attic insulation job at $1,000 to $2,700 and air sealing at $350 to $3,000, while foam under a roof deck runs $1,500 to $9,000. In a small frame cottage, the attic and a raised floor might both be worth doing; in a mid-century block ranch, the attic alone usually covers most of the gain. Older houses sometimes need extra prep, such as clearing debris, adding an attic access or working around old wiring, and those items show up as separate lines on our written quote so nothing is hidden. The figure on that written estimate is the price.

Get a free estimate or call (727) 286-3704 to have us look at your Dunedin home.