Covington County, MS Insulation Payback
Covington County attic insulation, by the numbers
Covington County, Mississippi is zone 3 under DOE's climate map (Hot-Humid), which means humid heat for much of the year, with cooling running far more than heating ever does. An uninsulated attic there should be built up to R-49. Going from R-2 to the recommended R-49 costs roughly $2,820 installed for a typical attic (about 1,000 sq ft), and pays for itself in about 3 years at an estimated $933/year saved. Topping up the attic pays for itself here.
The breakdown behind the number
Split it out and it's roughly $543 a year on the heating side, $390 on cooling. By estimated insulation savings, Covington County lands in the 12th percentile nationally. Zone 3 alone covers 690 counties in this dataset, and Covington County comes in 608th by savings. Mississippi averages $1,022/year across the counties tracked here; Covington County comes in 9% lower.
The climate data behind this
Covington County's climate figures — 2,046 heating and 2,448 cooling degree days a year — are read from COLLINS, MS US, 0.8 miles away, NOAA's nearest 1991-2020 normals station. That combined heating-and-cooling load ranks Covington County 2812th nationally by total degree days — the 11th percentile. One local detail the R-value alone won't tell you: Covington County sits in moisture regime A (humid), which can affect the vapor-barrier choice.
If the attic isn't bare
Already have a few inches up there? Topping R-11 up to R-38 runs about $1,620 for about $126/year saved — roughly 12.9 years to break even. Call this borderline rather than a clear win.
Getting it done in Covington County
Actual quotes will vary by attic access, existing debris, and whether the job needs air sealing first. Treat the $2,820 figure above as a planning number for Covington County, not a bid - contractors typically charge a $600 minimum regardless of job size.
Where these figures come from
Covington County's R-49 target and its degree-day figures both come from named federal sources - see the methodology guide for exactly which ones. The guide to what R-value actually means explains why R-49 is the target here specifically.