Crawford County, AR Insulation Payback
Crawford County attic insulation, by the numbers
Crawford County, Arkansas is zone 3 under DOE's climate map (Mixed-Humid), which means a genuine mix of cold winters and humid summers, with neither one dominating the bill. An uninsulated attic there should be built up to R-49. Topping up a typical 1,000-square-foot attic from bare joists (R-2) to R-49 runs an estimated $2,820, and saves about $1,243 a year in heating and cooling — a payback around 2.3 years. Topping up the attic pays for itself fast here.
The breakdown behind the number
Split it out and it's roughly $990 a year on the heating side, $253 on cooling. By estimated insulation savings, Crawford County lands in the 34th percentile nationally. Zone 3 alone covers 690 counties in this dataset, and Crawford County comes in 53rd by savings. Arkansas averages $1,185/year across the counties tracked here; Crawford County comes in 5% higher.
Crawford County's actual weather, not a national average
The heating and cooling degree days behind this estimate — 3,733 HDD and 1,586 CDD (base 65°F, 1991-2020 normals) — come from MOUNTAINBURG 2 NE, AR US, the nearest NOAA station with published normals, 6.5 miles from Crawford County's center. By total degree days, Crawford County sits at the 35th percentile nationally. One local detail the R-value alone won't tell you: Crawford County sits in moisture regime A (humid), which can affect the vapor-barrier choice.
If the attic isn't bare
A shallower starting point changes the math: with R-11 already down, only the gap to R-38 needs filling, at roughly $1,620 for an estimated $167/year saved (~9.7-year payback). Call this borderline rather than a clear win.
Quotes and materials for this job
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 Crawford County, not a bid - contractors typically charge a $600 minimum regardless of job size.
Where these figures come from
Crawford 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.