Edwards County, IL Insulation Payback
Edwards County attic insulation, by the numbers
Edwards County sits in IECC climate zone 4 (Mixed-Humid) — heating load in winter and cooling load in summer, both worth taking seriously here. For a currently uninsulated attic, DOE and ENERGY STAR recommend building up to R-60. Going from R-2 to the recommended R-60 costs roughly $3,480 installed for a typical attic (about 1,000 sq ft), and pays for itself in about 2.4 years at an estimated $1,469/year saved. Topping up the attic pays for itself fast here.
Heating vs. cooling in Edwards County
Split it out and it's roughly $1,220 a year on the heating side, $249 on cooling. By estimated insulation savings, Edwards County lands in the 51th percentile nationally. Zone 4 alone covers 825 counties in this dataset, and Edwards County comes in 236th by savings. Illinois averages $1,642/year across the counties tracked here; Edwards County comes in 11% lower.
Edwards County's actual weather, not a national average
The heating and cooling degree days behind this estimate — 4,563 HDD and 1,550 CDD (base 65°F, 1991-2020 normals) — come from ALBION, IL US, the nearest NOAA station with published normals, 2.8 miles from Edwards County's center. By total degree days, Edwards County sits at the 54th percentile nationally. One local detail the R-value alone won't tell you: Edwards County sits in moisture regime A (humid), which can affect the vapor-barrier choice.
The smaller top-up scenario
Already have a few inches up there? Topping R-11 up to R-49 runs about $2,280 for about $214/year saved — roughly 10.6 years to break even. Call this borderline rather than a clear win.
Next steps for a Edwards County attic
Get more than one quote before committing. Attic access and any needed air sealing move the price around, and most contractors won't take a job below roughly $600 regardless of size - worth asking upfront given Edwards County's estimated $1,469/year on the line.
Where these figures come from
Edwards County's R-60 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-60 is the target here specifically.