Fayette County, IN Insulation Payback
Fayette County attic insulation, by the numbers
Fayette County, Indiana is zone 5 under DOE's climate map (Cold), which means cold enough that heating, not cooling, is what decides the bill. An uninsulated attic there should be built 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 2.1 years at an estimated $1,661/year saved. Topping up the attic pays for itself fast here.
Heating vs. cooling in Fayette County
Split it out and it's roughly $1,520 a year on the heating side, $142 on cooling. By estimated insulation savings, Fayette County lands in the 64th percentile nationally. Zone 5 alone covers 745 counties in this dataset, and Fayette County comes in 552nd by savings. Indiana averages $1,634/year across the counties tracked here; Fayette County comes in 2% higher.
Fayette County's actual weather, not a national average
NOAA's RUSHVILLE, IN US station, 14.5 miles from Fayette County, supplies the 5,683 HDD and 881 CDD this estimate runs on. By total degree days, Fayette County sits at the 63th percentile nationally. One local detail the R-value alone won't tell you: Fayette 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-49 needs filling, at roughly $2,280 for an estimated $242/year saved (~9.4-year payback). Call this borderline rather than a clear win.
Getting it done in Fayette County
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 Fayette County's estimated $1,661/year on the line.
Where these figures come from
Fayette 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.