Fremont County, WY Insulation Payback
Fremont County attic insulation, by the numbers
Fremont County sits in IECC climate zone 6 (Cold) — cold enough that heating, not cooling, is what decides the bill. For a currently uninsulated attic, DOE and ENERGY STAR recommend building up to R-60. Topping up a typical 1,000-square-foot attic from bare joists (R-2) to R-60 runs an estimated $3,480, and saves about $2,200 a year in heating and cooling — a payback around 1.6 years. Topping up the attic pays for itself fast here.
Where the savings come from
Split it out and it's roughly $2,120 a year on the heating side, $80 on cooling. By estimated insulation savings, Fremont County lands in the 90th percentile nationally. Zone 6 alone covers 459 counties in this dataset, and Fremont County comes in 186th by savings. Wyoming averages $2,161/year across the counties tracked here; Fremont County comes in 2% higher.
Where these numbers come from
NOAA's RIVERTON, WY US station, 6.7 miles from Fremont County, supplies the 7,927 HDD and 499 CDD this estimate runs on. That combined heating-and-cooling load ranks Fremont County 311th nationally by total degree days — the 90th percentile. One local detail the R-value alone won't tell you: Fremont County sits in moisture regime B (dry), 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-49 runs about $2,280 for about $321/year saved — roughly 7.1 years to break even. Worth doing on the numbers alone.
Next steps for a Fremont 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 Fremont County's estimated $2,200/year on the line.
Where these figures come from
Fremont 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.