Fulton County, PA Insulation Payback
Fulton County attic insulation, by the numbers
Fulton County, Pennsylvania is zone 5 under DOE's climate map (Cold), which means winters that dominate the energy bill, with cooling a minor factor. 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 $1,623/year saved. Topping up the attic pays for itself fast here.
Where the savings come from
Split it out and it's roughly $1,503 a year on the heating side, $120 on cooling. By estimated insulation savings, Fulton County lands in the 61th percentile nationally. Zone 5 alone covers 745 counties in this dataset, and Fulton County comes in 612th by savings. Pennsylvania averages $1,724/year across the counties tracked here; Fulton County comes in 6% lower.
Fulton County's actual weather, not a national average
NOAA's EVERETT, PA US station, 14.7 miles from Fulton County, supplies the 5,621 HDD and 745 CDD this estimate runs on. That combined heating-and-cooling load ranks Fulton County 1292nd nationally by total degree days — the 59th percentile. One local detail the R-value alone won't tell you: Fulton County sits in moisture regime A (humid), which can affect the vapor-barrier choice.
Already have some insulation?
If Fulton County's attic already has 3-4 inches of old insulation (about R-11) rather than bare joists, the recommended target drops to R-49. That smaller top-up costs around $2,280 and saves an estimated $237/year — payback about 9.6 years. 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 $3,480 figure above as a planning number for Fulton County, not a bid - contractors typically charge a $600 minimum regardless of job size.
Where these figures come from
Fulton 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.