Jim Hogg County, TX Insulation Payback
Attic insulation payback for Jim Hogg County, TX
Jim Hogg County, Texas is zone 2 under DOE's climate map (Hot-Humid), which means summers that stay hot and humid while winters barely register on the energy bill. An uninsulated attic there should be built up to R-49. For an attic around 1,000 square feet, closing the gap from R-2 to R-49 costs around $2,820 and saves an estimated $874 a year — payback in roughly 3.2 years. Worth doing on the numbers alone.
The breakdown behind the number
Of that, about $218/year comes from reduced heating and $655/year from reduced cooling load through the ceiling. Jim Hogg County beats 8% of the counties in this 3,162-county dataset on estimated insulation savings. Among the 233 counties DOE places in zone 2, Jim Hogg County ranks 78th. Against Texas's own average of $1,035/year, Jim Hogg County runs 16% below that.
Where these numbers come from
Jim Hogg County's climate figures — 822 heating and 4,113 cooling degree days a year — are read from HEBBRONVILLE, TX US, 18.9 miles away, NOAA's nearest 1991-2020 normals station. By total degree days, Jim Hogg County sits at the 24th percentile nationally. DOE also classifies Jim Hogg County as moisture regime A (humid) - ask a local contractor whether that changes the vapor-barrier approach for this job.
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 $118/year saved (~13.8-year payback). It is close - the payback only just fits a reasonable timeframe.
Quotes and materials for this job
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 Jim Hogg County's estimated $874/year on the line.
More on how this was built
Nothing here is a guess: the methodology guide names the DOE climate map and NOAA station data behind every number on this page. See the DIY vs. contractor guide for whether a job this size is realistic to do yourself.