Kaufman County, TX Insulation Payback
Kaufman County attic insulation, by the numbers
DOE classifies Kaufman County as climate zone 3, hot-humid — long, muggy summers and mild winters, where cooling dominates the energy bill. Its recommended attic R-value for bare joists is R-49. Going from R-2 to the recommended R-49 costs roughly $2,820 installed for a typical attic (about 1,000 sq ft), and pays for itself in about 2.7 years at an estimated $1,053/year saved. Topping up the attic pays for itself fast here.
The breakdown behind the number
Split it out and it's roughly $665 a year on the heating side, $388 on cooling. By estimated insulation savings, Kaufman County lands in the 21th percentile nationally. Zone 3 alone covers 690 counties in this dataset, and Kaufman County comes in 352nd by savings. Texas averages $1,035/year across the counties tracked here; Kaufman County comes in 2% higher.
Kaufman County's actual weather, not a national average
The heating and cooling degree days behind this estimate — 2,507 HDD and 2,434 CDD (base 65°F, 1991-2020 normals) — come from KAUFMAN 3 SE, TX US, the nearest NOAA station with published normals, 2.9 miles from Kaufman County's center. Combined heating and cooling load puts Kaufman County in the 24th percentile of this 3,162-county dataset. One local detail the R-value alone won't tell you: Kaufman County sits in moisture regime A (humid), which can affect the vapor-barrier choice.
If the attic isn't bare
If Kaufman County's attic already has 3-4 inches of old insulation (about R-11) rather than bare joists, the recommended target drops to R-38. That smaller top-up costs around $1,620 and saves an estimated $142/year — payback about 11.4 years. Call this borderline rather than a clear win.
Next steps for a Kaufman County attic
Actual quotes will vary by attic access, existing debris, and whether the job needs air sealing first. Treat the $2,820 figure above as a planning number for Kaufman County, not a bid - contractors typically charge a $600 minimum regardless of job size.
Where these figures come from
Kaufman County's R-49 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-49 is the target here specifically.