Logan County, KY Insulation Payback
Logan County attic insulation, by the numbers
DOE classifies Logan County as climate zone 4, mixed-humid — heating load in winter and cooling load in summer, both worth taking seriously here. Its recommended attic R-value for bare joists is R-60. For an attic around 1,000 square feet, closing the gap from R-2 to R-60 costs around $3,480 and saves an estimated $1,360 a year — payback in roughly 2.6 years. Topping up the attic pays for itself fast here.
Heating vs. cooling in Logan County
Split it out and it's roughly $1,139 a year on the heating side, $221 on cooling. By estimated insulation savings, Logan County lands in the 43th percentile nationally. Zone 4 alone covers 825 counties in this dataset, and Logan County comes in 463rd by savings. Kentucky averages $1,385/year across the counties tracked here; Logan County comes in 2% lower.
Where these numbers come from
The heating and cooling degree days behind this estimate — 4,259 HDD and 1,375 CDD (base 65°F, 1991-2020 normals) — come from RUSSELLVILLE, KY US, the nearest NOAA station with published normals, 0.5 miles from Logan County's center. Combined heating and cooling load puts Logan County in the 43th percentile of this 3,162-county dataset. One local detail the R-value alone won't tell you: Logan County sits in moisture regime A (humid), which can affect the vapor-barrier choice.
If the attic isn't bare
If Logan 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 $198/year — payback about 11.5 years. Call this borderline rather than a clear win.
Next steps for a Logan County attic
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 Logan County, not a bid - contractors typically charge a $600 minimum regardless of job size.
Where these figures come from
Logan 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.