Rusk County, WI Insulation Payback
Rusk County attic insulation, by the numbers
Rusk 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 $2,371 a year in heating and cooling — a payback around 1.5 years. Topping up the attic pays for itself fast here.
Where the savings come from
Split it out and it's roughly $2,339 a year on the heating side, $33 on cooling. By estimated insulation savings, Rusk County lands in the 95th percentile nationally. Zone 6 alone covers 459 counties in this dataset, and Rusk County comes in 50th by savings. Wisconsin averages $2,200/year across the counties tracked here; Rusk County comes in 8% higher.
Where these numbers come from
The heating and cooling degree days behind this estimate — 8,746 HDD and 204 CDD (base 65°F, 1991-2020 normals) — come from LADYSMITH 3W, WI US, the nearest NOAA station with published normals, 0.8 miles from Rusk County's center. Combined heating and cooling load puts Rusk County in the 94th percentile of this 3,162-county dataset. One local detail the R-value alone won't tell you: Rusk County sits in moisture regime A (humid), which can affect the vapor-barrier choice.
If the attic isn't bare
A shallower starting point changes the math: with R-11 already down, only the gap to R-49 needs filling, at roughly $2,280 for an estimated $346/year saved (~6.6-year payback). Worth doing on the numbers alone.
Quotes and materials for this job
Real bids depend on how easy the attic is to reach and whether old insulation needs removing first, so treat $3,480 as a starting estimate for a Rusk County job, not a quote. Expect at least a $600 minimum charge from most contractors.
Where these figures come from
Rusk 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.