San Augustine County, TX Insulation Payback
Attic insulation payback for San Augustine County, TX
San Augustine County, Texas is zone 3 under DOE's climate map (Hot-Humid), which means long, muggy summers and mild winters, where cooling dominates 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 $954 a year — payback in roughly 3 years. Hard to find a home improvement with a faster payback than this.
Where the savings come from
Of that, about $579/year comes from reduced heating and $375/year from reduced cooling load through the ceiling. San Augustine County beats 13% of the counties in this 3,162-county dataset on estimated insulation savings. Among the 690 counties DOE places in zone 3, San Augustine County ranks 563rd. Against Texas's own average of $1,035/year, San Augustine County runs 8% below that.
Where these numbers come from
The heating and cooling degree days behind this estimate — 2,183 HDD and 2,355 CDD (base 65°F, 1991-2020 normals) — come from SAN AUGUSTINE, TX US, the nearest NOAA station with published normals, 9.8 miles from San Augustine County's center. That combined heating-and-cooling load ranks San Augustine County 2771st nationally by total degree days — the 12th percentile. DOE also classifies San Augustine 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
If San Augustine 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 $129/year — payback about 12.6 years. 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 San Augustine County's estimated $954/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.