West Feliciana Parish, LA Insulation Payback
Attic insulation payback for West Feliciana Parish, LA
DOE classifies West Feliciana Parish as climate zone 2, 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 3.3 years at an estimated $867/year saved. Worth doing on the numbers alone.
The breakdown behind the number
Of that, about $497/year comes from reduced heating and $371/year from reduced cooling load through the ceiling. West Feliciana Parish beats 7% of the counties in this 3,162-county dataset on estimated insulation savings. Among the 233 counties DOE places in zone 2, West Feliciana Parish ranks 89th. Against Louisiana's own average of $906/year, West Feliciana Parish runs 4% below that.
Where these numbers come from
The heating and cooling degree days behind this estimate — 1,873 HDD and 2,325 CDD (base 65°F, 1991-2020 normals) — come from ST FRANCISVILLE 1 NE, LA US, the nearest NOAA station with published normals, 6.8 miles from West Feliciana Parish's center. Combined heating and cooling load puts West Feliciana Parish in the 4th percentile of this 3,162-county dataset. DOE also classifies West Feliciana Parish as moisture regime A (humid) - ask a local contractor whether that changes the vapor-barrier approach for this job.
The smaller top-up scenario
If West Feliciana Parish'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 $117/year — payback about 13.9 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 West Feliciana Parish's estimated $867/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.