Spray Foam Insulation in Hixson, TN

The north shore flats

Hixson grew fast once Highway 153 and the Northgate area opened up the north shore, and most of its neighborhoods date from the 1960s through the 1980s. The adjoining Middle Valley census area, which shares Hixson's housing pattern, has a median build year of about 1980 according to Census Bureau estimates, with roughly half its homes older than that. Brick ranches, split-foyers and two-story colonials on quarter-acre lots, block foundations, vented crawl spaces, ductwork in the attic or the crawl space.

Much of Hixson is low. The land between Hixson Pike and the lake, along North Chickamauga Creek and toward Chester Frost Park, is flat and near the water table, and Chickamauga Lake itself is a constant source of humidity. In neighborhoods like that a vented crawl space is a humidifier for the house. The fix is to stop venting it.

Split-foyers and the rim joist

Hixson has a lot of split-foyer houses, the kind with the front door landing between an upper living level and a lower level that is half below grade. These homes have a long rim joist where the upper floor system meets the foundation, and that rim joist is usually the leakiest part of the house. Cold air in winter and humid air in summer pour through it.

Two inches of closed-cell foam along the rim joist and band board, combined with foam on the crawl space or lower-level block walls, tightens these houses more than any other single measure. It is also where the difference between a foam specialist and a general contractor shows, because getting into the rim joist bays properly takes the right equipment and patience.

Attic ducts and second floors

The two-story colonials of the 1970s and 1980s typically have the upstairs air handler in the attic. Every summer afternoon that equipment is working in an attic well above outdoor temperature, and the bedrooms it serves never quite cool down. Spraying the roof deck moves the attic inside the envelope and puts the equipment in a space that stays close to house temperature. Where the budget favors the attic floor instead, air sealing and blown insulation to R-38 are the alternative.

Hixson is inside EPB's service territory, so the EPB and TVA EnergyRight rebates for attic insulation and air sealing may apply. Because Hixson is unincorporated, building permits go through Hamilton County rather than a city office, and we handle that when a permit is needed.