Insulation and Air Sealing

Home Performance with Energy Star

Ready to insulate your home?

One of the best ways to improve comfort, lower your energy costs and boost efficiency in your home is through insulation and air sealing. These home improvement projects can also help remedy and protect against ice dam issues in the winter and air quality issues year-round. Focus on Energy offers incentives to bring down the cost of insulation and air sealing, and a list of Trade Ally contractors to help you complete the project with ease.  

Consider an energy assessment

To achieve the greatest benefits, it’s best to look at your home as a system with many different parts working together. The right mix of improvements can make a huge difference in how your home performs. A home energy assessment will identify areas in your home that cause drafts, discomfort and high energy bills. Assessments are performed by trained and certified Trade Ally contractors who will also look at health and safety issues that you may not otherwise consider. Using special diagnostic tools, such as a blower door test, our Trade Ally contractors can locate any air leakage sites and other trouble areas. You’ll walk away with a clear road map of:

  • Where your home is performing well, and where you could benefit from efficiency improvements
  • Specific solutions for comfort, health and safety issues, as well as ideas for lowering energy costs
  • Available financial incentives that cover assessment cost and provide funding for additional work

From there, you can determine which improvements to make, like adding insulation to your attic or walls, and we can put you in touch with a Trade Ally contractor to complete the work. 
Energy assessments typically range between $200-$400 dollars, and in return you’ll gain access to greater financial incentives. 

Start your project

Whether you start with a home energy assessment or you’re ready to jump right to an insulation and/or air sealing project, Focus on Energy is here to help you make your home more comfortable and efficient. Find a Trade Ally contractor to help you get started. Or, if you prefer a hands-on approach to home improvement, check out our available DIY Incentives. 

For available incentives, see the “Show Details” section below. Higher incentives are available for Tier 2 customers; see if you qualify below. Note: Insulation must be installed by a participating Trade Ally contractor to be eligible for incentives.

Get Started

  1. There are two incentive tiers: standard Tier 1 and Tier 2 for income-eligible customers. See if you qualify for Tier 2 incentives.

  2. If you choose to complete an energy assessment, be sure to schedule your appointment with your Trade Ally contractor. Contact one of our Trade Ally contractors. 

  3. Choose which home improvements you want to pursue and schedule the work with a Trade Ally contractor. Be sure to review the program terms. 

  4. Your Trade Ally contractor will work with you to receive your financial incentives.

Show Details ▼

Incentives

Incentives effective April 1, 2020

Insulation and Air Sealing Single Family Home (1-3 units)

Tier 1

Tier 2
ENERGY STAR Qualified Air Sealing
  Energy assessment required.		 $500 $800
Attic Insulation $400 $500
Foundation Insulation $100 $150
Wall Insulation $300 $300
Duct Sealing & Insulation $50 $50

 

Insulation and Air Sealing Multifamily Home (4+units) Incentive
Air Sealing $0.20 per sq. ft. of conditioned space
Attic Insulation, Existing < R-11 $0.50 per sq. ft. of attic space
Attic Insulation, Existing R-12 to R-19 $0.20 per sq. ft of attic space
Wall Insulation $0.80 per sq. ft of wall area

 

Terms and Conditions

General Program Requirements

  • Must be a customer of a participating utility. Focus on Energy incentives are available to Wisconsin residential customers of participating utilities. 
  • At least 51% of the home’s heating must come from a participating utility (electric or natural gas). Homes heated with wood, oil, LP, etc. are not eligible for an incentive.
  • Offer is valid for equipment and products purchased and installed between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020.
  • Only single-family dwellings and multifamily dwellings with three or fewer units under one roof are eligible for the single-family incentives, Multi-family dwellings (4+ units under one roof) are eligible for the multi-family incentives. Incentives may be available for other customer or property types. Please visit https://focusonenergy.com/business for more information.
  • Any project with an expected incentive exceeding $10,000 requires pre-approval BEFORE project initiation or equipment purchase to guarantee fund availability. Projects not receiving pre-approval will be subject to funding availability. 
  • Incentives are limited to $400,000 per customer per calendar year for all Focus on Energy incentives
  • Incentives may not exceed the total purchase price of the improvement.
  • The building is not eligible for incentives if the building has received an incentive from Focus on Energy for insulation or air sealing work in the last 3 years (1095 days).
  • The only costs eligible for incentives are materials and external labor.
  • Allow approximately 8-10 weeks for your completed application to be processed. Incomplete applications cannot be processed. Failure to complete the application in full and provide the required supporting documentation will either delay the payment process or result in your application being denied. Receipt of an application does not guarantee payment of an incentive.
  • The program is not responsible for items (i.e. applications, supporting documentation, incentive checks) lost or damaged in the mail.
  • Focus on Energy will only pay one incentive for each type of improvement. Incentives paid on this application cannot be claimed on another Focus on Energy application. Similarly, incentives can only be paid to one person or entity (i.e., either the resident or landlord, not both).
  • All single-family projects will be tested using the current BPI Building Analyst procedure related to the visual inspection of the CAZ ((ANSI/BPI-1200-S-2017 section 7.7), visual inspection of the combustion appliance/s and venting system/s (ANSI/BPI-1200-S-2017 section 7.8) and a spillage assessment (ANSI/BPI-1200-S-2017 section 7.9). 
  • Carbon Monoxide Alarms must be installed or present on all conditioned floors.
  • All installations are subject to verification inspection by the program for proper installation.
  • Participants must allow, if requested, the program or a program representative reasonable access to their home to verify the installed installation.

You are only eligible to participate in the program if you are:

  • A current residential customer of a participating utility in Wisconsin at the time of improvement or a landlord who paid for the improvement in the residence of a current residential customer of a participating utility in Wisconsin at the time of improvement; and
  • Installing qualifying energy efficient improvements in an existing residential dwelling. New construction does not qualify.
  • Improving the air sealing and insulation of an existing site. Insulation and air sealing work in a newly built addition is not eligible for incentives.

Your installation of air sealing and insulation improvements is only eligible for an incentive if:

  • It meets all installation requirements as outlined in our eligibility guidelines by installation type:
  • It is purchased new. Resale material or material that is leased, rebuilt, rented, received from insurance claims, received from a manufacturer warranty, purchase through Focus on Energy or won as a prize does not qualify.
  • Improvement is installed by a Focus on Energy Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Trade Ally or Air Sealing & Insulation Trade Ally. 
  • Installation is conforming to all applicable building, local, state and federal codes, standards, ordinances and regulations, and manufacturer specifications.
  • Installation is completed prior to submittal of this application at the address listed on the application.
  • It is installed in a property owned by the applicant, or the applicant has received permission from the property owner to install the equipment. If you do not own the property where this equipment is installed, as a residing tenant you are responsible for obtaining the owner’s permission to install the equipment for which you are applying for an incentive. Submission of this application indicates that you have obtained this permission.

To be considered complete and eligible for incentives, all applications must:

  • Be postmarked no later than 60 days after the installation date; and
  • Be signed by the purchaser (utility account holder, landlord, or applicant signing on behalf of the utility account holder) or Trade Ally; and 
  • Include itemized contractor invoice(s) or proof of purchase receipt(s) containing:
    • Improvement
    • Total installed cost
    • Purchase date or installation date 
    • Professional contractor’s business/company name, address, and phone number
    • Balance due of zero, paid in full stamp, or payment terms