Thanks bungeeii. I actually made contact with a spray company that had a certified Energystar auditor working with them. They did an energy audit today and took measurements to estimate the job. They estimated the following rebates, and will put these terms in the contract as stipulations before any work is done: 1. audit costs $400 with $125 rebated if the work is done. 2. $1000 govt rebate off the top for a thin barrier spray in the attic floor. I don't have the exact terminology in front of me, but it is basically a skim coat of foam onto which is blown cellulose or other for attic insulation. 3. up to 50% rebate ($5000 max) depending on the results of the energy audit. Because I have high efficiency furnaces and on-demand hot water, she says that I will rate at a 25%+ energy savings, which will put me at the 50% rebate from the govt. The rebate takes about 10 weeks. So, in their example, if the job costs $11,000, I pay $10,000 plus the $400 for the audit ($1000 "instant" rebate for the attic thing), then get $5000 + $125 back in 10 weeks. After my contractor subtracts out what he was charging me for fiberglass, I should net out at a very reasonable number. The people today were my third estimate, and I believe they were the most knowledgeable about the right thing to do. I'm just waiting till next week for their estimate. Thanks again, I think I'm finally getting the right game plan together!

This is from Manual J 8th edition version 2 ACCA Improper Practices 2-4 Do not use "rules of thumb". The idea that the required equipment capacity equals the floor area multiplied by some magic number has resulted in many customer complaints and legal actions. Heating and cooling loads depend on individual circumstances. Floor area to tonnage ratios for the U.S. housing stock can range from less than 500 sq ft per ton to more than 1,200 sq ft per ton. Efficient single family detached homes with a normal amount of well distributed glass typically fall in the 700 to 1,200 range. Limted exposure dwellings with concentrated glass (that produces a time-of-day peak)may fall into the 500 to 800 range. Homes with exceptional features can be all over the map in this regard. Just rotating a home on the site can change the ratiio by 100 to 400 sq ft per ton. I edited out the replacement equipment paragraph... Comfort system performance is only as good as the accuracy of the load calcuation. Efforts to "adjust the load" to provide a "safety factor or to produce a solution that is compatible with the " I have been doing it this way for thirty years" syndrome only produces designs that generate customer complaints about poor temperatureand humidity control, or more serious problems, such as mold and mildew. _______________________________________________________ and Bob...please- this isn't a DIY or best case house we are talking about, but a homeowner trying to get his house right.. save your diy projects for your indulgent threads on that topic. As he is trying to decide to spend xxx dollars insulating his roofline and the timeline for payback your project does not project the numbers he will be paying someone to do his job as yours is diy. I have yet to see a foam insulation company do a job that has a payback of less than 20 years, and I do these projections often. depending on the pitch of the roof the cost of the foam insulation is a consideration. having a complete thermal barrier at the attic floor is a much more conservative approach if detetmined to use foam, although this thermal barrier can be achieved with out foam with attention to sealing of ALL penetrations into the conditioned space (wire, plumbing, recessed lights and knee walls where ceilings change heights). I would recommend the latter, sealing and insulating well with conventional insulation for same performance at a lesser cost and faster payback. the load calcs are only as good as the inputs and the information provided to the person doing the load calcs. I would question the information that has been provided by taking the house plans, a copy of the current load calc to another more experienced hvac company for comparism.

This might seem fairly negative. The EPA has all sorts of precautions it urges for spray poly foams. Most are in regards to its application, but others warn of long term exposure to improperly applied foam and to messing with it later. Much of the hullabaloo concerns pollution in living areas, but the EPA doesn't quite agree with out-gassing warnings (some of then horrible and nasty) and states: "The potential for off-gassing of volatile chemicals from spray polyurethane foam is not fully understood and is an area where more research is needed". Although it's functionally wonderful stuff it might be best to be circumspect in isolating it from the living areas of tight homes, but by no means is it automatically going to kill you. Kind of like the Formaldehyde scare forty years ago: real but manageable. There are precautions to take that can ameliorate most if not all the possible hazards, but proper installation is such a big factor you'd do well to check for certification(s) held by the contractor. But of all the horror stories of spray poly foam, most point to the contractor having the worst exposure risk. Sorry if this rambled a bit! Oh, further rambling: foam beats batts in sound dampening hands down, but insulation is never the primary way to go to cut down the noise filtering into and out of rooms. That best dealt with as a design consideration and you get better results by looking at non-parallel opposing wall/ceiling/floor surfaces, room proportions, and material resonances. Here is a link that might be useful: EPA Homeowner information (not scary)

No such machine was used... They poured the entire garage at once which lasted from 8:15am-8:45am.. From that point until 1pm they were working the concrete by hand.. This is a quick shot of what they were doing: I just really can't believe that this company would allow this.. They are a higher end company and they do most of their work in high end neighborhoods.. I am actually getting a little concerned that its not even.. I went over while at work to take a quick pic but got their late and it was already dark.. I left the headlights of my car on and took a pic.. I can't tell if its the lighting combined with the trowel marks, but it almost looks like ripples.. This is what it looks like: At this point I don't know what to even do.. I feel like every time they get to the next stage I have to question what my options are because it wasn't done right.. I know I am not building a mansion or some multi million dollar home, but I just feel like I probably could have done a better job myself and I have absolutely no experience.. I know it's easy to second guess people, but I feel like this is not an acceptable finish.. I talked with a few people and they said there is no real way to "repair" this.. They would have to hammer it all out and pour again.. I had contemplated doing an epoxy finish but I don't even know if that would solve this.. Im sure it would help the finish look, but if this floor is in fact not level I am not sure an epoxy coating will level it out.. I am nervous to even go down to the basement.. I only saw a small portion from the upper level (no stairs installed yet) and everything was covered.. I can only assume the basement slab looks the same..