Our vision is twofold:
- We want to see our clients living in more comfortable homes that are faster, easier, and less expensive to maintain at ideal temperatures.
- We want to see energy waste and over-consumption drop so that less fossil fuels are burnt and our environment benefits as a result.
Our clients benefit in many ways from our services. They save money, see the resale value of their homes or businesses increase, and have the satisfaction of knowing they’re doing the right thing for the environment.
Our Offered Services
Pure Eco Inc. offers numerous services related to improving home energy efficiency. You can see our individual service pages on this website for more detailed information on each service area, but below we give you a good general overview.
AIR SEALING
Without preliminary air sealing, installing new insulation would be virtually futile. When attics and other areas of the house have air leakage points, large amounts of heated or cooled air is lost – and the more extreme the outdoor temperatures, the more expensive air leaks become.
Our highly trained staff can quickly detect major air leak points and carefully search for smaller air leaks with specialized equipment. Our staff is deeply experienced in finding and fixing air leaks – we know exactly where to check and we know how to use blower doors, fog machines, or a simple flashlight to help locate even the smallest leaks!
To eliminate air leaks, we use a variety of materials and strategies. These include OSB board, plywood, drywall, weather-stripping for attic access hatches and all doors to the building, caulk and heat-resistant sealants, polyisocyanurate foil, and sheet metal around chimneys.
INSTALLING INSULATION
You may need old, damaged or ineffective insulation removed first in some cases, or we may be able to add insulation to what you already have. It all depends. Take asbestos-containing vermiculite insulation, for example – that should always be removed for safety reasons. Or moldy, dirty insulation – that also needs to go. But if your insulation is in good shape, we can just add more – such as doubling up batts (after removing the intervening vapor barrier to prevent internal condensation damage.)
For brand new insulation on an uninsulated building, you have many options. But to get the best value for your insulation, you need to air seal first, have it installed correctly, and cover the whole building envelope to create an “insulation shield.”
While there are many specific insulation options, we can summarize the main options as follows:
Batts Insulation
Batts insulation is the most commonly chosen insulation type, largely because of its lower price point. It works well between standardly spaced studs or rafters and is adequate for most insulation situations.
Batts comes in large rolls with a paper or aluminum vapor barrier backing. It will usually be made of fiberglass or cotton. Both materials work about as well, but cotton is arguably a little more eco-friendly since its’s manufactured out of recycled jeans. However, due to the way batts insulation is designed, it cannot fill in spaces as compactly as loose-fill insulation can. This is a drawback but not necessarily a problem – if the batts are installed in the right places in the right manner, you will obtain good insulating power.
Whether or not batts should be your insulation choice depends on many factors. We can help you weigh the costs and cost-savings of each insulation type, so you can make the choice that best fits your needs and budget.
Blown Insulation
Blown or loose-fill insulation is often used on attic floors, but sometimes also inside of ceilings and even inside of walls. It is blown in through a plastic tube from an insulation truck, by means of a blower. Blown-in insulation has the advantage of tightly filling in the space it covers. If it is laid down properly, so that it’s even and in deep enough layers, it creates an extremely effective insulating barrier.
Most often, fiberglass of cellulose material is used with blown-in insulation. Both options are about equally effective, but cellulose is made of recycled newspapers (good for the environment!), while fiberglass is sourced from sand (a highly sustainable product!) We can install your blown insulation quickly, without making a mess, and ensure it evenly and fully covers the desired space.
Soundproof Insulation
Our full service team can also offer you ROXUL Soundproof Insulation, which is easily the most effective soundproofing insulation product on the market today. ROXUL is made of “stone wool,” which is a combination of basalt and steel wool spun from steel slag. This creates a material that is light enough to work with (if heavier than other insulation types and certainly heavy duty!), able to greatly reduce all sound transfers through walls, and is fire proof, insect proof, mold and mildew proof, and seemingly “everything else proof.”
ROXUL Safe ‘N’ Sound® is used on fully interior walls, while ROXUL Comfort Batt® is used to insulate walls with an exterior side. Both use stone wool and greatly reduce the movement of noises through your walls.
VENTILATION & AIR FILTERING
We are also able to help upgrade your building’s ventilation system and air quality. We can install new attic fans, repair or replace existing ducts and vents, or install brand new vents/ducts.
Remember that good energy efficiency has to be coupled with control of (not elimination of) air flow into and out of your building. A house must “breathe” to prevent moisture build up which could lead to mold, mildew, or wood rot. But ventilation has to be strictly controlled so it won’t diminish your energy efficiency – which why we eliminate air leaks but install vents. Additionally, we can install a modern UV cleaner and/or air scrubber for you that will significantly boost the quality of your indoor air!
RADIANT BARRIERS
Another great way to improve the energy efficiency of your attic and home is by installing a radiant barrier on your attic ceiling. Radiant barriers lay directly below the underside of your roof line and use their multi-layered, highly reflective aluminum backing to shoot radiant heat rays from the sun right back out of your home through the roof. The result is that your attic will not get nearly as hot during those hot L.A. summers, and this will have a big impact on the temperature of the rest of your home and on your energy bills!
We are familiar with the various radiant barriers on the market today. We can help you choose the one that’s right for you and install it for optimal performance.
RODENT-PROOFING
Does your attic, crawl space, or another area of your house suffer from a rodent infestation? Not only are rats and mice pests, but they are dangerous spreaders of disease and gnawers and scratchers who can damage your building and furniture and contaminate your food supplies! The best way to deal with rodents is to never let them get into your building to begin with.
We at Pure Eco Inc. are experts at sealing off all potential entry points of mice, rats, squirrels, bats, and other pests to keep them out of your attic or crawlspace. We can also set traps to catch any pests that have already gotten in. In rodent proofing, we seal openings largely like we would in air-sealing, but we may need to use stronger barriers at points to keep animals with teeth and claws from breaking in. And we also fix any weak points/gaps in your roof, install vent covers and chimney caps, cut back tree branches leaning over your roof, and take other steps to keep rodents and other pests out.
ATTIC & CRAWL SPACE CLEANING
Cleaning out the attic or the crawl space, the two least visited rooms in your entire home, can sometimes be a daunting and even frightening thought. No need to worry. We can take care of that for you! Our attic and crawl space cleaning services are fully professional and thorough. We eliminate rodent feces, remove any mold/mildew and disinfect, and clear away the dirt, dust, cobwebs, dead insects, and any lingering debris. If you’re going to convert your attic into usable space, perhaps a spare bedroom or office, the first step is to clean it. And it’s good to clean attics and crawlspaces before air sealing and insulating as well.