Multifamily Insulation for 3+ Unit Buildings

Cellulose, fiberglass, and spray foam insulation for 3+ unit Chicagoland buildings. ComEd and Nicor rebates available — many projects qualify for $0 out-of-pocket. BPI-certified analysts. 17 years on the job.

WHY MUltifamily insulation is different

Warm air rises through every floor, pulling cold air in at the foundation. In a 6-flat or mid-rise, that pressure differential drives more energy loss than insulation alone can fix. Air sealing has to come first.

Most contractors treat them like single-family homes. That's why most retrofits underperform. Multifamily insulation work has to account for three structural realities that change how the job gets done.

🔬 BUILDING-LEVEL DIAGNOSTICS

Blower door testing, thermal imaging, and pressure mapping treat the building as one connected system. Without proper diagnostics, you are guessing at where the energy is actually escaping — and in multifamily, the wrong guess is expensive.

🔗 SHARED SYSTEMS

Common HVAC, shared duct work, master-metered utilities, common-area heat. A comfort complaint in one unit usually starts somewhere else in the building. Diagnostic work has to look at the whole envelope, not one unit at a time.

🧑‍🔧 TENANT COORDINATION

You cannot work in occupied multifamily the way you work in a single-family home. We schedule around access, communicate with tenants in advance, keep job sites clean, and finish on the day we said we would.

🏗️ THE STACK EFFECT

Insulation Materials

Material selection is a specification decision, not a default.

Building age, wall assembly, attic access, and moisture profile drive the choice. We spec the material that delivers the highest R-value for the available cavity, then verify with post-install testing.

BPI Certified Building Performance Institute
01 / 04
Most Common

Cellulose Insulation

R-3.5 to R-3.8 per inch

Borate-treated recycled paper fiber. R-value improves in cold weather, uniquely suited to Chicago's climate. The top choice for attic and dense-pack wall applications in existing multifamily buildings. No wall tear-out required in most cases.

Best Applications

Attics, dense-packed wall cavities, retrofits

02 / 04
Highest R-Value

Closed Cell Spray Foam

R-6 to R-7 per inch

The highest R-value available. Air barrier, vapor barrier, and structural reinforcement in one application. The right choice for crawl spaces, roofing systems, and exterior-facing walls in multifamily buildings.

Best Applications

Rim joists, crawl spaces, exterior walls

03 / 04
Sound Control

Open Cell Spray Foam

R-3.5 to R-3.8 per inch

Expands to fill every irregular cavity completely. Provides excellent air sealing and insulation simultaneously. Also significantly reduces unit-to-unit sound transmission, a meaningful tenant satisfaction improvement.

Best Applications

Interior walls, sound dampening, complex cavities

04 / 04
Cost-Effective

Fiberglass Insulation

R-2.2 to R-4.3 per inch

Proven for over 70 years. Most cost-effective for new construction with open framing. Available as batts for standard stud bays or blown-in for attic applications in multifamily buildings.

Best Applications

New construction, accessible attics, budget scopes

Utility Rebates

Most Multi-Family Buildings Qualify for Significant Rebates

We are an authorized contractor across the four major Illinois utility programs. Most multifamily insulation projects we complete are partially or fully covered through one or more of these rebate programs.

Electric Utility

ComEd

Energy Efficiency Program

Electric upgrades, common-area lighting, HVAC efficiency improvements.

Natural Gas Utility

Nicor Gas

energySMART Program

Insulation, air sealing, gas furnaces, water heaters, weatherization.

Natural Gas Utility

Peoples Gas

Multifamily Programs

City of Chicago multifamily natural gas efficiency upgrades.

Natural Gas Utility

NorthShore Gas

Multifamily Programs

North-suburb natural gas efficiency rebates and incentives.

Eligibility is building-specific. The fastest way to find out what your property qualifies for is a no-cost assessment.

Check My Building's Eligibility