Solar and battery storage
Panels and a battery sized from your bills. If the roof is near the end of its life, we re-roof before the panels go on.
Efficiency upgrades
Keep the Valley heat outside the house
Insulation and air sealing, dual-pane windows, cool roofs and sealed ducts. This is the work that makes a house easier to cool, and it is worth doing before you size a heat pump or solar.
The building envelope
Where an LA house lets the heat in
The envelope is everything between you and the weather: the roof, the attic floor, the walls, the windows and the floor. In an older house, heat gets through in a few familiar places.
- RoofAfternoon sun heats the roof, and the roof heats the attic. A cool roof reflects more of that sunlight back.
- Attic floorInsulation slows the heat coming down into the rooms. Air sealing closes the gaps around lights, pipes and the hatch.
- Ducts in the atticCooled air leaks out at loose joints before it reaches the rooms. Sealed ducts deliver it where you want it.
- Windows, sliders and skylightsSingle-pane glass lets the sun's heat straight in. Dual-pane low-E glass cuts the heat that comes through.
- WallsMany older LA houses were built with little or no insulation in the walls.
- Floor over a crawlspaceInsulation under a raised floor keeps it from feeling cold on winter mornings.
The upgrades
Five upgrades and what each job involves
Most houses need some of these, rarely all of them. The home visit tells us which ones are worth doing in yours.
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Attic · Walls · Crawlspace
Insulation and air sealing
- What it is
- Insulation slows heat moving through the attic floor, the walls and the floor over a crawlspace. Air sealing closes the gaps that let attic air into the rooms, around can lights, pipes, wiring and the attic hatch.
- Why it matters in LA
- On a Valley summer afternoon the attic gets far hotter than the air outside, and that heat keeps pushing down into the rooms into the evening. Many older LA houses have thin, settled attic insulation.
- The job
- We seal the gaps first, then blow in attic insulation. Walls get filled through small holes or insulated while they are open for a remodel, and crawlspaces get insulation under the floor.
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Dual-pane · Low-E
Dual-pane low-E windows
- What it is
- Two panes of glass with a sealed space between them, plus a thin low-E coating that reflects heat. The view stays the same and less of the sun's heat comes through.
- Why it matters in LA
- West- and south-facing windows take the full afternoon sun. Old single-pane glass in aluminum frames lets that heat straight in during summer and lets warmth out on winter nights.
- The job
- We measure every opening, order the windows and set them in the existing frame or with new frames, then flash, seal and trim them inside and out. Replacement windows have to meet the state energy code, and where the city requires a permit, we pull it.
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Patio doors · Skylights
Sliding doors and skylights
- What it is
- Sliding glass doors and skylights with the same dual-pane low-E glass as new windows. A big slider is often the largest piece of glass in the house.
- Why it matters in LA
- Many LA houses open onto the yard through an old aluminum slider, and a skylight puts glass where the midday sun is strongest. For their size, both let in a lot of heat.
- The job
- For a slider, we take out the old door and frame, set and level the new unit, then flash and trim the opening. A skylight is roof work too, so the new unit gets new flashing sealed into the roofing around it.
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- What it is
- A cool roof uses shingles, tile or a coating that reflects more sunlight and holds less heat than a standard dark roof. Solar-ready means the new roof is planned for panels: the open area they need and the path the wiring takes into the house.
- Why it matters in LA
- The roof takes more sun than any other part of the house, and a cooler roof means a cooler attic. Panels stay on a roof for many years, so a roof near the end of its life should be replaced before they go on.
- The job
- We remove the old roofing, repair damaged decking, and install new underlayment, flashing and roofing. Depending on the roof and where you live, the energy code can require a cool roof on a re-roof, and we check that with the permit.
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- What it is
- Ducts carry heated or cooled air from the furnace or heat pump to each room. Leaky joints and torn connections lose some of that air before it gets there.
- Why it matters in LA
- In many LA houses the ducts run through the attic, the hottest place in the house in summer. Cooled air that leaks out up there never reaches the rooms, and hot attic air can get pulled in.
- The job
- We seal the joints with mastic and repair or replace damaged runs. The energy code often calls for a duct leakage test when a new heating or cooling system goes in, so duct work pairs well with a heat pump.
Order of work
Fix the house first, then size the equipment
A heat pump is sized for the heat a house gains and loses. Do the envelope work first, or plan both together, so the new system fits the house you will live in.
Rebates and incentives change often. We check what your utility offers before we quote.
- Envelope, then heat pumpThe heat pump is sized for the house after the insulation, window and duct work.
- Roof, then solarA worn roof gets replaced before panels go on, and the new roof is laid out for them.
- Open the house oncePlanning upgrades together means the attic, the walls and the roof get opened one time.
- Financing for the energy workAsk about financing for insulation, windows, roofing and the rest. You see the full price in writing first.
Financing disclosure. Financing is offered through third-party lenders and is subject to credit approval. Rates, terms and eligibility vary. Woodmaster Kitchen & Bath Inc. is not a lender.
Home visit
Have us look at the attic first
Call, send a WhatsApp message or email us. Someone from our Woodland Hills office will set up a home visit to look at the attic, the windows, the roof and the ducts.