Demilec Home Energy Audit in West Hollywood: What to Know First
We provide independent Demilec home energy audit in West Hollywood, typically completed same-day with written results delivered before we leave. Most audits run between $280 and $550 depending on square footage and whether duct leakage testing is included, and every job starts with a flat written price - no work begins without it. This page is for Demilec owners in West Hollywood who need a blower-door test, thermal imaging, or insulation inspection to diagnose why their home isn’t holding temperature the way it should. If you’re seeing uneven room temperatures or utility bills that climbed after a renovation, call (213) 306-2607 for a free estimate and we’ll schedule a technician who knows Demilec’s product lines.
How Demilec Products Fail - and How We Fix Them
- Demilec SEALECTION 500 open-cell foam shrinkage in top plates. In West Hollywood’s dry Santa Ana seasons, this 0.5-lb density foam can pull away from framing members by 1/8 to 3/16 inch, creating a thermal bypass that blower-door testing catches at 50 pascals. We remove the compromised section, re-seal with compatible low-expansion foam, and retest to confirm the CFM50 drop.
- Demilec HEATLOK HFO PRO closed-cell off-gassing and adhesion loss on stucco substrates. The HFO blowing agent performs well thermally, but we’ve found adhesion failures where foam meets original 1920s lath-and-plaster in WeHo’s Spanish bungalows - the substrate pulls chalky, and the foam delaminates. We scarify back to sound material, apply a compatible primer, and respray to manufacturer thickness.
- Demilec HEATLOK XT spray foam shrinkage in crawl space rim joists. The 2.0-lb closed-cell product can contract in seasonal temperature swings common to homes north of Santa Monica Boulevard with vented crawl spaces, leaving gaps at the sill plate. We probe with a moisture meter first - West Hollywood’s clay soils hold damp - then reapply only after confirming the wood is below 18% moisture content.
- Demilec SEALECTION AGRISEAL misapplication in agricultural-adjacent conversions. We’ve encountered this lower-density foam in garage-to-ADU conversions around the Norma Triangle where the original installer specified farm-grade product for residential use. It underperforms on R-value and degrades faster under UV exposure if the drywall is delayed. We document the density with core samples and recommend removal and replacement with proper residential-grade material.
- Demilec HEATLOK Soya overspray blocking soffit ventilation. The bio-based content in this closed-cell product makes it attractive for green builds, but we’ve found it sprayed over eave vents in several WeHo courtyard apartments, choking attic airflow and causing moisture accumulation. We cut back the overspray with a hot knife, restore the vent free area to code, and verify with smoke pencil testing.
Our Demilec Home Energy Audit Process
- 1
Call and scheduling. A live person answers 24/7. We ask the Demilec product line if you know it, the home’s age, and what’s changed - bill spike, room temperature swing, post-renovation issue. We schedule a two-hour window and text when the technician is en route, Haven Standard: Arrive on schedule.
- 2
Visual and thermal inspection. The technician walks the attic, crawl space, and conditioned envelope with a FLIR camera, looking for Demilec-specific failure patterns - shrinkage at top plates, delamination at substrate transitions, density inconsistencies. We photograph everything and the images go into your Documented Photo Record.
- 3
Blower-door test. We pressurize the house to 50 pascals and record the CFM50 - the single number that tells us how much conditioned air is escaping. If you had prior work done, we compare against any previous reading; if not, we establish your baseline. Seal the leaks first. Then insulate. The R-value on the bag assumes you did it in that order.
- 4
Duct leakage test (if applicable). For homes with forced air, we seal the registers and pressurize the duct system to 25 pascals. Demilec foam in unconditioned attics can mask duct leakage by sealing plenum connections, but the ducts themselves may still be losing air through seams the foam never touched.
- 5
Written findings and flat price. Before any repair work is proposed, you get a written scope with line-item pricing, the blower-door baseline, thermal images with annotations, and our recommended sequence. Under Haven Standard Clause 1: flat price, written scope, written warranty before anyone lifts a tool.
- 6
Repair, retest, documentation. If you proceed, we complete the air sealing or foam correction, run a post-repair blower-door test, and deliver before-and-after numbers plus the photo record. The 365-Day Done Right Promise applies to all completed work.
Before
AfterWhat Demilec Home Energy Audit Costs in West Hollywood
Most Demilec home energy audits in West Hollywood fall between $280 and $550. A basic blower-door test with thermal imaging on a 1,200-square-foot bungalow runs around $280-$340. Add duct leakage testing and you’re looking at $420-$550 for a typical 2,000-square-foot home. What moves the price: square footage (more envelope to test), access difficulty (steep roof pitches in the hills west of Laurel Canyon), and whether we need to core-sample foam density - that adds lab time. If we find failed foam that needs removal and reapplication, that’s priced separately after the audit, never bundled into a surprise. We also offer a Free Second Opinion on any written estimate - bring us a competing quote and we’ll read it with you. Call (213) 306-2607 for an exact quote; estimates are free.
Why West Hollywood Homeowners Call Topside Attic Insulation West Hollywood for Demilec Work
We’ve been inside more than a few bungalows off Santa Monica Boulevard - air-sealing the top plates before a single bag of cellulose goes in, because that’s the sequence that actually holds an R-value. Wes Okafor built this operation on blower-door testing and written documentation, not on how long we’ve been around. Our technicians are background-checked and uniformed; they know Demilec’s product lines because they’ve removed and corrected failed applications from every series we listed above. We’re an independent Demilec service provider - not affiliated with or authorized by Demilec - which means we source materials from multiple manufacturers including Owens Corning, Johns Manville, Knauf, Rockwool, CertainTeed, Icynene, Demilec, GreenFiber, and Reflectix, with no proprietary lock-in. The 365-Day Done Right Promise backs every job, and a live person answers calls 24/7.
FAQs
No. Demilec’s product warranty covers material defects, not who inspects the installation. As an independent Demilec service provider, we document our findings without altering the original installation in ways that would trigger a warranty dispute. If we find a material defect during our audit, we flag it in our report so you can pursue a claim with your original installer or Demilec directly. Call (213) 306-2607 if you need help interpreting warranty language - estimates are free.
We typically schedule within 48 hours for West Hollywood addresses, and same-day service is often available for calls received before 10 a.m. We don’t do callback windows measured in business days - a live person answers 24/7 and books your slot then. Call (213) 306-2607 to check today’s availability.
Repair is viable for localized shrinkage or adhesion loss under 10% of the installed area; removal and replacement makes sense when the failure is widespread, the wrong product was specified (like AGRISEAL in a residential conversion), or moisture has degraded the foam substrate. We core-sample and moisture-test before recommending either path, and we give you both options in writing with line-item pricing. Call (213) 306-2607 for a free assessment.
We carry compatible sealants, primers, and touch-up foam for Demilec products, but we don’t stock full kit replacements - Demilec’s two-component systems require fresh resin and isocyanate with intact manufacturer lot numbers. For larger repairs, we order OEM or equivalent-spec material with next-day delivery to West Hollywood, or we can substitute from our multi-brand inventory including Reflectix if the application allows. We never start work without confirming the material spec in writing.
You receive a Documented Photo Record with thermal images and annotations, the pre- and post-repair blower-door readings in CFM50, a written scope of any recommended work with flat pricing, and a written warranty if repairs are completed. This is standard on every visit, not available on request - Haven Standard: Have it in writing.
Written by Wes Okafor, Owner, Topside Attic Insulation West Hollywood at Topside Attic Insulation West Hollywood, serving West Hollywood and nearby areas.