Spray Foam Insulation in Davenport, IA

Spray foam insulation in Davenport has a lot of old houses and cold air to deal with. Census estimates compiled by Point2Homes show that 24% of the city's homes were built in 1939 or earlier, and Wikipedia's climate section puts Davenport's record low at -29F on January 18, 2009, with about 30.7 inches of snow in an average year. We seal the air leaks and insulate the attics, basements, walls and outbuildings that let that cold in, using closed-cell or open-cell spray foam where it makes sense and blown-in insulation where it does the same job for less.

What the code asks for here

Scott County sits in Climate Zone 5A on OpenEI's county list, along with Rock Island, Henry, Clinton and Muscatine counties. Iowa's residential energy code is the 2012 IECC with state amendments, and the Iowa table sets R-49 for ceilings in Zones 4 through 8 and R-20 (or R-13 plus R-5 continuous) for wood-frame walls in Zones 3 through 6. On the Illinois side, the state's Capital Development Board says the 2024 IECC, as amended by Illinois, took effect on November 30, 2025. Iowa's rule also says the remodeling or renovation of one- and two-family homes is outside the code's scope, so for an older house the code numbers are a useful target rather than a mandate. We write the target R-value for each area on the quote either way.

Where Quad Cities houses leak

The housing here spans more than a century. Davenport was founded in 1836 and grew steadily for over a hundred years, and the old German neighborhoods in the center and west of the city still hold workers' cottages, two-story frame houses and the large Queen Anne and Tudor Revival homes around Vander Veer Park, built between 1895 and 1915. Point2Homes data also shows big building waves in the 1960s (13.5% of homes) and 1970s (15.1%). Each era leaks in its own way. Pre-war houses often have open framing that runs from the basement to the attic, so warm air rises straight out of the house. Story-and-a-half homes lose heat through kneewalls and the short attic floors behind them. Ranches and split-levels from the 1960s and 1970s usually have a full basement with a bare rim joist all the way around. Newer houses are tighter but still leak at attic hatches, recessed lights and rooms over garages.

Closed cell vs open cell

Open-cell foam is soft and light, at about R-3.5 to R-3.7 per inch according to HomeGuide. It expands to fill a cavity and stops air well, but water vapor can pass through it, so in a cold climate it needs a vapor plan. Closed-cell foam is rigid and dense, at R-5 to R-7 per inch, and at normal thickness it slows vapor and does not soak up water. In the Quad Cities that makes closed-cell the usual choice for rim joists, basement walls, crawl spaces, steel buildings and roof decks with no room for venting. Open-cell works in interior walls and some attic rooflines where moisture is handled another way. On a big open attic floor, we usually seal the gaps with foam and blow cellulose or fiberglass on top, because that costs less per R-value.

Basements in a river town

Davenport is the largest city on the Mississippi without a permanent flood wall or levee, according to Wikipedia, and the river crested at 22.63 feet in the 1993 flood, almost 8 feet over flood stage. Duck Creek has flooded parts of Davenport and Bettendorf too. Most homes are nowhere near the river, but plenty of basements here have taken on water at some point. That changes how we insulate them. We do not bury damp walls behind fiberglass. Closed-cell foam on the rim joist and on dry foundation walls insulates without giving water something to soak into, and if we find active seepage, we tell you to deal with it first.

Spray foam insulation contractors: what to ask

When you call spray foam insulation contractors or insulation companies around Davenport, ask the same handful of questions of each one. What will they seal before they insulate? Which foam goes where, at what thickness and R-value? How will they handle the attic ventilation and the cold-weather timing? How long will the household need to stay out while it cures (HomeGuide suggests 24 hours or more)? What happens to old insulation that is wet or full of debris? A careful company answers in writing. Ours does, area by area, so you can compare bids on equal terms.

Spray foam insulation cost

HomeGuide's 2026 guide puts installed spray foam at $1.50 to $5.00 per square foot, with open-cell at $1.50 to $3.50 and closed-cell at $3.00 to $5.00. Fixr's figures for an existing home run $3.15 to $7.50 per square foot. A rim joist job typically lands around $2,000 to $2,500 (HomeGuide), and an average attic insulation job runs $1,000 to $2,700. These are national ranges. In the Quad Cities, the age of the house matters a lot: old attics often need cleanup and air sealing first, and basements with flood history may need moisture work before insulation. We price your job after seeing it, and the written estimate is what you pay.

Utility rebates

If MidAmerican Energy is your Iowa utility, its 2026 residential program terms say equipment must be bought, installed and running between January 1 and December 31, 2026, that applications are due within 90 days of the invoice, and that a prescriptive rebate cannot be more than 70% of the equipment cost (labor does not count). Program details change each year, so check the current list before you schedule work, and keep your invoice. Get a free estimate

We work in Davenport, Bettendorf, Eldridge and Le Claire in Scott County, DeWitt to the north and Muscatine down the river, and across the bridges in Moline, Rock Island, East Moline, Silvis and Milan, with Geneseo to the east. The older river cities hold the most pre-war houses with open framing and stone or block foundations. Bettendorf and the growing Scott County towns have more 1960s-to-2000s homes with full basements and attached garages. The farm country around DeWitt, Eldridge and Geneseo adds machine sheds and shops. Each town page covers what is different there.