THE SHORT ANSWER
Estimate air sealing from identified openings and joint lengths, with access and material selection described. Keep the sealing scope separate from insulation, testing and repair of unknown cavities.
This guide follows a fictional defined penetrations in one attic in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. The linked attic air sealing PDF example shows the scope and 6 separate costs in Canadian dollars. Treat it as a worked document, then use measurements, supplier quotes and labour inputs from your own project.
1. Mark the openings
Count the penetrations and measure the specific joints planned for treatment. A vague attic-wide line makes it difficult to verify what the crew will actually seal.
2. Identify access and preparation
Existing insulation may need careful movement and replacement around work locations. The example allows that effort without assuming wholesale insulation removal.
3. Choose suitable materials
Match sealant and backing to the actual assembly and applicable requirements. The fictional material allowance must be replaced with a job-specific product list.
4. Define evidence at handoff
Record the treated locations and the limited documentation included. Any diagnostic testing or new insulation should be a distinct scope with its own quantities.
Review the Canadian project address
For the defined penetrations in one attic in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, the example uses the measured trade units shown in its PDF. Residential jobs may mix square feet, linear feet, counts and supplier units; keep each line’s measurement basis visible. Record the existing air, moisture and ventilation conditions before selecting materials. Requirements and suitable assemblies depend on the building and location, so confirm them for the actual project. The figures are fictional CAD inputs, not a local price survey.
Describe which products the customer supplies and which the contractor supplies. State how any site condition outside the visible scope will be assessed and priced. Do not copy an allowance from another city or assume a sample’s tax entry establishes the treatment for this client.
Work through the attic air sealing quantities
The matching PDF lets the client check each extension of quantity and unit rate. For this example, two useful checks are:
- Small penetration sealing: 18 each × C$48.00 = C$864.00.
- Top-plate joint sealing: 120 linear ft. × C$5.70 = C$684.00.
Adding all 6 lines gives a C$2,488.00 illustrative subtotal. The PDF records 0% tax and C$2,488.00 as its total, before any markup. These are chosen sample inputs, not prices observed in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. The measurement basis matters as much as the rate: a material purchase allowance may be larger than the installed area, while a fixture count is not interchangeable with hours of labour.
Check the scope before sending
- Map and count accessible openings.
- Measure joint lengths.
- Review material and assembly requirements.
- Separate testing and insulation.
Outside the illustrated scope: No blower-door testing, new insulation, concealed cavity repair, ventilation change or hazardous-material handling.
Check the business and client names, property location, dates, quantities, unit rates and notes. Confirm tax, markup and any required approvals for the actual job. If selections or site conditions are unresolved, label the line as an allowance and explain how it will be updated.
Common questions
Can attic air sealing be priced by floor area?
Area gives context, but identified openings, joint lengths and access define this example scope.
Is insulation part of air sealing?
Only if separately listed. This sample moves existing material temporarily but does not add new insulation.
Open the itemized attic air sealing example and its app-exported PDF to see these decisions presented to a client. You can adapt the structure while replacing every fictional project input with your own.
