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Serving Superior, WI and surrounding areas. (715) 217-3037
Custom Superior Insulation serves Cloquet, MN with spray foam insulation, blown-in attic insulation, air sealing, and crawl space insulation - we have worked on older homes throughout Carlton County since 2018 and respond within 1 business day.
Most homes in Cloquet were built in the 1920s through 1950s after the 1918 fire, and their crawl spaces, rim joists, and basement walls have never been properly air-sealed or insulated against Carlton County winters. Our spray foam insulation seals and insulates these critical areas in a single step, stopping both heat loss and the moisture that causes wood rot in older framing.
Cloquet attics in older wood-frame homes often have original insulation that has settled to a fraction of the depth needed for Minnesota climate zone requirements. Blown-in cellulose or fiberglass fills every corner of the attic floor - including around joists and blocking where batts never reach - and is one of the most cost-effective ways to stop the heat loss that drives up winter heating bills in this area.
Cloquet gets 60 or more inches of snow in a typical winter, and homes with unsealed attic floors develop ice dams that push water under shingles and into wall cavities before homeowners notice any damage. Sealing the gaps at the attic floor - around ceiling light fixtures, plumbing stacks, and top plates - is the step that makes all other attic insulation work far more effective in this climate.
Cloquet sits along the St. Louis River, and many properties on the edges of town have crawl spaces that deal with ground moisture and frost penetration every winter. Insulating the crawl space walls or floor assembly keeps the lowest level of the home warmer and drier, which protects wood framing and makes the floors above noticeably more comfortable from November through March.
Ground moisture is a persistent problem in Cloquet crawl spaces, especially near the river corridor and on wooded, sloped lots where drainage is slow. A properly installed vapor barrier across the crawl space floor keeps that moisture from evaporating into the wood framing above - which reduces rot risk, keeps the insulation performing correctly, and improves air quality in the living space.
For Cloquet homeowners dealing with high heating bills, drafty rooms, or cold floors, the problem is almost always a combination of issues - inadequate attic insulation, unsealed air gaps, and an uninsulated foundation level all working against each other. A comprehensive home insulation assessment looks at everything at once and helps you prioritize what will have the biggest impact on your comfort and your bills.
Cloquet is one of the coldest cities in Minnesota's Lake Superior region, with average winter temperatures regularly dropping well below zero and frost depth reaching 4 to 5 feet underground. The city receives 60 or more inches of snow in a typical year, and that weight - combined with repeated freeze-thaw cycles through the shoulder seasons - puts real stress on older homes. The spring thaw along the St. Louis River corridor brings another challenge: saturated soils and snowmelt that move toward foundations before the ground can absorb them. These conditions demand insulation and moisture management work done correctly the first time - by a contractor who understands what northern Minnesota winters actually require.
Cloquet's housing stock is shaped by the 1918 Cloquet-Moose Lake fire, which destroyed most of the city and forced a rapid rebuild through the 1920s and 1930s. Additional housing went up through the postwar boom of the 1940s and 1950s. The result is a city where the majority of homes are now 70 to nearly 100 years old - built with the insulation standards of a much earlier era. Many have wood-frame balloon construction with wall cavities that run from the basement to the attic, and original insulation that has either degraded or was never adequate to begin with. Contractors who work primarily on newer construction often do not recognize the specific challenges these homes present, from unsealed top plates to original knob-and-tube wiring that affects insulation options.
Our crew works throughout Cloquet regularly, and we understand the local conditions that affect insulation work here. Cloquet has its own building department through the city, and we pull required permits before any work begins. The homes we work on in Cloquet are primarily older wood-frame houses - the kind rebuilt after the 1918 fire and expanded through the postwar decades - and we know how to approach balloon-frame and platform-frame construction from that era without creating new problems while fixing old ones.
Cloquet Avenue is the main commercial corridor through the heart of the city, and the residential neighborhoods radiate out from there toward the St. Louis River to the south and the wooded outskirts to the north. The city is also home to the R.W. Lindholm Service Station, the only Frank Lloyd Wright-designed gas station ever built - which gives you a sense of the local character. We work on homes throughout Cloquet, from the in-town neighborhoods near the Sappi paper mill to the quieter streets on the north side of town.
We also serve Barnum, MN to the south and Proctor, MN to the northeast, so projects throughout Carlton County and the western Duluth metro are a regular part of our schedule.
Call us or fill out the contact form with a description of what you are dealing with - high heating bills, cold rooms, drafts, or visible moisture. We respond within 1 business day and can usually schedule an on-site visit the same week.
A crew member visits your Cloquet home and inspects the attic, crawl space, rim joists, and basement to identify where heat is escaping. You receive a written estimate before any work begins - no vague pricing, no add-ons at the end.
We handle any permits required by the City of Cloquet before the job starts, then complete the work in one to two days for most residential projects. Most homeowners can stay in the home throughout the job; closed-cell spray foam requires a 24-hour off-gas period in the treated area.
After the work is done, we walk through the completed areas with you and answer any questions. We do not leave until you are satisfied, and we stand behind the work if anything needs attention.
We serve Cloquet and Carlton County - no travel fees, no vague estimates, just a straightforward assessment of what your home needs.
(715) 217-3037Cloquet is a city of about 12,000 people in Carlton County, roughly 20 miles southwest of Duluth along the St. Louis River. The city was almost entirely destroyed in the Cloquet-Moose Lake fire of October 1918 - one of the deadliest wildfires in American history - and was quickly rebuilt through the 1920s and 1930s. That history means most of the residential housing stock in Cloquet dates from the 1920s through the 1950s, giving the city a distinctive character of solid older wood-frame homes on in-town lots. The Sappi North America paper mill has anchored the local economy for over a century, and the city remains a working-class community with a high rate of owner-occupied homes. Cloquet is also known regionally as the home of the R.W. Lindholm Service Station, the only Frank Lloyd Wright-designed gas station ever built, which still operates on Cloquet Avenue today.
The housing mix in Cloquet is predominantly single-family detached homes, with older in-town neighborhoods concentrated near the commercial core and newer development on the outskirts. Lots near the St. Louis River and on the wooded edges of town tend to be larger and more sloped, with mature trees and drainage challenges that affect foundation and crawl space conditions. Home values here are modest compared to the broader Minnesota market, and homeowners tend to be practical and focused on long-term maintenance rather than cosmetic upgrades. Neighboring communities include Proctor, MN to the northeast and Barnum, MN to the south along Interstate 35.
Call Custom Superior Insulation today or submit a request online - we respond within 1 business day and serve all of Cloquet and Carlton County.