Belhaven, NC
12 miles northeast
Its NOAA station logs about 320 more heating degree days than Bath's; 1,414 people, about 6 times Bath's population
Attic insulation in BelhavenAttic Insulation in Bath, NC
Blown-in attic insulation for Bath, NC, 12 miles from Belhaven, plus removal and air sealing.
About Bath and Its Homes
Bath, between Bath Creek and Back Creek, was incorporated in 1705 and is the oldest town in North Carolina. It still sits almost wholly inside its original town plan, and most of it lies within a National Register historic district of colonial and plain nineteenth-century buildings.
Bath, in Beaufort County, fell from 245 people in 2020 to 243 in 2025 (Census Bureau estimates), on 0.36 square miles.
Bath has about 215 housing units, 1 percent of Beaufort County's.
Bath at a Glance
- County: Beaufort County
- Population: 243 (2025), 245 (2020), down 0.8%
- Land area: 0.36 square miles (675 people each)
- Housing units: about 215 (±65)
- Detached houses: 98% (±4); Beaufort County: 68%
- Climate zone: 3 on both maps
- ENERGY STAR target for Bath attics: R-49 from bare, R-38 over 3 to 4 inches (R-value guide)
Census Bureau estimates for Bath, 2020 to 2024 (± margin of error).
Bath Homes and Their Attics
Wings and Lean-tos on the Old Frame Houses
The 1970 National Register nomination for the old town describes simple nineteenth-century frame houses along Main Street. Two of the houses it singles out, from about 1830 and 1835, are two stories tall with a one-story wing on the side and a lean-to across the back. A lean-to has a shed roof that slopes down from the main wall, so the space over its ceiling is shallow and cramped at the low edge. That low edge is where insulation is most often thin. ENERGY STAR notes that many attics have plenty in the middle and very little at the eaves, so each low section gets filled out evenly.
Attic Insulation in Bath
About 50 percent of Bath's homes predate 1970; if your joists show above the insulation, ENERGY STAR says to add more insulation.
The Local Climate
Bath's center sits near sea level, 7 miles from NOAA's Aurora 6 N station, the best match for Bath. The station's 1991 to 2020 normals average about 2,600 heating and 2,030 cooling degree days a year, so Bath attics work in both seasons.
Readings change over short distances around Bath: NOAA's Belhaven 3 NE station, 14 miles away, averages about 2,920 heating degree days.
Homes by Age: What It Means for the Attic
Some 98 percent of Bath housing units are detached single-family houses. With about 215 housing units in Bath, read the figures as rough proportions.
Built before 1940, about 20 percent of Bath homes can hide knob-and-tube wiring and vermiculite, jobs for an electrician and an asbestos contractor first. Built from 1940 to 1969, about 35 percent of Bath homes often have little insulation.
About 60 percent of Bath's housing units predate 1980; nearly all predate the state's 1978 insulation rule too.
Homes by Year Built
- Before 1940: 18% (±10), about 40 units
- 1940s: 11% (±8), about 25 units
- 1950s: 14% (±8), about 30 units
- 1960s: 8% (±8), about 15 units
- 1970s: 9% (±7), about 20 units
- 1980s: under 5%
- 1990s: 8% (±7), about 15 units
- 2010s: under 6%
- 2020 or later: under 1%
Air Sealing and Duct Sealing in Bath
In Belhaven, the nearest town to Bath with solid figures, about 45 percent of homes heat with electricity.
Air sealing comes first, as the EPA advises: wire and pipe holes, wall tops and soffits.
How Homes Here Are Heated
- Electricity: 43% (±15), about 70 households; Beaufort County: 61%
- Piped gas: under 7%
- Oil or kerosene: 5% (±5)
Power, Gas and Rebates
Power in and around Bath comes from Duke Energy Progress and Tideland EMC; your bill says which. For gas, Bath is in the Beaufort County franchise of Piedmont Natural Gas, whose mains may not reach every street in Bath.
Rebate to check if Duke Energy Progress serves your Bath home: Smart $aver Insulate and Seal (Duke Energy; Insulation Pros is an approved trade ally). Before a job in Bath, check its current terms; the Beaufort County page lists every program.
Attic Insulation Removal in Bath
In a Bath attic, only wet, moldy or animal-soiled insulation is vacuumed out (ENERGY STAR's test), once the cause is fixed, and after mice that Bath attic is sanitized and deodorized; dry, clean insulation stays.
Also Serving Near Bath
Nearest to Bath first.
Washington, NC
15 miles northwest
9,910 people, about 41 times Bath's population
Attic insulation in Washington
Bath Insulation FAQs
Do I need the historic commission's approval to insulate my attic in Bath?
For the insulation alone, no. The town has its own Historic District Commission. Under state law, a local commission rules on work that alters the exterior of a building in a designated district, and it has no power over the interior layout. Blowing in insulation and sealing gaps happen indoors. Vents cut into the roof or soffits are exterior work, so talk to the town clerk about a certificate of appropriateness before adding any.
Most of Bath is a National Register district. Does that restrict my house?
On its own, no. The district was listed in 1970 and covers most of the town, which is why the 2009 county survey of Beaufort's towns skipped it. According to the State Historic Preservation Office, a listing does not stop an owner from keeping up or changing a house with their own money. Rules come only from local designation, through the commission.
Could the old insulation in a Bath attic be vermiculite?
It could: about 45 percent of Bath's homes predate 1960. If a Bath attic holds a pebble-like gray-brown or silver-gold fill, leave it undisturbed: the EPA says vermiculite may contain asbestos.
Does attic insulation in Bath need a permit?
Bath Town Hall can say whether Beaufort County Permitting, the town itself or another office handles permits in Bath; ask before work starts.
Helpful Guides
- A coastal town: attic condensation and mold and attic ventilation
- Hot summers at NOAA's Aurora 6 N station: radiant barriers
Sources
Census Bureau figures for Bath, NOAA normals for the Aurora 6 N station (October 2026). Compiled by Insulation Pros. How the town pages are made.
Sources for the Bath notes and questions (read October 20, 2026):
- Bath, in The North Carolina Gazetteer (William S. Powell, 2nd ed., UNC Press 2010), NCpedia
- Bath Historic District, National Register nomination (NC HPO)
- Phase I Beaufort County Architectural Survey: Municipalities (Circa, Inc., September 2009), listed by the NC HPO as the Beaufort County Municipalities Survey, 2009
- Adding Attic Insulation, ENERGY STAR do-it-yourself guide
- Historic Preservation Commission Staff in North Carolina, listed by county, as of 2/20/2023 (NC HPO)
- N.C. Gen. Stat. 160D-947, Certificate of appropriateness required
- NC Listings in the National Register of Historic Places, NC State Historic Preservation Office
- What Is the National Register of Historic Places?, NC State Historic Preservation Office
Serving Bath, NC
Insulation Pros is an insulation contractor serving North Carolina, Bath and the rest of Beaufort County included.
Reach us
Send the square footage of your Bath attic, or call (336) 870-3893.