Rennert, NC
6 miles west
294 people, about a seventh of St. Pauls' population
Attic insulation in RennertAttic Insulation in St. Pauls, NC
Blown-in attic insulation for St. Pauls, NC, in Robeson County, plus removal and air sealing.
About St. Pauls and Its Homes
St. Pauls takes its name from a Presbyterian church, and the settlement shifted south to a new railroad depot around 1900 before its 1909 incorporation. By 1930 the town had three cotton mills, city water and electric service, but no study in print describes its houses.
St. Pauls, in Robeson County, grew from 2,051 people in 2020 to 2,109 in 2025 (Census Bureau estimates), on 1.63 square miles.
St. Pauls has about 1,030 housing units, 2 percent of Robeson County's; 54 percent of St. Pauls' households own their home.
St. Pauls at a Glance
- County: Robeson County
- Population: 2,109 (2025), 2,051 (2020), up 2.8%
- Land area: 1.63 square miles (1,294 people each)
- Housing units: about 1,030 (±130)
- Median year built: 1969 (±5); Robeson County: 1986
- Owner-occupied: 54% (±5); Robeson County: 66%
- Detached houses: 65% (±5); Robeson County: 51%
- Apartments: 19% (±6)
- Mobile homes: 17% (±5)
- Climate zone: 3 on both maps
- ENERGY STAR target for St. Pauls attics: R-49 from bare, R-38 over 3 to 4 inches (R-value guide)
Census Bureau estimates for St. Pauls, 2020 to 2024 (± margin of error).
Attic Insulation in St. Pauls
About 50 percent of St. Pauls' homes predate 1970; if your St. Pauls joists show above the insulation, ENERGY STAR says to add more insulation.
Built from 1940 to 1969, about 40 percent of St. Pauls homes often have little insulation.
The Local Climate
St. Pauls' center sits about 170 feet above sea level, 14 miles from NOAA's Fayetteville Regional Airport station, the best match for St. Pauls. The station's 1991 to 2020 normals average about 2,730 heating and 2,050 cooling degree days a year, so St. Pauls attics work in both seasons.
Homes by Age: What It Means for the Attic
Some 65 percent of St. Pauls housing units are detached single-family houses, 17 percent mobile homes.
Built from 1970 to 1989, about 30 percent of St. Pauls homes may hold settled fiberglass; check its depth against the joists.
About 70 percent of St. Pauls' housing units predate 1980; nearly all predate the state's 1978 insulation rule too.
Homes by Year Built
- Before 1940: 10% (±4), about 105 units
- 1940s: 9% (±4), about 95 units
- 1950s: 14% (±4), about 150 units
- 1960s: 17% (±6), about 180 units
- 1970s: 17% (±5), about 175 units
- 1980s: 12% (±6), about 125 units
- 1990s: 15% (±5), about 150 units
- 2000s: 4% (±2), about 40 units
- 2010s: under 2%
- 2020 or later: under 2%
Air Sealing and Duct Sealing in St. Pauls
In St. Pauls, about 64 percent of homes heat with electricity; where that heat is forced air, ducts often run through the attic.
Air sealing comes first in a St. Pauls ceiling, as the EPA advises: wire and pipe holes, wall tops and soffits.
How Homes Here Are Heated
- Electricity: 64% (±8), about 590 households; Robeson County: 81%
- Piped gas: 27% (±6), about 250 households
- Bottled or tank gas: 8% (±4), about 75 households
Power, Gas and Rebates
Duke Energy Progress supplies St. Pauls' electricity. For gas, St. Pauls is in the Robeson County franchise of Piedmont Natural Gas, and 27 percent of St. Pauls homes heat with piped gas. Duke's free House Call fits many St. Pauls homes: about 64 percent heat with electricity. Bottled or tank gas, bought by the delivery, heats 8 percent of homes in St. Pauls.
Rebate to check in St. Pauls: Smart $aver Insulate and Seal (Duke Energy; Insulation Pros is an approved trade ally). Before a St. Pauls job, check its current terms; the Robeson County page lists every program.
Attic Insulation Removal in St. Pauls
In a St. Pauls attic, only wet, moldy or animal-soiled insulation is vacuumed out (ENERGY STAR's test), once the cause is fixed, and after mice that St. Pauls attic is sanitized and deodorized; dry, clean St. Pauls insulation stays.
Also Serving Near St. Pauls
Nearest to St. Pauls first.
Parkton, NC
7 miles north
514 people, about a quarter of St. Pauls' population
Attic insulation in ParktonLumber Bridge, NC
8 miles northwest
Its NOAA station logs about 550 more heating degree days than St. Pauls'; 80 people, under a tenth of St. Pauls' population
Attic insulation in Lumber BridgeHope Mills, NC
11 miles north
Median home built 1995 (St. Pauls: 1969); Its NOAA station logs about 240 more heating degree days than St. Pauls'
Attic insulation in Hope MillsRed Springs, NC
12 miles west
Median home built 1968 (St. Pauls: 1969); Power from its own town system (St. Pauls: Duke Energy Progress)
Attic insulation in Red Springs
St. Pauls Insulation FAQs
Could my house in St. Pauls fall under historic district rules?
No. Within the town limits, the state's National Register roll names neither a district nor a single building. The one entry carrying the town's name, the Kenneth McKinnon House of about 1840, sits on farmland roughly a mile east of town. The county is absent from the preservation office's 2023 directory of local commissions. Historic status puts no conditions on attic work here. The age of your house and whatever earlier owners added are what decide the job.
Why would the soffit boxes over my kitchen cabinets matter up in the attic?
Because the box may be hollow and open on top. ENERGY STAR notes that loose insulation can hide that opening, while kitchen air drifts up through it. In a mid-century kitchen we pull that insulation aside, cover and seal the open top of each soffit, then lay the insulation back in place. The leak is hidden from the kitchen side, so it only shows up from above.
Could the old insulation in a St. Pauls attic be vermiculite?
It could: about 35 percent of St. Pauls' homes predate 1960. If a St. Pauls 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 St. Pauls need a permit?
St. Pauls Town Hall can say whether Robeson County Community Development, St. Pauls itself or another office handles St. Pauls permits; ask before work starts.
Helpful Guides
- Power from Duke Energy Progress: high summer electric bills and home energy audits
- Hot summers at NOAA's Fayetteville Regional Airport station: radiant barriers
Sources
Census Bureau figures for St. Pauls, NOAA normals for the Fayetteville Regional Airport station, Duke Energy Progress (October 2026). Compiled by Insulation Pros. How the town pages are made.
Sources for the St. Pauls introduction and questions (read October 20, 2026):
- St. Pauls, in The North Carolina Gazetteer (William S. Powell, 2nd ed., UNC Press 2010), NCpedia
- Kenneth McKinnon House, National Register nomination (NC HPO)
- Architectural Survey Status, Records, and Reports (survey reports by county), NC State Historic Preservation Office
- NC Listings in the National Register of Historic Places, NC State Historic Preservation Office
- Historic Preservation Commission Staff in North Carolina, listed by county, as of 2/20/2023 (NC HPO)
- Sealing Air Leaks in the Attic, ENERGY STAR do-it-yourself guide
St. Pauls, NC
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Insulation Pros is an insulation contractor serving North Carolina, St. Pauls and the rest of Robeson County included.
Reach us
Send the square footage of your St. Pauls attic, or call (336) 870-3893.