For this single-family home, choosing spray foam insulation instead of fiberglass insulation cost about $10,000 more. That works out to $60 a month for a 30-year mortgage. But the homeowners will save more than $60 a month in utility bills because they're using a fraction of the energy to heat and cool the home.

Shortly after Thanksgiving, I received a call from a family in Lake Forest that was extremely frustrated by climate control issues in their kitchen.