Keeping Lincoln, Maine Homes Warm and Dry, From the Penobscot to the Ponds

A younger housing stock than most mill towns

Census figures give Lincoln a median build year of 1980. Only about 11 percent of homes predate 1940, while roughly a quarter went up between 1960 and 1979 and more than a fifth have been built since 2000. That means lots of ranches, capes and raised ranches on poured or block foundations, often with fiberglass batts that have settled or were never installed to today's depth. Topping those attics up with blown-in cellulose is often the simplest improvement.

Oil heat and around 8,300 degree days

About 71 percent of Lincoln households heat with fuel oil or kerosene, and about 12 percent with wood, according to Census estimates. NOAA's 1991–2020 normals for the Lincoln Sanitary District station list roughly 8,300 heating degree days a year, colder than Bangor. With that much oil being burned, drafts at the sill plate, the attic hatch and plumbing chases add up. An energy audit finds them, and insulation work may qualify for an Efficiency Maine rebate.

Shoreline homes and seasonal camps

Census estimates count about 420 Lincoln homes held for seasonal or recreational use, mostly on the ponds. A camp on piers or a shallow crawl space that sits closed from fall to spring collects damp air under the floor, and the joists and subfloor pay for it. Encapsulating the crawl space with a 20-mil vapor barrier, sealed vents and a dehumidifier keeps that space dry. Year-round homes close to the water, or on low ground near the river, may need a sump pump to handle high groundwater in April.

Newer basements still leak

A newer house is not automatically a dry one. Poured basements from the 1970s and 1980s often have shrinkage cracks that weep each spring, and a cool slab collects condensation through the humid months. A dehumidifier helps with the damp, but a crack that lets water in every April needs crack injection and sealing before the space is safe to store things in or finish.

Who to call locally

Building, plumbing and electrical permits come from the Lincoln Code Enforcement Office. Water and sewer in the village are run by the Lincoln Water District and the Lincoln Sanitary District, which are separate from the town. Houses out by the ponds generally rely on private wells and septic. Lincoln sits between Millinocket to the north and Old Town and Orono to the south.

Areas We Serve in Lincoln