SELF BUILD - BYTESIZED - ISSUE 1

 

In this section we will be bringing you news and innovations from the world of insulation.

We are all fully aware now of the need to save energy. – Not just because of the “Climate Change” reasons we hear so much about, but more practically for many of us, simply because it’s so expensive!

The insulation manufacturers are now constantly bringing out new products and coming up with new ideas for insulating new and existing property, but the problems for most people are:

1)      Finding out about all the new products and understanding what they do

2)      Deciding which are going to be the best and most cost effective to use on their own individual projects

We will be doing our best to cut through all the technical jargon and let you know the basic stuff that is important to you and also helping you to understand how the “efficiency versus cost” equation means that just adding more and more insulation (on the basis that if 6” saves us £100 then 12” should save us £200) is not necessarily a good idea.

In this issue we will be giving you information on where heat is lost in a domestic dwelling and also telling you about the grants that are available for insulating existing properties. – You can actually get a grant for up to 100% of the cost of wall and loft insulation, but you have to make sure you go about claiming the money and doing the work in the right way or you could miss out. – See below for details.

We are going be contacting some of the insulation manufacturers directly where we think there exists a product that our readers may benefit from learning more about. - Asking them to send in short articles describing the product, its uses, cost and availability which we will then publish. 

If any of our readers have anything they think others may be interested in related to insulation in any way, send it through to us at info@buildinganddiy.com and we’ll try and get into the next available space in the magazine.

 

Heat loss in your home:

When it comes to heat loss, where are the main offending areas of your home?

Lofts:

About 25% of the heat lost from a house goes up through the loft and out through the roof.

Over the past 15 years the amount of loft insulation required in a new home has increased steadily from 4” to the recommended depth now of 270mm (if you are using mineral wool – other materials have different heat retention qualities and require differing depths to achieve the same results.

The Energy Saving Trust suggest that it will cost you about £250 / year to insulate an average loft in a 3 bed semi and that if you do so to a loft which previously had no insulation it could save you around £145 / year

This obviously represents a good investment, is quick to install, without much fuss or mess, and would probably be recommended to be one of the first places to concentrate on.

Cavity Walls:

Un-insulated cavity walls can be responsible for around one third of the total heat loss from a home. Insulating your external walls could save around £110 a year on an average sized family house (this figure will obviously rise as energy costs increase)

Solid walls:

Older houses with solid suffer more from heat loss than those with cavity walls, wasting up to 45% of the total heat loss for a property. Using one of the many methods for “planting on” internal or external insulation could save you around £375 / year. (Note: be careful here. – Some of these insulating methods can be expensive, so, if possible, get a few quotes for different products and systems and work out the cost efficiency of each. – i.e. Work out how much money you will save for every £1 spent. – If you are not careful here you could end up paying thousands of pounds for a product that would take up to 20 years or so to pay for itself.

Floors:

Floors are often more difficult areas to deal with when it comes to improving insulation. – Especially in existing properties. – In new properties, the floor construction takes account of the required insulation, but in existing property you have to work with what you have.

In an existing property, any raising of the level of the floor can cause major problems with doors, skirtings, architraves and even ceiling levels.

The problems are mainly caused by the fact that, by its very nature, insulation tends to be fairly thick and not very strong (structurally), so in many cases, the floor would end up being raised by at least 3 – 4” to get any reasonably increased levels of insulation. – It is this that causes all the problems.

The savings from increasing floor insulated are quoted at around £50 / year, so it can be seen that in existing buildings, when comparing it to wall and loft insulation it can be a lot more complicated and problematic and the savings made, considerably smaller.

There are, however a couple of ways of saving energy in the floor without encountering any major problems:

1)      Foil – Just using a “foil” under the flooring can help reduce heat loss. – You can now buy underlay with foil backing.

2)      Filling cracks – Cracks in, around, above and under skirting boards can lead to heat loss through the walls. – If you go round with flexible mastic and seal up any cracks, you could help not only reduce heat loss, but also drafts.

Glazing:

Single glazing should be replaced where possible – It lets out a lot of heat and also causes draughts in the room (warm air hits the cold surface of the glass, cools down, and as “warm air rises” so “cool air sinks!” – This movement causes draughts.

Good quality double glazing saves about£130 on heating bills in a standard 3 bed semi, which is not a fantastic amount when compared to the cost of installing it, and on its own probably not enough to put it at the top of the tree for insulation upgrading, - BUT, double glazing also increases the value of your home, so the cost of installing it has to be weighed against, not only the saving in energy but generated in the rooms and the increased comfort of living in a draught free room!

(There are now glazing products which actively act as “solar panels” and actually create heat in the home. – Watch this page for details in a future issue)

Draughts:

Ventilation grills, gaps under and around doors, badly fitting windows, loft access hatches can all cause draughts. – Where possible, using draught excluder and possibly flexible mastic could save about £25 / year and cost very little to do.

 Loft and Wall Insulation Grants:

You can apply to get a grant for up to 100% of the cost of installing loft insulation if you receive:

·   Attendance Allowance

·   Child Tax Credit (annual income of £15,460 or less)

·   Council Tax Credit (which must include a disability premium)

·   Disability Living Allowance

·   Disability Pension

·   Housing Benefit (which must include a disability premium)

·   Income Support (which must include a disability premium)

·   Income-based Job Seekers Allowance

·   State Pension Credit

·   War Disablement Pension (which must include a mobility supplement or Constant Attendance Allowance)

·   Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (which must include a mobility supplement or Constant Attendance Allowance)

·   Working Family Tax Credit (annual income of £15,460 or less)

If you don’t meet these criteria, you may still be able to get a proportion of the cost paid, so it’s still worth applying.

Many people have applied for insulation grants using the “Warm Front” government grant scheme. – At the time of writing they are not taking any more applications for the present financial year, but you can still get grants via the utility companies. also the increased value of your home, the reduced amount of condensation in the roof.