Improving insulation in a terraced house

[Fluke]

As most of you are aware utility bills have increased/will be increasing dramatically, I want to make sure I have the best insulation I can have/afford for my end-of-terrace house.

I am fully double glazed (much of it quite new), I have a brand new combi/condensing boiler for heating and water, but I think my loft could do with some new insulation - is it worth splashing out on something expensive and can anyone think of something I can do to make sure I am insulated properly.

[GW43]

The stuff you buy in rolls from B&Q/Homebase etc. is as good as anything I reckon. It will tell you on the pack how thick it should be. Don't try and install it on a hot day - it can be hard work!

Just make sure you don't block any ventilation under the eaves (if you have any there) otherwise your roof could rot from the inside out.

[mjn]

When we moved in, we replaced the insulation in the loft, before we put the floor down. And old stuff has been there for years, and had become compressed and starting to fall apart. However in this hot weather, the house is now roasting! Heating hasn't been on since late Feb!

[JohnG]

I was just about to say, I'm paying the price for having good insulation - it's like an oven in my house now

Should'nt be, a well insulated house should stop the heat .

Think of a flask

[mjn]

Originally Posted by av2diefor

Should'nt be, a well insulated house should stop the heat .

Think of a flask

I've yet to see a flask with windows.......

[JohnG]

Indeed, the sun shines through the windows and heats the place up, then there's no way for the heat to escape. My bedrooms face South and so the wall there tends to act like a giant storage heater

[ush flynn]

same here with my bedroom
For insulation, do you have any cavity walls? whats the insulation like in them? theres some foam you can pump into the cavity that helps a lot with insulation. But obv an older house might be brick all round. What about a revolving door? the Gherkin building in london has to open its vents near the top as the revolving doors so a great job of keeping hot air in

Originally Posted by mjn

I've yet to see a flask with windows.......

Aye canny.... I asked for that.

Same thing really though, single glazing will let in more heat than double glazing, same applies in the loft without insulation.

Becomes a point where , would you be any cooler without insulation at all due to the latent heat not being able to escape?

[Kebabhead]

I'm sure i read somewhere that cavity wall insulation is not recommended as it does not allow the house to "breath" and can cause damp, a bit like putting cladding on external walls

[JohnG]

My house was built with some kind of cavity wall insulation in as is the norm with a lot of the modern timber frame type buildings. It just gets far too hot in the summer.

[mjn]

With the climate changing as such, the way we insulate our homes will change.

I mean, when was the last time we had a proper cold winter in England? I can't really remember any in the last 10 years, and even longer since a good snow fall.

[pave]

Originally Posted by Fluke

As most of you are aware utility bills have increased/will be increasing dramatically, I want to make sure I have the best insulation I can have/afford for my end-of-terrace house.

I am fully double glazed (much of it quite new), I have a brand new combi/condensing boiler for heating and water, but I think my loft could do with some new insulation - is it worth splashing out on something expensive and can anyone think of something I can do to make sure I am insulated properly.

Be careful when laying the insulation,wear a mask and make sure you have checked for cables

[Kebabhead]

Originally Posted by mjn

I mean, when was the last time we had a proper cold winter in England? I can't really remember any in the last 10 years, and even longer since a good snow fall.

It's not so much the cold it's our damp climate that is the problem

[mjn]

Originally Posted by Kebabhead

It's not so much the cold it's our damp climate that is the problem

I thought we're in a drought season?