cannt find the cold draught blowing through the house

bernlyn

this probably a silly question we bought a house 6 months back and the house seems to be very cold and there is a draught drifting through the house and i cannt find its source. the bathroom walls is vey cold as is the rest of the walls in the house. the house is pre 1930 but i cannt find any airbricks outside that will indicate gavity wall. also will bad loft insulation cause a draught. the house is fully double glazed and i have had new upvc front door installed hoping that this was the problem

cattie

What kind of flooring have you got? Only if it's floorboards then this is where the draught is likely to be coming from. One of the drawbacks of them is that they can be very draughty.

If you haven't got adequate loft insulation then you'd be wise to get it topped up to the recommended level as this will make the house warmer & more energy efficient.

If your house is north facing this will make it colder. My bedroom & bathroom are north facing & always felt rather nippy in the cold weather, despite central heating, double glazing & loft insulation. A couple of months ago I had cavity wall insulation done & it's made such a difference. The house is so much warmer & I don't need the CH on as high as before. If this is an option for your house, do consider getting it done.

bernlyn

i have cement flooring and is fully carpeted. the thing is when i sit in the the living room i can feel the draught on my legs and when we close the l/room door there is no draught.

another thing is how would i know if i have a cavity wall as there is no airbricks outside that i can see. i definetly know that i will have to top up the loft insulation and that is on the to do list.

kgpuk

May be worth checking the silicone seal around the outside of the windows is still in tact.

Dora_the_Explorer_5

Light a candle and follow the draught, starting off where you sit in your living room.

uncle_buck_3

bernlyn wrote:

....how would i know if i have a cavity wall as there is no airbricks outside that i can see....

From the age of your house (Pre 1930) I doubt it will have cavity walls.
You can tell if you have a cavity or solid walls by looking at the way the bricks are laid in the walls.

If the house has a cavity the bricks will more than likely be laid in “Stretcher Bond” if there is no cavity they should be laid in “English Bond” or a close variation of this.
See the links for details of the different bond types.

http://www.pavingexpert.com/featur03.htm#bonds

http://www.blewbury.co.uk/energy/energy.htm
Look at number 7 about 1/3 down the page.


Of course you could still have a cavity even though the outside walls of your house differ from Stretcher bond, as the bricks could have been laid to a certain bond for decoration purposes…..you sometimes see this on bespoke built houses….but its quite rare.

HTH

roswell

easiest way to find if you have a cavity is with a drill :-)

Using a long thin bit drill through the morter almost the depth of 1 brick, then slowly keep drilling if the drill speeds up it means your through to the cavity if it doesnt then your drilling through the rest of the wall .... might help if you need a hole anyway if not just fill it in :-)

Mr_Skint_2

Fill your house with water then go outside and find the leaks.

HTH

itgirlinuk

Are there services of some company that we can employ to find this? Or will a builder help you figure it out?

I have the same problem and my floor is concrete too with carpet on the top. And I feel cold air under the sofa, with the living room door closed. I dont know anything about buildings, so is there someone who will give you something like a survey report?

ariba10

Is the whole of the house heated. You can get convection, With the warm air downstairs being displaced by the cold air from upstairs.
As Dora the explorer said "Start looking with a candle flame".

Careful_ly

Could the draught be coming from the chimney?
That could account for the fact that there is less draught when lounge door closed, if you think that may be the cause, what have you for the fireplace?