Cavity wall insulation - damage to brickwork

cheggers

If you do have cavity wall installation done, make sure the firm cleans up after themselves as there is some right mess. The jokers I used just left the mess for myself to clean up, then I looked in my bin to find it full of white foam insulation.

sneekymum

Stormy wrote:

Sorry to go a bit off topic, my loft is one of the things I want to sort out. Not sure what insulation is there at the moment but I would like to lay some boards down for storage, I don't want to use it as a room but I do want neat storage.

Is it possible to lay boards raised to leave a breathing gap for the insulation? I think my brother did something similar in his house. Do I lay new insulation on top of the old or get rid of all the old?

Sorry - I can only give you a proper answer...

Ceiling joists are designed to carry the weight of the plasterboard - in many cases the insulation is an additional weight already. Lofts are not designed for storage - there is no proper way to lay loft boarding as loft boarding is an inherently bad idea. It disguises the fact that there is no supporting structure below, it encourages storage, it squashes insulation and produces a cold area. A properly insulated loft is not a good place to store things anyway.

(I've seen a few lofts that have been fully-boarded and had a velux put in to shed light on the storage, and then staircase was added later.... I wonder how many are sold as an extra bedroom.)

Lay new insulation on top of the old. Don't forget to get your loft hatch insulated too. Assuming you have eaves vents make sure they are not blocked by the extra insulation.

Stormy wrote:

Also I want to fit new PVC-u windows this year as mine are all wood. Do you recommend having trickle vents on all windows?

Yes.

To comply with the latest regulations (for new build - this doesn't apply to window replacements though I think it really should) they should give an opening of 8000 square millimetres for habitable rooms. Kitchens, bathrooms and utility rooms should have 4000 square millimetres PLUS mechanical ventilation. So if you don't have an extractor fan in these rooms then bear that in mind when cooking, running baths etc.

(We're wondering why you need windows replacing after only 12 years? - we had ours replaced with wood)

Stormy wrote:

Still not sure if I should go for the cavity wall insulation though.

Had a quick check round the office and the consensus is that if you can afford it then go for it - have a super-insulated house. The Building Regulations will be stepped up again soon leaving you further behind if you don't.

Stormy

sneekymum wrote:

Sorry - I can only give you a proper answer...
Lay new insulation on top of the old. Don't forget to get your loft hatch insulated too. Assuming you have eaves vents make sure they are not blocked by the extra insulation.

Yep, there seems to be quite a lot of ventilation at the eaves. plus sofit vents, and also an airbrick up one side.

I take your points on board, I would only ever store empty boxes and/or Christmas decoration stuff up there. I wouldnt be using it to put lots of junk. My house is small and has a serious lack of storage space.

sneekymum wrote:

(We're wondering why you need windows replacing after only 12 years? - we had ours replaced with wood)

A number of pains have broken down, they are in a poor state of repair and have been neglected by previous owners and I just prefer PVC-u.

sneekymum wrote:

Had a quick check round the office and the consensus is that if you can afford it then go for it - have a super-insulated house. The Building Regulations will be stepped up again soon leaving you further behind if you don't.

I will do the loft and windows/doors first then maybe concider it.

Cheers,

Mike

Miss_Penny_Pincher_2

The stuff they would be using with the smaller drill is the wool I think - on the link it said this could affect emphesema. I don't have that but don't like the idea of it being bad for lungs!! They are planning on coming round this Friday but I'm having new doubts now... Sneekymum have you decided not to have it done? I don't know if our windows have triple vents. They did come in to check the location of the gas appliances to do with ventilation but didn't test anything.

sneekymum

Miss_Penny_Pincher wrote:

Sneekymum have you decided not to have it done?

We had our cavities filled with blown mineral fibre about a month after we moved in (ten years ago) - but it is a rubbish 1950s house with dreadful brickwork - the insulation has paid for itself many times over.

Miss_Penny_Pincher wrote:

I don't know if our windows have triple vents.

Trickle vents are the openable slots at the top of windows. These seem always to be sold as an extra in window replacements (and are therefore quite rare as people usually prefer the "stained glass" motif to avoiding mildew when choosing "extras") - but are a requirement in new houses.

Stormy

sneekymum wrote:

Trickle vents are the openable slots at the top of windows. These seem always to be sold as an extra in window replacements (and are therefore quite rare as people usually prefer the "stained glass" motif to avoiding mildew when choosing "extras") - but are a requirement in new houses.

Hmm, I did a bit of digging as I don't actually like the look of Trickle vents, and as you say most people seem to say its a requirement under building regulations for new houses.

Some new Bovis homes have just gone up (on my route to work) and they are brand new and do not have trickle vents? Will they be full filling the requirement some other way?

Cheers,

Mike

sneekymum

Stormy wrote:

Some new Bovis homes have just gone up (on my route to work) and they are brand new and do not have trickle vents? Will they be full filling the requirement some other way?

The requirement is for ventilation - not specifically trickle vents - of 8000 square millimetres per habitable room, and 4000 plus mechanical ventilation to kitchens, bathrooms and utility rooms. The passive ventilation could also be acieved with airbricks - or through an internal ventilation system. Though I imagine the windows you mention have probably just been supplied without the vents and this will be picked up by the Building Inspector.

If you order window replacements (or a conservatory) with trickle vents these are often glued on after fitting - in mant cases a row of holes are drilled and the vent strip is stuck on top - all on site. The diameter of the holes x the number drilled never equals 8000 square millimetres and the vents have a closing mechanism anyway for defeating the object on those cold winter days....

sneekymum

Stormy wrote:

Hmm, I did a bit of digging as I don't actually like the look of Trickle vents, ..

Nor me.

I need to confess to having hardwood replacement windows without trickle vents... we just make sure there's always a window open when we're in.

Miss_Penny_Pincher_2

Thanks for the photo - I think we do have trickle vents.

I asked my fiance to phone insulation company to let them know we couldn't make the date they proposed because of work commitments. I had already told them but they insisted on setting it for that time. Even though he had spoke to them she rang me on my mobile and was really rude to me because I said I couldn't make the date they had arranged because of work commitments (I have a meeting that day that I can't get out of). She got nasty about it and kept on and on and I just thought I don't need this and hung up so i doubt they will come round now! Oh well I know I shouldn't be so weak but I can't handle the hassle.