External Wall Insulation

griffloc

Has anyone had problems with external wall insulation? Ours was installed in 2013 and we were told by the installer it would solve our problem with rainwater penetration, the Energy Saving Trusts website also said this at that time and the manufacturers website said it was a sealed weatherproof system so we thought we had the right product for us. - WRONG - we now have rain coming into the house much worse than before and we have spent the last few years and most of the money that was supposed to improve the inside after it had dried out trying to get the perpetrators to put it right. Government is rolling this out across the country to tick their carbon saving box but unless you have a really good installer it's pot luck whether you get a decent job done and one which will actually produce the energy savings expected, let alone get the correct assessment of whether your house is suitable. There is at least one manufacturer (yes the same one as ours) who is claiming more clearly than before that this product will stop water ingress and damp, yet their BBA certificate says it shouldn't be relied on as weatherproofing, moisture penetration should be dealt with separately and walls must be adequately weathertight prior to application - oh how we wish we had known of the existence of BBA certificates before! We've set up a website so people can learn from our story - search for houseinsulationhub and see our Facebook Group - An EWI Failure (External Wall Insulation). We've found many reports showing numerous problems and unintended consequences with retro insulation of properties and it looks like there will be many more unless the industry is made to pull it's socks up and improve how these works are done

forgotmyname

Prevent damp if the moisture is condensation. It wont cure water leaking into the property unless by pure luck it happens to seal the hole where the water is getting in.

Penetrating water needs to be sorted, insulation wont cure that.

Terms clearly state it wont cure water penetration, only moisture from condensation.

griffloc

For the product used on our house the manufacturer clearly states in their advertising it will stop water penetration and the installer further confirmed this. Here is an extract from the manufacturers brochure:
For properties in need of refurbishment, they are a
flexible, cost-effective alternative to demolition.
In addition, because all WBS systems are designed to
be strong and weatherproof, water ingress and damp
are eradicated.
Posted this to a) find others who have been similarly let down by this industry; and b) to spread awareness of the problems with the product, a lot of these problems are due to poor planning and poor installation. BUT - one manufacturer is definitely still advertising this with the above claim - and as an ordinary householder how would you know if a trained accredited installer is misleading you? It's advertised as a sealed weatherproof system and most people agree that sealing this to plastic windows etc. must, in theory, block any route for water ingress - but in practice it doesn't and you don't know until it's too late.