Insulate or boarding

defender_of_the_weak

Can anyone give me some info or refer to a site for the following.

Humble abode does have loft insulation of varying depth between 3-6 inches, all a bit of a mish mash that needs sorting out. Looking at varying insulation products they seem very expensive per square metre and would take forever to recoup the cost. (it would be cheaper to fill the loft with stray cats and feed them for the next 10 years).

By comparison, the cost of chipboard loft boarding is relatively inexpensive and must have an insulating value

So, simply put, what is the insulating value of 18mm of chipboard when compared to traditional loft insulation

Thanks in advance

DoTW

furrybloke

I have done both. Wait till they are on offer at Wickes or B&Q. Usually 3 for 2

Cardew

defender_of_the_weak wrote: »

So, simply put, what is the insulating value of 18mm of chipboard when compared to traditional loft insulation

It would be low! very low I would imagine.

It is the air trapped in traditional loft insulation that provides the heat insulating properties.

Give the Energy Saving Trust a call.

Poppycat

I doubt loft board has much insulation value. If you want to board loft they increase the height of the struts by a inch or 2 and lay insulation between them then lay loft boards on top. You can get loft boards that have insulation on them but you have to be rich to buy them as I found out they are so expensive.

I was told this by Energy Saving Trust as I wanted to board loft and the people who laid insulation down wouldn't lay in between the struts

Ken68

Cardboard !!!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R-value_%28insulation%29

takoo

Hi Defender

If you are old enough you may be able save some money by getting low cost installation of loft insulation. Roughly 80m2 at say 150mm cost just over £200.

I would guess that insulation boards are dearer but if you want to use the space for storage you won't have to use a commercial self-storage facility (saving the monthly rent).

Mine was already about 70 to 100 mm (it was also partly boarded over the insulation with some space under it). It is now about 240mm.

Touble is the loft boards had to be lifted or they would have been buried. Putting back is an option but the installer recommended not - only use them to gain access to problems, eg the wasps' nests.

Every thing (literally) that was stored there is now in the garage etc. It is being sorted into bundles for recycling, charity shop, furniture recycling scheme, E-bay or landfill (ugh). If enough could be sold on E-bay I may recoup the outlay on insulation.

Good luck

Takoo

Cardew

takoo wrote: »

Every thing (literally) that was stored there is now in the garage etc. It is being sorted into bundles for recycling, charity shop, furniture recycling scheme, E-bay or landfill (ugh). If enough could be sold on E-bay I may recoup the outlay on insulation.

Good luck

Takoo

Just a point for people to note. You should exercise caution in how much 'junk' is piled in the loft as the weight can cause serious problems with the construction of the joists etc.

This from a Government publication:

An excessive additional load, for example from storage, it may mean that the joists are loaded beyond their design capacity. If you decide to lay flooring boards over the existing joists in the loft space, then this may require a Building Regulations Application to Building Control. Your local Building Control body will be able to advise you on this issue.

I had my house built and it has a boarded loft. My builder was at great pains to tell me that I should be careful with the weight stored as it could invalidate the third party warranty.

defender_of_the_weak

Thanks for all the replies and ideas. Thankfully I am not old enough to qualifyfor low cost installation. Having followed various links and ideas it seems the board does have some insulating properties so will put some board down for storage and insulate the rest.

avantra

Ken68 wrote: »

Cardboard !!!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R-value_%28insulation%29

Just a thought :rolleyes:

It’s amazing, cardboard got better heat retaining properties than rock wool?!,
So how come people don't use flattened card boxes? Apart from the fire hazard question (well most people has junk in the loft anyway which is probably more flammable than cardboard) the weigh can be slightly more but not much more than rock wool.

If we look at the principle of heat retaining with cloth we see that layers are recommended way to keep warm. So cardboard layers like leafs can probably be a good idea?! I mean people live in straw eco homes and this doesn’t have as much insulating property as card box!

tr3mor

avantra wrote: »

Just a thought :rolleyes:

It’s amazing, cardboard got better heat retaining properties than rock wool?!,
So how come people don't use flattened card boxes? Apart from the fire hazard question (well most people has junk in the loft anyway which is probably more flammable than cardboard) the weigh can be slightly more but not much more than rock wool.

If we look at the principle of heat retaining with cloth we see that layers are recommended way to keep warm. So cardboard layers like leafs can probably be a good idea?! I mean people live in straw eco homes and this doesn’t have as much insulating property as card box!

You missed
"Typical R-values per inch of thickness"

Cardboard is pretty thin, rockwool is pretty thick, straw bales are very thick.

Ken68

Did wonder, Tr, why Ben Law went for straw bales. Still my favourite Grand Designs home build.