Topping up fibreglass loft insulation

GDB2222

This house was built 50 years ago and still has the original loft insulation. A few inches of fibreglass.

 I would like to top this up a bit, but I don’t need to make it state of the art. Any suggestions, please. 

rudigarude

Just buy it from your local DIY place, I got mine from wickes. Mine was really low too, probably originally 50mm but really compressed over the years. So I bought 200mm and 100mm rolls, and just put the 100mm over the existing insulation, then the 200mm over the top of that at right angles to the rafters.

https://www.wickes.co.uk/Knauf-Insulation-Super-Top-Up-200mm-Loft-Roll---5-61m²/p/109451

grumbler

Just do it - I don't see any question here. Don't block the eaves.

However, if you do it the simplest way, you won't be able to walk in the loft as the joists will be hidden under the insulation. Raising the floor level is much bigger job than just topping up insulation.

FreeBear

rudigarude said: Just buy it from your local DIY place, I got mine from wickes.

Wickes and B&Q have regular deals on the stuff. Often a 3 for the price of 2.

With the price of fuel only increasing, insulating the loft is a no-brainer. A relatively low cost exercise, with the potential to save up to 25% of your energy. At an absolute minimum, you should be looking at 150mm of fibreglass/rockwool. Better still is 300mm which will put you slightly above current recommended levels.

If you want to use the loft for storage, you will need to install loft legs and board out some of the area - Can get expensive. I spent about £300 on materials for my loft just before the prices started to increase.

silvercar

We got this done by a local firm about 10 years ago - we are totally incapable.

we immediately noticed that the house took the same amount of time to heat up, but once heated it stayed warm for longer once the heating was off. Our gas bills dropped about 15% that winter.

GDB2222

I agree that I should really get on with it. I was looking for some practical advice, as I do need to go into the loft occasionally for maintenance.

"However, if you do it the simplest way, you won't be able to walk in the loft as the joists will be hidden under the insulation." 

Can you still crawl around? I have no wish to board it out, as we don’t store anything there.

FreeBear

GDB2222 said: Can you still crawl around? I have no wish to board it out, as we don’t store anything there.

Find yourself a couple of boards, say 12mm thick, 300mm wide, and 1.4-2m long. Lay them on top of the insulation at right angles to the joists. Yes, the insulation will get compressed slightly by the weight of the boards, but not enough to affect the thermal performance. If/when you need to walk around up there, the insulation will get compressed a lot more, but should spring back once you are done. Certainly better than blindly trying to find the joists and risk putting your foot through the ceiling.