Single skin kitchen extension

DianaDzh

Hello,

I live in a two bed ex-council house from the 50s. I am trying to sell at the moment because we want to move to a bigger house but the banks would not give a mortgage to our buyer because of our kitchen extension. There used to be an outhouse which was converted into a kitchen extension but with with a single skin. 
From a practical perspective there are no issues with dampness because the door to the garden is in the same room so it's well ventilated. There is a roof over it which is well insulated as well. 
I understand this room does not comply with regulations. What can I do to change that? 
My thoughts are:
Option 1 - insulate externally - there is a bin passage behind one of the walls so the insulation may cause a problem with regards to space. How do I check the required thickness of the insulation?
Option 2 - insulate internally - this means I need to demolish the old kitchen set, insulate and order a new kitchen - time consuming and expensive 
Option 3 - is there any insurance that can help in this case?
Any other options? 

Thank you in advance for your help!

GrumpyDil

Are you really sure the extension is the reason that they cannot get a mortgage because I would be suspicious that it was only an excuse. 

grumbler

DianaDzh said:

... the banks would not give a mortgage to our buyer because of our kitchen extension....
I understand this room does not comply with regulations.

Most houses in UK don't comply.

What can I do to change that?

My thoughts are:  Option 1 - insulate externally - there is a bin passage behind one of the walls so the insulation may cause a problem with regards to space. How do I check the required thickness of the insulation?

I'm no expert, but I think for it has to be at least 10cm of the best insulation plus cladding.

flo22

My kitchen is like this, it was called out in the full survey but I had no issue with a mortgage (albeit this was years ago).  I suspect this is a factor but not the sole reason

Ksw3

flo22 said:

My kitchen is like this, it was called out in the full survey but I had no issue with a mortgage (albeit this was years ago).  I suspect this is a factor but not the sole reason

Same for us.

twopenny

I had one like this and no problem with the mortgage for my buyers. That was just 4yrs ago.
Nor was it mentioned by the surveyor or estate agent as a problem.

I agree, there must be something else in their application.
Were they asking for a reduction in price?

Don't try to invest in building work on assumptions.
My buyers knocked it down and rebuilt 2 stories there any way. Same happened to my neighbours.

tony3619

When you say single skin do you mean 1/2 brick thick? 

FreeBear

grumbler said:

What can I do to change that?

My thoughts are:  Option 1 - insulate externally - there is a bin passage behind one of the walls so the insulation may cause a problem with regards to space. How do I check the required thickness of the insulation?

I'm no expert, but I think for it has to be at least 10cm of the best insulation plus cladding.

Assuming single brick (115mm thick), 75mm of Celotex/Kingspan will get you down to under 0.30 W/m²k - With a double thickness wall (~230mm), it doesn't make that much difference to the calculations. If you want to play with the numbers & materials -> https://www.changeplan.co.uk/u_value_calculator.php

Insulating the wall externally can be quite quick, but attention does need to be paid to detailing, especially around the roof line. Insulating internally also requires some planning - If you intend to hang wall units, you either need to fit battens to the wall and insulate round them or use 18mm ply in place of plasterboard (and plenty of mechanical fixings). Pipework and electrics will also add to the headache... The window & door reveals also need insulating if you are to avoid any cold spots (you can get away with 25mm in those areas).

XzavierWalnut

Ksw3 said:

flo22 said:

My kitchen is like this, it was called out in the full survey but I had no issue with a mortgage (albeit this was years ago).  I suspect this is a factor but not the sole reason

Same for us.

Same for me, but that was 31 years ago.

gwynlas

We had single brick garage insulated to convert to annex but it does reduce room size and together with plumbing and electrics was not cheap. You would possibly be much better off if EA description made note that it requires updating and is priced accordingly. Any surveyor would value on this basis so there should not be an issue with mortfage companies.

TELLIT01

tony3619 said:

When you say single skin do you mean 1/2 brick thick? 

Single skin is a wall one brick thick i.e. 4 /12" in old money.