wall insulation

designeditdesignedit

Probably going to put my house on the market next year, its a large 1920's semi.I am a bit concerned about the energy rating ( I bought this house over 20 years ago, long before EPC were a thing, hence I dont know much about this)

I have loft insulation and double glazed windows but approx ten years ago, we were persuaded to have cavity wall insulation via the govt, scheme.

A year later we noticed damp patches on a wall. I cant quite recall how or who by, but we got it extracted free of charge as apparantly it should never have been installed as my property is on the coast (? I have no idea of the relevance, its not as if the house is right next to the beach).

So now we have no cavity wall insulation but my question is SHOULD we actually have it and if so, how can we have it without causing damp. And if we dont, how much is this likely to impact property value and sale?

sheenas

Look at the Skill builder channel and talk to Roger Bisby he is a really nice guy and will help without trying to sell you anything. He has helped my on a few projects and does a lot of damp related Videos.

Albermarle

Most 1920's built houses will have solid walls- no cavity at all. Cavity walls only become more standard in the following decades. So somebody buying the house knowing when it was built would probably not be expecting a particularly good EPC anyway.

FreeBear

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82127365#Comment_82127365

Or it could be a 50mm cavity on the ground floor, and solid 9" on the upper half like mine.

To be honest, as long as you have 300-400mm of loft insulation, decent double glazed windows, and no nasty cold draughts, it should stay reasonably warm. I've insulated a few of the external walls on the upper half, and to be quite frank, it has made no difference in terms of heat retention. Have temperature/humidity sensors in every room along with a heat meter on the gas boiler. So I know how much energy is needed to heat the place and can monitor the rate at which rooms cool down when the boiler shuts down. There is no discernible difference between rooms with IWI, and the ones without. However, I no longer get condensation & black mould in the rooms with IW, so there is that advantage.

No idea what the EPC rating is like, so can't comment..

sheenas

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82127365#Comment_82127365

It was actually introduce in the 19th century, but became popular in the 1920-30s. You can tell if it a solid wall if you see alternative half bricks, that assumes you can see the bricks naturally. I personally would not expect a very good EPC rating on anything other than a very recently built house.

stuart45

There are some cavity walls built in Mock Flemish bond with snapped headers. There are some solid 9inch walls built with Stretchers as well, so the walls need to be measured to be more certain of their construction.

Chickereeeee

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82128828#Comment_82128828

In myn1926, rendered, house, I had to go into the loft and put my hand down the cavity before I was really sure… 50+mm gap.

Filled with bonded beads a few years ago, and 20+% reduction in heating costs.

FreeBear

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82140797#Comment_82140797

Had some complete !!!!!! of a "surveyor" take a look in my loft. He then proceeded to tell me he could put his hand down in to the cavity. A bloody miracle worker…. Only the lower half of the house has a 50mm cavity, Upstairs, it is a solid 9" brick wall. Knew this guy was a complete idiot the moment he claimed to be PCA trained, and then went on to tell me that I needed spray foam insulation.

jimi_man

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6682163/wall-insulation

I definitely wouldn't get it done. You're highly unlikely to get that cost back. All the people who've moved recently, including ourselves, only paid scant regard to the EPC rating. Certain houses which are older are highly unlikely to have a good rating anyway.

Albermarle

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82140992#Comment_82140992

As above, just make sure if you have viewings in cold weather, the house feels nice and warm !