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[kitz]

Has anyone had Cavity wall insulation done?

Ive seen for a while that people over 60 and those on benefits can have it done for free.
But what I wasnt aware of is that there is also a government grant which allows it to be done for just £99.

The stuff that has been coming through my door for the past few years has been from Warmfront, but since their gumph concentrated on free on benefits or over 60's I didnt really take any notice.

From what I can gather Warm Front & Green Homes Scheme are government funded which subsidises the cost of loft and cavity wall insulation.

Going through Warm Front/Green Homes I'd end up paying £99 for MarkGroup to do the work.

[scottiesmum]

We contemplated this years ago when in the UK Kitz, but were  strongly advised against it by several surveyor/builder friends who were of the opinion that it caused more problems than it solved.  They were firmly of the opinion that any insulation  (unless it was carried out on a new property at the time of building)  should only be done on the outside of walls where it can be seen ....and dealt with if there were any obvious problems.     I don't know how things have 'progressed', if at all, over the years, but it's something that always rings an alarm bell with me. 

[tonyappuk]

There can be a problem with the insulation material, even if closed cell, as it can effectively bridge the cavity by enabling the wall ties to  allow water to move across by capillary action. At least one friend of mine had horrible damp problems in his house after he had it done. This was some years ago of course and no doubt today's contractors would say that modern materials and methods get over this problem but I would be very wary no matter what they say.
Tony

[sevenlayermuddle]

I've also heard horror stories like Tony's, and I've no doubt they're true.  To be fair though, in 1988 I bought a 60's built house that had recently been 'done'.  I have to say that it caused no problems at all in the ten years I lived there, and the house did indeed prove very cosy, and very cheap to heat.

I suspect the truth may be that the technology does work if done properly, but that it's a bit of a lottery as to whether there'll be any side effects, which can be catastrophic.

Maybe try and call around the local surveyors' offices and chat them up for their (hopefully free) opinions before having it done, they might know about more about the construction of your house, and whether it's likely to backfire,  particularly if there's many similar houses in the neighbourhood?

[fudgem]

we had it done over 20 years ago, without any problems surfacing at all.  It did much more to reduce our heating costs than the much more expensive double glazing

[kitz]

Thanks for everyones comments. - appreciated

I hope I'm doing the right thing here, but I think Im going to go ahead.

Ive done a bit of searching round and havent really found anything bad about the company.
- aside from where they went away because there was no parking/couldnt get a parking permit
and someone else said they did a good job on the cavity insulation but turned up late for the loft insulation.
If they are the biggest firm in the UK as they say, then the complaints seem few and far between.

Also spoke to my parents this eve..  hadnt realised that they had it done for free on grant (dads age) with the same company.
Mum said they were good and shes happy that the house does seem much warmer...  and that for £99 it would be well worth it and probably repay itself quite soon.

Theres a few of these houses on here that have had it done (typical barratt house about 18yrs old)... so 

[tickmike]

The best Free advice would be from your local building inspector from the council, I think I would keep away from the adds through your door.
Filling the cavity (if you have one) is a bit hit and miss, you can get 'voids' with no insulation at all ( you get heat loss in the voids) and the only way to check is with a thermal imaging camera.

It depends how old your house is, if its got a cavity or solid brick wall.

Insulation can be added to the out side of the outer walls or on the inside (in the rooms) and do not forget the roof insulation (in the attic), also good draft stripping around doors windows etc.

In the house I built I used lots of insulation ( Sheet insulation ) in the cavity, under the floors and in the roof and we do not need much heating   , I'm converting my two story building into a holiday flat, it has a 2" (50mm) empty cavity, I have decided not to fill the cavity but I'm adding 50mm of 'ExtraTherm' sheet insulation on the inside of the walls.
All the insulation company's will work out for free the type and thickness of the material for a given job.

Another project I'm also building my workshop/store room, that has a 80mm cavity and I'm using sheet 'Rockwool' (Made from volcanic rock, which is more user friendly than glasswool  ) to fill it.


Edit just seen your other post above.
Re "Theres a few of these houses on here that have had it done (typical barratt house about 18yrs old)"
If your house is 18 years old it Should have cavity insulation !.
 you need to talk to your building inspector first ,before you do anything.

[kitz]

>> If your house is 18 years old it Should have cavity insulation !.

They havent - definitely  

I'm not sure what the builders were thinking when they built these houses, but they certainly didnt seem to want to make it efficient.  

• They put in 3 stupid gas heaters (1 in the dining room and in only 2 of the bedrooms).

The rest of the house froze and until I had GCH installed.  In winter the gas fire in the lounge was practically on 24/7 and I had to use a fan heater in the PC room.

• It had 'double glazing', which was in wood surround and so thin between the glazing it was worthless.

You could actually see the curtains move if it was windy outside.  I could often feel the draft through the window when sat at the PC in this room.

• The plasterboard is that thin that you cant hang hardly anything on the walls without additional support, even a coat hook rack didnt last long before it came away

When I first moved in my heating bills used to be more than my previous home which was nearly twice the size.
I cant recall exactly how old the house is now..  but Ive been here 10 years, and it still had a couple of years NHBC? warranty.
During the first few years I was here I had Central Heating, new windows/doors and the loft boarded and a more efficient combi boiler which have all helped.

Theres definitely no insulation in there - I had a hole bored "in the laundry" for the tumble drier vent and its plaster, gap, brick.  Same in the kitchen when I had the new boiler fitted.

[tickmike]

Theres definitely no insulation in there - I had a hole bored "in the laundry" for the tumble drier vent and its plaster, gap, brick.  Same in the kitchen when I had the new boiler fitted.

Sounds like a timber framed house with an outer brick skin .
Can you remember how wide the 'gap' was ?.

I think you have to talk to building inspector before you have it done (new rules ?.).

[kitz]

>> Can you remember how wide the 'gap' was ?.

At a guess about 2-3 inches?

Windowsill is about 8 inches , minus 4 inches for a brick - less the internal stuff.

[kitz]

Just an update on this and test results from today

Was concerned about the possibility of it being a timberframe home, but its not, nor has it got any cavity insulation already in. House was built in Apr 1991 by Barretts who have also confirmed it is cavity.

A survey using test holes and inspection from the loft where you can see the blocks has revealed the house is

brick >
cavity >
thermablock >
Dot & Dab >
Plasterboard >
Plaster skim.

The use of Thermablock rather than Breezeblock (its softer) and the dot&dabbed plasterboard is apparently the reason why I have difficulty in getting things to stay on the wall

[camallison]

The building regs for new build changed around 94/95 after which insulation levels had to be raised by installing insulation in the cavity.  Our house was started in 93 and completed in Feb 94 and so just missed having it installed.  e.on offered to put in cavity wall insulation for free in 2007 and, of course, we jumped at the offer!  I can confirm that it has definiteley improved matters with much lower consumption and hasn't in any way caused amp.

Colin

[UncleUB]

Only just read this thread.........

Don't get cavityfoam insulation confused with cavity insulation.
Foam was used in the seventies and did cause problems in not letting the walls breathe properly,where as modern cavity insulation is a dry rock wool that is put into a machine and pumped in through bore holes on the outside of the property,usually into the mortar joints and then re pointed afterwards.
We had this done 9 years ago foc and has not caused any problems so far.

The use of Thermablock rather than Breezeblock (its softer) and the dot&dabbed plasterboard is apparently the reason why I have difficulty in getting things to stay on the wall

Yes dot and dab is a cheaper and quicker way of plastering rather than the traditional rough and skim method.(rough being the thicker coat of plaster direct onto the walls and then a skim finish on that after it has dried.
As well as being cheaper house builders prefer it as the plaster dries out quicker and that means the house can be painted and finished quicker,especially in the winter months.
One big problem is if the plasterer has not put enough 'dots' of plaster on the wall to stick the plasterboard to.Thats why you can sometimes get  a lot of plaster cracks.
And it can be a nightmare to fix to.
Just try tapping the wall gently with a hammer and you will hear a different 'solid' sound where the plaster 'dots' are.  

[kitz]

Thanks phil

Yes it is mineral wool and not foam that they use - not foam
http://www.markgroup.co.uk/products/cavity-wall-insulation/homeowner/installation/

Like I say Id not even realised that they'd done my parents..  but m&d seem well happy with it.
Theyve also supposedly done a lot of houses on this estate too.

>> Just try tapping the wall gently with a hammer and you will hear a different 'solid' sound where the plaster 'dots' are.


lol.. yes there was a lot of rapping of knuckles on walls going on yesterday..  and you can definitely hear the difference.

[kitz]

Mines due to be done tomorrow - but I notice my neighbour across the road is having theirs done today.
Different firm though.