Tuesday 10 April 2012

I for Insulation

If everyone in the UK installed 270 mm loft insulation, we could save nearly £500 million – and 2.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year, the equivalent of taking nearly 100,000 cars off the road. Source: Energy Saving Trust.

heat loss house drawing
There are quite a lot of initiatives in the UK to support people on low incomes with roof, wall, cavity and loft insulation. Sadly I live in a draughty Edwardian house built in 1905 that has solid walls that lose twice as much heat as cavity walls. 
insulating fleece


Infrared imaging of house
The actual insulation has an eco angle with the filling products of natural wool, wood fibre, hemp [sustainable of course] and cellulose [from recycled newspapers ] at the eco friendly end to polystyrene foam at the other... chemistry degree anyone?


Diagrams abound on the heat loss problems with houses in  the northern hemisphere.                                                                                                                                                     
There is even a market in conducting thermal infrared house surveys to detect cold spots. Very pretty pictures that tell a chilling tale of heat loss, of course. 
This picture is courtesy of  Multiguard Solutions.
An hour ago I listened to the news on the radio and discovered that this is part of a Green Deal the UK government are consulting on. They plan to legislate so that if you want to improve your home by extending it, then you may only get planning permission if you pay for loft insulation and draught proofing at the same time. Watch this space!

2 comments:

  1. Our house had no insulation when we moved in, none of the doors fitted properly and a howling gale used to blow up from the cellar into the sitting room. Four years on, we have insulated the attic and also the cellar ceiling and draught-proofed as much as we can. We now use one third less oil than we did in our first year here!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow...this is an awe-inspiring statistic. We moved into a new house last year (in Tucson, AZ). It's the best insulated house we've ever had and boy does it make a difference (though, of course, we use AC not heat!)
    Rhia from Five Minute Piece for Inspiration

    ReplyDelete