Find an Insulation Installer you can trust in Studley.

If you want to install an external wall, it is only wise to consider whether or not a planning permission is required in order to avoid a hefty fine. In a great kudos to the government and a welcome relief to home and property owners, the installation of external wall insulation is seen as an “improvement to the house and not an “extension or an “enlargement. Ultimately, this implies that external wall insulation fitting is to be done under permitted development and a planning application may not be required. However, like many other regulations, there are also exceptions to this rule and the main one is if the activity changes the appearance of your property. Properties such as a listed building having tighter regulations may pose some issues. As a result, we’d advise you to consult your local authority to ensure that there’s no fast rule to this topic before commencement of the external wall insulation project.

At the moment, according to the Government Building Regulations, the surface of the entire wall is to be improved to existing standards if the area to be insulated exceeds 25 percent of the wall. In normal situations this is usually the typical case, however to prevent avoidable fines and other possible punishments, it is always best to reach to your local authority and check out the rules guiding external wall insulation in your constituency. Furthermore, since external wall insulation is not a task that’s recommended to be done by yourself, you can also ask the professional external wall insulation fitting company for the applying rules before proceeding. As a good professional, the company should have a better knowledge of the rules and regulation guiding its activities.

How long it takes to install insulation will depend on the size of your property. In general, loft and cavity wall insulation can be installed in a day or two. External wall insulation will usually take longer to install. The rep or installer will be able to advise you when quoting for the job how long this will be.

External wall insulation works to keep your home cosy and comfy while also helping to cut the energy bills. However with the great benefits also comes great costs, so it’s actually a logical decision to know whether there are grants out there which you’re eligible for to help you handle the cost of the external wall insulation.

There are grants available for external wall insulation, but rarely will you find one that covers the full installation cost. With the help of the government’s Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme, a couple of energy companies assist in making your home more energy efficient by offering grants or free insulation. In certain cases whereby you receive particular state benefits, you may as well qualify for a higher grant that’ll cover more of the insulation cost.

However, if your energy supplier doesn’t offer any grant, you need not worry as you can save as much on energy bill after installation. Here’s what insulation can help you save per year on energy bills:

• Floor insulation can help you save within a range of £30 to £75 each year.

• Cavity wall insulation can help you save about £85 to £280 a year.

• Loft Insulation (270mm) can help you save about £135 to £250 a year.

Generally, the amount you’ll be able to save on your energy bills depends mainly on the type and size of your property, as well as how energy efficient it already is without the insulation. In the long run, your external wall insulation will more than give you back your investment on the valuable project through your savings on energy bills. In other words, whether or not you’re eligible for a grant should never stop you from installing an external wall insulation.

The short and simple answer to this question is yes, loft insulation does cause condensation. Over the years, problems with condensation in loft spaces have become increasingly common. While this may not be harmful in anyway, when the condensation becomes excessive it can lead to more serious issues taking root in your loft like wet rot, dry rot as well as black spot mould. Generally, the best thing to do if you’re concerned about the condensation in your loft space and that it may rapidly become a bigger problem is to get in touch with a damp specialist as soon as possible.

Even though insulating your loft space comes with a wide array of benefits like making the top floor rooms warmer, it’s however comes at the cost of making your loft or room space cooler. Condensation in lofts take place primarily due to the humid air making its way through insulation or other gaps into the loft space and touching a cooler surface which in turn results in beads of moisture on the timbers, lintels as well as the underside of the roof. This is why its always a great idea make use of thermal insulation with a vapour barrier that’s installed on the warmer side of the insulating material.

Condensation in loft is caused by excess moisture in the air and lack of adequate air ventilation. Here are some top reasons that gives rise to this in the loft:

• Extra insulation has been installed in the loft leading to a restriction on the natural air circulation in the property.
• When the storage boxes or other items that has been stockpiled in the loft blocks the roof vents.
• The release of steam and moist air into the loft space by hot water tanks.

This is a very great opportunity to not only get free external wall insulation, but also cut down your energy bills depending on the type of property you live in. Generally, to enjoy free external wall insulation you must at least be part of the group receiving one of the benefits listed below and also depends on the amount of money you earn. The benefits include:

• Income based jobseeker’s allowance (JSA)

• Income support

• Income-related employment and support allowance (ESA)

• Tax credits

• Pension credit guarantee credit.

• Universal credit.

There are also other important factors that determines if you can have a free insulation fitted on your property. These includes the place you reside, the carbon level of your home and according to some suppliers, the level of beneficial impact the insulation will have on your home. In order to have a free external wall insulation installed, you must either be the owner of your home or at least obtain the go ahead from your landlord before any external wall insulation activity can be made.

Good news is, if you fit the aforementioned criteria and you’ve already installed an external wall insulation, you just may be entitled to receive a refund for the good job done. However, to really find out if you’re eligible, we’d recommend you get in touch with your supplier directly. Also, the Energy Saving Trust (EST) can direct you to some organizations who can assist you in the determination of your eligibility.

As a home and property owner living in England, you can also check out the Each Home Counts Advice Website which is committed to giving impartial energy efficiency advice.

At the end of the day, if it turns out you happen to be ineligible for a free external wall insulation, you can still go ahead to contact a professional installer for a help at a competitive price to enjoy the several benefits that comes with home insulation.

Before the commencement of any project, it’s always best to get an estimation of the cost. However, determining the cost of an external solid wall insulation is not the easiest of tasks as it relies on varying components such as the insulation materials to be used, labour cost and installation as well as the type of decorative finish to be incorporated. And depending on your choice of insulation material, some may need some adhesives while others may require some fixings which also contributes to the differences in price. As a result, the determination of the material cost alone can be tricky and even more so when various materials cover varying areas.

With that in mind, the cost of external solid wall insulation generally ranges between £80 to £100 per square metre2. As a result, a small flat can cost from £6000 to £9000 whereas a large detached house can have a price ranging between £21000 to £23000. To earn back your investment in terms of energy bill savings can take a couple of years, but it’s surely worth the try as there are several other benefits associated with installing an external solid wall insulation system. What’s more? Another huge factor that can influence the cost of your system is also the amount of work that’s required, how easy it is to be accessed by the installers and lots more

If you’re looking to cut down on the cost of your external solid wall insulation, then the best time for an installation might just be when you’re having another decorating or building project done such as fitting a new roof, window painting, installation of solar PV panels and more. This way, you’ll be able to spread the cost and have a greater value for each penny expended.

A lot of an uninsulated property’s heat is lost through the roof and that’s even more alarming, when you realize this figure is up to a quarter of the total heat of the house. Hence, the tremendous importance of preventing this heat loss through loft insulation which will go a long way to help you against spending unnecessary thousands of pounds on heating bill as well as energy loss.

Loft insulation is an effective method to achieve the desired result, however the question is, how exactly does it work? Well, it’s time to find out!

Using either a fireplace or central heating to heat up your home, a large quantity of that heat would be lost through the roof of your home. Generally, heat rises and when it does, there’s simply no way to prevent it - it’s just science. Escaping by both the conduction and convection methods via your roof, the heat escaping through your ceiling, into the loft space and out into the open air outside can only be significantly reduced by laying loft insulation.

Generally, the added layer of insulation works by trapping the heat inside the room below the loft so as to enable the air within your house to stay warmer for longer. What’s more? The layer of insulation also keeps cold air from the outside from entering your home. As a result, you don’t have to heat your home as much in order to achieve the same temperature for each individual room. Over time, just by doing this you can potentially save hundreds pounds. Getting it installed in your home may actually seem a bit expensive at first, but it’s something that’ll eventually pay off.

Over the years there has been an increase in the recommended thickness of loft insulation by the government. Obviously, the reason behind this is pretty simply - the thicker the layer of your loft insulation the bigger your savings. The UK government is very keen to every house in the country to have loft insulation fitted where possible as it helps to minimize the heating demands of these properties. Households get to benefit from loft insulation in so many ways which includes reduced energy energy bills as well as having a home that stays at a more comfortable temperature for longer.

Generally, for the government energy efficiency is crucial as it implies that the highest demand ( which is usually the time of the day when gas or electricity use is at its peak ) reduces, since each building requires slightly less energy. Overall, that ultimately implies that new power plants don’t have to be built which is some nice cost savings for the government.

In the 1980’s, any thickness of loft insulation from 25 mm to 50 mm was considered the standard. But then, building regulations stated that homes should have as much as 100 mm of loft insulation. Over time, this gradually increased to 270mm for new builds and also recommended for other properties, although not essential. As a result of this, there’s always a need to check how much insulation you currently have in your loft before you decide to purchase more. You may discover that you already have something within the range of 20 mm to 200 mm up there and knowing this and the insulation values will assist in determining how much more you’ll need to purchase, if any at all. You should also note that some modern materials can offer the same thermal insulation whilst not being as thick.