House Needs Insulation

[Bray]

Hi,
We have just purchased a 1600 sq foot house that is in very good nick! but needs to be dry lined, its circa 30years old, a bungalow with many outside walls, also all the roofing is wooden inside ie. no attics , when you look up all you see is beautiful apex wooden roofs in each room. We are wondering about an approx cost ..ie 10/20 k or more!!!to fix this.Or because the wooden roofing is such a feature would it be cheaper just to suffer the cost of the heating bills!!!Has anybody any advice please.

 

[Carpenter]

Drylining the external walls up to ceiling/ roof level won't be a problem, you could use a "Gypsum" or "Kingspan" thermal laminate board which combines insulation with a plasterboard face. This product comes in various thicknesses, depending on the level of insulation you require, but a 50mm board is pretty standard. Insulating the roof void is going to prove difficult, probably impossible if you want to retain the existing timber ceilings. You have no access to the "hidden" space so how do you get insulation in there? You could "blow" in bead or fibre insulation from some openings made in the ceiling, but the insulation will migrate down towards the eaves, blocking ventilation pathways and creating further problems. I don't see any other way other than to "dryline" over the existing ceiling, fixing back to the rafters or taking the lot down and starting out with a new ceiling. The second option will at least allow you to improve ventilation (which is crtical in dormer type warm roof constructions), put in additional wiring for lighting etc. Otherwise live with spiralling heat costs. Insualting your external walls whilst neglecting the roofspace would not make economic or environmental sense. Timber sheeting is a real fire risk also and there are limitations on its use and extent specified in the Building Regulations (surface spread of flame).

 

[Mr Flapjack]

I'm in a simiar situation to you Loughshinny. Have you thought about Foam insulation? http://www.askaboutmoney.com/showthread.php?t=11716

 

[Bray]

thanks carpenter and flapjack very much.I get the point!Flapjack, we have no probs getting the walls insulated,its the roof,we would loose the beautiful wood feature of the apex roof, I reckon it will cost more than its worth in the long run you see,best regards.L

 

[Henny Penny]

I'm going to piggy-back on your thread loughshinny ... our dormer will need insulating before this winter.
We have some attic space that has minimal fibreglass insulation in it but we also have a lot of deadspace under the eves which will need insulation. What would the best way to deal with this space ... currently this space is floored and there are cupboard doors to access it. We don't really use the space for anything more than storing suitcases ... so it wouldn't be missed.