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Internal wall insulation questions
I have a question or two about internal insulation on a solid wall 1918 house. Trying not to aound rude, but Please do not comment if you are going to recommend using plasterboard or modern materials that do not suit a solid walled home.
I’ve been on a lime plastering course local to where I am, I didn’t leave feeling very confident but it cost an arm and a leg. Moan over. The walls In Question are internal on a cold wall and the floor is currently original solid floor.
I wanted to ask if anyone knows the difference between using cork or wood wool boards?
Have you any experience of using these?
Does it significantly improve the heat loss of the room?
Do you have problems hanging middle weight items?
How have you hung your items ?
Another question I have relating to insulating is this.
Have you used the limecrete flooring system?
How much did it cost and is it all worth it?
Thanks so much
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5 Replies
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I also recommend having a look at “the warm dry home” by Pete Ward; https://shop.heritage-house.org/…/book-the-warm-dry-home/
shop.heritage-house.org
Book: The Warm Dry Home – Heritage House Shop
Book: The Warm Dry Home – Heritage House Shop
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So we definately need to talk about the options here and I work with many people undertaking exactly these projects. Cork has a slight resilience, it can handle small amounts of movement in the wall. However, cork can be tricky to work with if you want to hang heavier items as it’s softer compared to wood wool. Wood wool boards are also breathable and provide good thermal performance and denser typically a bit more durable in terms of load-bearing capacity compared to cork and have better structural integrity if you’re concerned about mounting things on the walls. You can use more standard fixtures with wood wool boards but heavy shelving and fixtures like this is where you require bigger fixtures into the wall behind the insulation and really need to think those through prior to the work being done.
Love to know more about the work and your overall approach.
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They absolutely improve the thermal property but you have to look at the room as a whole as having thermal bridging issues need to be resolved. Have you got an air tightness strategy?
I have a home very similar era and solid wall and will also be looking at diathonite for internal insulation too. Also ensuring good air flow and ventilation even with natural insulation is still critical.
Limecrete flooring is definitely worth looking while also still looking at hemp for further insulation under that too. You could be looking at upwards of £100-£150 per square meter just for the limecrete, depending on the thickness but also factoring in the right floor system with that is key and what floor level changes.
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Can I suggest you join and get in touch with the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB)? They made the listing categories, they are an amazing organisation. They have a free helpline, have courses you can go on to manage your old property, hugely invest in and encourage heritage trade and crafts. They should be able to help you, or point you in the right direction.
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I am pleased to see how the cross over of information now with SPAB is filtering across our approach to all homes! I work and have here in this group a fantastic knowledge base of professional women in retrofit who only believe in the use of natural building materials.
There is a shift in the tide and all homeowners need more awareness that it’s not exclusive measures to a rare number of homes but all our homes need to factor in.
I’m going to do a showcase of the professional women here who all work in this arena for the homeowners next I think!
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