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Insulating Your Roof

Most of us have some insulation in our lofts, but how many of us check whether this is to current standards, that it is still covering properly and in good condition?

Energy Saving Trust advises topping up your loft insulation to 270 mm, which could save you £45/year if you already have 50 mm insulation in your loft, and £150 if you have no insulation in your loft.  Their website www.energysavingtrust.org.uk gives details of costs, including DIY installation, and whether there are grants available.

We currently have 100 mm of Rockwool insulation in our loft.  We would like to increase this amount with a natural fibre insulation, such as sheep wool or hemp insulation.  There are a number of suitable products available:

We need to be able to access our ventilation unit in the loft so as to clean and change filters; and access parts of the solar panel equipment for maintenance.  We have minimised what we store in the loft, but the ducting for the ventilation system does cover part of the loft.

We approached a number of companies, found through the internet, who offer to come and insulate your loft and offer a grant for doing this.  Most did not offer natural fibre insulation; only one company said that they did offer this and set up an appointment.  A representative came out and looked at the loft, but could not get away quickly enough when we said we wanted natural fibre insulation, such as sheep wool.  We never heard from them again!

On the basis of the materials we want and the issues with what is housed in our loft space we need a bespoke solution – DIY if we are feeling brave enough, or getting a local company to do the work for us.

We know of someone in the village who has successfully had sheep wool insulation fitted by a local carpentry and joinery company.  So this is something we will be pursuing further.

Through the Good Energy website [Link] we found a company Joulesave [Link] who supplier Heatkeeper Natural Wool Insulation.  They have confirmed that their product is suitable to top up our current insulation.  They have also spoken to their fitters but they also lay insulation across joists and this creates a practical problem for us in terms of accessing the solar hot water or ventilation equipment.  We also have a concern about lighting cable being buried under insulation, not because of a fire risk, but because if there is a need to access it the insulation will have to be lifted and may not be put back properly.  Joulesave are certainly interested in finding answers to this problem and it is a real issue; people do want to be able to use their lofts, even if just as storage, and to be able to access the space safely as is evidenced by the availability of safe loft ladders.

We are interested in your experience of loft insulation, particularly topping up to current standards and the products you use.  Also, we would be interested in the current condition of your old loft insulation, particularly if you know when it was fitted and to what depth.  Please Contact Us with your experience and send photos if you have them.