A Guide to Loft Insulation

A quarter of heat is lost through the roof in an uninsulated home. Insulating your loft, attic or flat roof is a simple and effective way to reduce heat loss and reduce your heating bills. Our loft areas are always empty or sometimes used for storage purposes, but birds only sit on the insulated roofs where they can find the heat from below. The most important things about lofts are that they can be quickly turned into a space for use. Therefore, insulation is the only way that one can make it happen. The insulated house has a very warm and cozy environment as there is no loss of heat and one can live in comfort. Sustaining heat is one of the most important functions of Loft insulation. It is a very easy process to install a loft insulation roll, and one can do it cost-effective as well.

Why do we need loft insulation?

Most homes without insulation face problems such as heat loss and condensation. Without proper loft insulation, a lot of the warmth produced by your heating system escapes through the roof of your property; in fact, as much as 25% of the heat in an uninsulated house is lost in this way.

What is Loft Insulation? 

Loft insulation acts as a barrier, slowing the movement of heat out of the property during the winter and into the property during the summer. It is an excellent way to save money and energy. This is the cheapest loft insulation compared to other sorts of internal wall insulation. One can have a lot to do with the various designs, shapes, and sizes to fit on the walls. The kind of insulation that you require will depend on the wall and space your house has. Loft insulation is necessary for houses in colder areas.

How to Install Loft Roll Insulation with Rockwool Thermal Insulation Roll?

A Versatile option with High Specifications for thermal, acoustic, and fire performance, Rockwool loft insulation is the ideal insulation solution for all types of buildings.

Rockwool loft roll insulation is a multi-purpose product that is suitable for various applications

• The mineral wool loft insulation provides excellent thermal performance and improves the energy efficiency of any type of construction. 

Different brands like Knauf, Sheepwool, Isover, and Danosa offer full coverage and length. From the highest to the lowest thickness as 200mm and 50mm attic insulation.

Why Do We Need Solid Wall Insulation?

Our home needs to protect us from various things. Adding Solid Wall Insulation can provide extra protection in a variety of ways. 

Adding insulation to your property can help create a thermal guard that can reduce the loss of heat in the winter and keep the cool in during the summer months. It can also provide acoustic insulation from noises from the outside world and protect the structure from damp and mould problems. 

Where should I fit the Insulation while insulating my Loft?

Insulating a Loft Between the Rafters

If insulation is placed exclusively between the rafters, they will have to be very deep to ensure you can fit the required depth of insulation (the very best phenolic foam insulation will have to be 125mm deep to meet Building Regulations requirements). With this installation method, there is a danger of minor condensation caused by cold bridges at the position of the rafters. This moisture could lead to discoloration of the internal decoration.

Fitting Insulation Over the Rafters

Fitting a continuous layer of insulation over the rafters will solve the issue of cold bridging, but is only an option on new builds or renovations where the roof tiles are being stripped and relaid. Even then, the depth of insulation now required to meet the Regulations means that very large fascia boards and wide soffits are required.

Insulating Beneath the Rafters

This loft insulation method also solves the issue of cold bridging but can restrict the headroom. This problem can usually be designed out in a new build but may cause an issue when an existing roof is to be converted.

What is the Difference between Cold Roof Insulation and Warm Roof Insulation?

You create a warm roof, or a cold roof, simply by applying the layers of Insulation to the roof in a different order.

• A cold loft is where you insulate immediately above the ceiling of the top storey, so no heat from your home gets into your loft.
• The warm loft is where you insulate immediately under the roof, which means your loft space is warm as well.

What are the Types of Loft Insulation?

There are several different types of loft insulation to choose from and a variety of loft insulation materials available:

Batt or blanket loft Roll

The most common form of loft insulation, this comes in rolls of rock, glass or mineral fibre (we use Earthwool by Knauf which is a really good environmentally friendly option), or else foil-backed felt. It's generally the cheapest option and good all-purpose insulation, especially for between joists.

Sheep Wool Insulation

If you are using sheep wool insulation you will get the added benefits of the material being able to absorb moisture as well and is a perfect material for loft insulation.

Rigid Insulation Boards

Rigid Insulation Boards also are known as Sheet insulation and insulated boards are more expensive than the wool, however, they offer double the insulating capacity (therefore where you would normally use 270mm of wool, you would only require 135mm of the insulating board). They can be cut to size using a saw to fit between the joists and also drilled to allow room for light fittings.

Blown-fibre

Blown fibre insulation must be installed by a professional. An installer will use specialist equipment to blow insulation material into the gaps that require it. Blown Fiber is certainly the cheapest way to go, the loft space itself will be very cold in the winter.

Loose Fill Loft Insulation

Insulating your loft floor using loose-fill is great as a top-up process for a pre-insulated space. It tends to be light material such as recycled newspapers and mineral wool, which can be spread to cover any gaps between the joists. You simply open the bags of insulating material and pour into any spaces that were previously lacking an adequate level of insulation. This process is a fairly simple do-it-yourself job.

Flat Roof Insulation 

Flat roof insulation is crucial for improving energy efficiency, comfort and standard of living in buildings. In an uninsulated home, up to 25 percent of the heat transfer takes place through the roof. For a well-insulated, competent, and good-looking structure insulating a flat roof is a task we must do. 

Standard loft insulation

The thickness of loft insulation has increased over the years. The thicker the loft insulation layer, the greater the energy savings! The depth of loft insulation is between 250mm to 270mm but it has increased up to 300mm. 

Do I need to provide extra ventilation to my loft space if I insulate it?

That depends on whether it is adequately ventilated at the moment. Increasing the amount of insulation in the loft can lead to condensation of water vapour on any timber there. If your loft is not properly ventilated your installer will advise you and can install simple vents that will ensure adequate airflow through the loft.

What are the benefits of Loft insulation?

The heating and electricity bills will reduce to a minimum.

1. Reduction in the Carbon footprint of your home.
2. Constantly improves the energy efficiency of your home.
3. It increases the value of your home.
4. Preserve the warm temperature throughout.
5. Easy to Install and has longevity.
6. No matter how big your loft is, you can insulate it easily.

The installation cost of the loft varies according to the size and the material that is being used. The material is easily available in the market and you can easily insulate the loft by yourself. You can do it as long as you can easily get into your own space; there are no condensation, damp and leakage problems. If you are a DIY installer then it can take you more time than the professional, and you have to know the entire process thoroughly. There are many ways to set up your attics with insulators-

• Firstly, you need to clear the old stuff and boxes out of the loft space.
• Check for gaps and holes in any pipes and water tanks before.
• Check for electrical wiring and whether it is a necessity and why you must take care of all the essential electrical points and wires that are stretched out.
• You must get the right measurement for your loft and for that, you need the right amount of blanket insulation.
• You have to unroll the loft insulation roll and make sure that that is laid down in between the joists. These rolls are usually 1140mm wide, and one needs to cut it. Use scissors and cut the material short for the appropriate length.
• You have to create a second layer in the right angles. You will need 200mm wool if your first layer is 100 mm deep. This in total will bring the total layering to 300mm.

Can I Use my loft as a storage space?

This is a very common idea when one wants and plans to use their loft for storage space. Once you have insulated your loft correctly, you can literally store anything in there. Many times, we face difficulty with things in the loft losing shape and turning bad. This can happen because of the weather and the environment of the attic. Too much cold and too much heat can affect the loft, and that may affect the things that were around. The idea is to turn the entire space to make sure that the room is productive, and one can easily make certain that all is done well. Keeping a check on the space while installing is the right thing to do because that is how one can make sure that how much material is required insulating.

How can one resist condensation in Loft?

Resisting condensation is one thing when you have a properly installed insulation. One must know that these insulators are just great when it comes to fireproofing and protection of sound. Condensation, on the other hand, leads to a certain loss of energy, and that is how one can make sure that frosting has a high possibility. One has to fix the right material against the condensation, and that is why they must make sure that all is done well and good. Wool, mineral and spray foam are the appropriate materials that can resist condensation. Condensation can majorly affect your houses and result in damps and leakages. Therefore, wall insulations are a very important solution against condensation build-up.

What is the Minimum requirement for Loft Insulation?

The actual regulations require that loft insulation should be at least 270 mm thick and must have good thermal properties. Building Regulations does not determine which material must be used but it stipulates what qualities it must possess.

How much does loft insulation cost?

Average Cost of Boarding and insulating a loft cost around £1500 and depending on the complexity of the job it will usually take around 3-4 days to complete. There are various other factors that you should consider that will impact on the cost of insulation like the material you select, the size of the loft.

How Much money will Loft insulation Save?

Savings from Loft Insulation are significant. According to Energy Saving Trust, insulating your loft can knock around £225 a year off your energy bills in a detached house, and £135 in a semi. This means that in around two years, your insulation will have already paid for itself, and every year after, it’ll keep on saving you money.

If you are looking for internal wall insulation, acoustic or dry lining insulation, then you can choose from the options available at Build4less UK. All the products available are very reasonably priced, and the company has consistently kept it marked with quality services and products for the customers. If you are looking forward to getting the right insulation material for your homes, then this is where you must look for it.