Can I externally insulate some walls of my home and not others?

The answer to this is you should insulate all your home.

If your homes is made of single brick (i.e. no cavities) then it is highly recommended by the Energy Savings Trust and OfGem to insulate all walls.

If your home is combination of single brick and cavity wall then it states that the external insulation needs to be placed on the single brick walls and to ensure that the cavity is either filled or blocked and external wall insulation installed instead.

What happens if I don’t Insulate All Walls?

By not insulating all the walls on a home, you are not getting the full benefit of having External Wall Insulation installed on your home. The insulated walls though will
work they will not work as effectively.  The heat from your home will take the path of least resistance in escaping so will use the uninsulated walls to escape.

As the cold and the warm air meet this can create moisture problems like mould and damp. In addition, where the insulated wall meets an uninsulated wall, the moisture problems will be more prevalent causing mould and damp on the internal corners of your rooms internally.

Insulating All Walls

By insulating all your walls whether this is all externally, internally, cavity or a hybrid of these then this will give you as a homeowner the most effective and efficient way of keeping your home warm and ultimately reducing your heating bills. From our past customers this has been as much as 40%.

How is External Wall Insulation Installed? This is a question we are asked by most of our clients as they want to understand how this is going to impact their daily

life whilst the installation is taking place.

1.  Firstly, we will be preparing the areas that are to be insulated. This includes the covering down of windows and doors, adjourning areas that are not be insulated/rendered and starting to apply the beads required prior to the insulation being installed. At this stage the scaffolding will be erected if that hasn’t already been done prior to us starting and we will also receive the delivery of materials required.

2.  The insulation boards are stuck onto all the walls that require the insulation.

3.  The insulation boards are mechanically fixed back to the boards. When this is to happen we advice all our customers to remove all valuable and sentimental items away from walls or shelves that could be damaged from vibration from the drilling that will take place. We also advice that if possible that you pop out as it can be very noisy whilst this is being completed.

4.  All other beads required for the project are applied to the areas required.

5.  The basecoat is applied with a mesh embedded in. The mesh gives the strength to the system.

6.  A further basecoat is applied.

7.  For coloured render finishes a primer is applied prior to the final colour being applied.

8.  For brick slips the slips are applied onto a frame prior to the mortar joints being added.

9.  Finally we complete a clean up, remove all coverings from windows and doors.

It seems a few simple steps but of course the length of time that this takes will depend on the amount of work required. At each stage a day maybe required for walls
to dry prior to the next stage being applied.

So how is External Wall Insulation applied? In multiple stages.

There are different insulations to use on the outside of your home, which one is best?

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The Problem

Most homes built before 1950 are of single brick construction and are extremely inefficient in keeping the homes warm.  It is estimated that around 35% of the heat is lost through these walls to the outside world making heating your home very costly.

The Solution

By placing insulation on the outside of your home its like adding a thick blanket around the home which will keep the heat inside and the cold out.  The insulation works by allowing the heat from the home to heat the bricks (the original part of the home) as well as the inside and then for that heat to be transferred back into the home and not outside into the world.

The insulation is made of either mineral fibre, or EPS (expanded polystyrene insulation) which stops the heat from escaping and keeping it in the home.  Most clients we have had have stated that they have saved on average 40% on their heating bills and even having to learn how to use thermostats, radiator valves and timers as they don't need the heating on all day everyday.

Installing External Wall Insulation can be quite costly and you will need to look at the potential savings each year versus the upfront cost, however, the benefit of having it is that you and your family are warmer in a home that you love.

ON 31 March 2021 the UK Government's Green Homes Grant Comes to an End

Clearly, external wall insulation (EWI) has many positives; however, the fruits of these benefits are often overshadowed by EWI’s myths and misconceptions. To remove

any grey areas, here are our top 10 tips.