Just got a new house and first thing is to rectify the insulation situation. Roof has pink batts, walls not sure (but a 50s house so I am guessing not). Underfloor none so that's the first step. I just got onto energywise.govt.nz and it said that the two options are foil or polystrene. Does anyone have any experience of using these two types? How do they compare in terms of costs and performance? Thanks
Submitted by mady on 3 March 2008 21:36:03
Comments
Hi - I'm not competent to comment on the benefits of foil compared to polystyrene ... but if you go for foil then be very aware of safety issues around electrical cables. See Dept of Building and Housing at http://www.dbh.govt.nz/codewords-23-1
Submitted by Neville on 4 March 2008 13:47:49
Please check out our website www.sustaintrust.org.nz as to qualification for government subsidised insulation.
We insulate approximately 1,000 homes per annum and can help insulate your underfloor
Regards
David
Sustain Trust
Submitted by David on 7 March 2008 12:44:24
Thanks for that unfortunatly we don't qualify so its down to which option is the best in terms of insulation quality vs cost.
Submitted by mady on 7 March 2008 13:33:28
So I have now decided that, given the figures of where heat is lost out of your house, we should ensure the insulation in our ceiling is adequate before worrying about the underfloor stuff.
Does anyone know if there is somewhere where I can take a sample of my current insulation into that will tell me it's R value? Maybe the hardware store?
Submitted by mady on 17 March 2008 16:23:09
The easiest way to estimate your current R value to measure the thickness of the pink batts ( a piece that has not been crushed or flattened) and then get on the pink batts website, all ceiling insulation R values are easiest determined by the thickness of the batts.
It will not be perfect, but will give you a guide.
The coverage of the insulation is probably more important, as if there are gaps (or halogen downlights) the efficiency of the insulation will drop dramatically.
hope this helps
Submitted by steve76 on 18 March 2008 11:34:50
Thanks Steve thats great advice!
Submitted by mady on 18 March 2008 13:36:46