Room and Roof
Install Room and Insulation
Properly insulating a room or rooms in the roof of your property will make it a much more comfortable space to live in and stop a lot of heat escaping through your roof.
Work involved
A typical installation might involve fitting rigid insulation boards between the roof rafters and on the walls of dormer windows. Walls in the roof should be insulated as well. Boards must be cut to the correct width so that they fit snugly between the rafters. They can then be covered by plasterboard. Rafters aren’t usually very deep, so to get the best performance you may have to insulate over them as well, using insulated plasterboard. If there isn’t room to do this, make sure you use the highest performance insulation board.
In some homes a different approach might be needed due to the space being worked in or to ensure the insulation works in harmony with the original construction materials.
Most internal rafter insulation systems require a vapour control barrier – an impermeable layer that prevents moisture from the house penetrating through the insulation layer where it will cool down, condense and cause rot. It is essential to ensure that the barrier is maintained at joints, and wherever services penetrate the outer fabric. Adequate ventilation to the roof space must also be maintained.
You may want to get an installer to do this work for you as the work involved is advanced.
Comfort
Room-in-roof insulation will mean that you will be losing less heat through your roof, so you will see that your home will heat up quicker and stay warmer for longer. The room or rooms in your roof will feel much warmer and the rooms in the rest of your house will feel more comfortable as well.
Payback
The cost of insulating a room or rooms in your roof will depend on how difficult the work is to do, the size of the room and the materials you use.
Practicalities
In most cases planning permission is not required. Building regulations might apply, depending in the extent of the changes you are making to the walls and ceilings in your roof. It is best to check both planning and building regulation requirements before you start any work.
If your home is made of a traditional construction you will need to consider which insulation materials work best for your home to ensure it performs well.
If your home is made of a traditional construction you will need to consider which insulation materials work best for your home to ensure it performs well.
In all properties it is crucial to maintain good ventilation throughout the building, including the roof rafters.
The appearance of your home
Insulating your roof will give you an opportunity to re-decorate but it will not affect the external appearance of your home unless you have other roof works planned or are replacing your dormer windows at the same time.