SOLID WALL INSULATION

We use natural materials to create warm, sustainable spaces you love to be in

Solid wall insulation one of the best ways to significantly improve the performance of your existing building.

As a sustainable building company we have a special interest in insulation. When people think of what a ‘sustainable’ building is they might first think of solar panels and wind turbines.

But while environmentally friendly energy sourcing is obviously part of the mix, it’s never our first consideration.

What is? What the building is made of and how well its performing.

In the world of building design and construction this is called taking a ‘fabric first’ approach. It’s all about making sure the building is structurally sound and performing as well as it can before considering any added extras like solar panels.

When considering how to improve an existing building, reduce energy bills and increase comfort levels, insulation is usually pretty close to the top of the list.

Better yet, solid wall insulation is currently VAT free, so it offers even more financial return on your investment.

External vs Internal Solid Wall Insulation

There are two ways of installing solid wall insulation, one is externally and the other is internally.

External Wall Insulation (EWI) basically involves wrapping your building in an insulating material. This extra layer helps to keep your home warmer in winter and cooler in summer.

Internal Wall Insulation (IWI) is where we insulate the inside face of your external walls. We carefully detail the junctions between external and internal walls to minimise heat loss.

For both types of solid wall insulation we mostly use natural and breathable wood fibreboard and/or insulating lime render or plaster.

There are advantages to both types of solid wall insulation and we can help you choose which is best for your building.

How much is enough?

As experienced installers of solid wall insulation we’re pretty good at assessing by eye how much insulation you need and what kind is most appropriate. But depending on the scope of works we may recommend creating a thermal model of your building so we can know exactly how much insulation we need to produce the results you want.

A thermal model is a spreadsheet where we plug in all the particulars of your building. We can then adjust the variables to see exactly how much thermal benefit (warming or cooling) you can expect to see from a given area, type or thickness of insulation.

For buildings with a large area of external walls or difficult detailing, the benefits of creating a thermal model can significantly outweigh the costs of the extra work of building the model. The thermal model can help you optimise your design and make informed choices not only about solid wall insulation, but also big follow-on questions such as whether your building would benefit from upgraded windows.

Natural materials.

We almost always use wood fibreboard and/or insulating lime render in our solid wall insulation. These natural and sustainable materials offer excellent thermal performance with the added benefit that they are ‘vapour-open’ solutions.

This means they can’t trap damp within your wall build up like some modern synthetic insulation systems can - which could then lead to structural problems, damp and poor energy performance.

We would usually finish the insulation in a natural lime based render or plaster, often an insulating variety, and paint or limewash it in order to preserve the breathability of the insulation.

Our solid wall insulation services

  • We wrap your whole house in a layer of breathable, natural solid wall insulation.

  • Insulate your external walls internally using breathable, natural solid wall insulation.

“Hiring Dan and his team has proved to be the best decision of the whole project …. we have enjoyed the whole process and this is entirely down to Dan and the guys.”

Selected projects

  • Newbuild house with black cladding built to Passivhaus standard

    Yelverton - New Build

    A stunning Passivhaus standard timber-frame new build nestled in the heart of Dartmoor.

    Explore this project
  • Bright playroom with wooden dining table, chairs, bookshelves, colorful letters on the wall spelling 'PLAY', wall clock, map, potted plants, and child’s artwork displayed.

    Colston Road - Retrofit

    This whole-house retrofit is an exemplar of what can be achieved with an existing building.

    Explore this project
  • The Hutong Cafe sign on building exterior with glass awning.

    The Hutong Cafe - Retrofit

    We did an extensive retrofit on this popular Plymouth cafe and the flat above, achieving Passive House EnerPHIT standard.

    Explore this project
  • Modern living and dining area with exposed wooden ceiling beams, featuring a wooden dining table with chairs, a blue sectional sofa, a purple armchair, a wooden coffee table, and orange pendant lights. The open kitchen highlights orange backsplash and cabinetry. Large windows and indoor plants add brightness and greenery to the space.

    Folleigh - Retrofit

    This extensive retrofit transformed this 1950’s bungalow into a modern, low-energy and open plan home.

    Explore this project

Ready to talk about insulation?

Give us a call or drop us an email to get the ball rolling on your solid wall insulation. Any initial consultation or site visit is always free and no-obligation.