Floors
Floors
Ideally all houses should have insulated floors. There are two main types of existing floors: solid or suspended. They have their own opportunities and issues.
Solid floor insulation
Taking up an uninsulated solid floor to replace with an insulated one is a fairly major task and one that is probably best tackled when other disruptive internal refurbishment is being carried out. Putting insulation on top of an uninsulated floor will insulate it, but it can have a lot of implications:
- Raising floor levels with the insulation layer interferes with door, window and kitchen work surface heights as well as stairs.
- The insulation layer must be ‘moisture’ compatible with the underlaying structure
- The layer must be able to safely take the weight of household items and people.
If replacing a breathable floor then it is recommended to use a breathable ‘limecrete’ floor as a direct replacement. See: https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/eehb-insulating-solid-ground-floors/
Suspended timber insulation
Insulating timber floors is much more straightforward, but still somewhat of a project. Care needs to be taken to ensure that the floor is adequately vented and also that the correct materials are used.
Advice can be found at:
https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/eehb-insulation-suspended-timber-floors/