Thermabead Cavity Wall Insulation

[pilates]

Is it good to have?

loose-fill beads can run out of holes in walls, so some later materials are made of sticky beads that will matt down into a monolithic fill.

I don't know if it's better or worse than fluffy mineral wool.

There is some argument on how any water that gets in will drain away.

Modern CWI companies tend to be very cautious in inspecting walls for defects or damp, as they can be forced to extract any insulation from an unsuitable building at their own expense.

I would expect them to look at the outside of the walls, and to drill holes and use an endoscope to look inside. sometimes builders rubble is found at the bottom of the cavity. it is possible to clean it out, but AFAIK CWI companies will just reject the house and refuse to treat it.

Are you looking at a scheme arranged by a local authority, utility company or housing corporation? they tend to get better terms than individual householders, and provide quality control.

I wouldn't get cavity wall insulation again. The cavity is there for a reason. Caused us no end of problems in one of our walls with damp (we had lived there for 7 years without problem)

I would.

I live in a coastal region with driving rain in storms, and have no damp troubles at all. house is fairly modern (1980's, I think). The fill is treated with some kind of water repellent material, and you actually can't make it wet even if you put it in a bucket of water. Mine was put in under a contract with the regional electricity company, which I trusted to enforce high standards.

Sadly you seldom hear from the satisfied customer.

The rules that can force installers to remove it at their own expense if put into unsuitable buildings have, I think, made installers much more careful, and they should be fully aware of the risk factors by now.

I did once clean out builders rubble from a cavity wall in a previous house, using a rake and builders vac, it was quite a tedious job.

Modern houses are generally built with insulation in the walls, also reducing the chance of rubble getting into the cavity, so I should think the retro-fitting industry must be getting smaller.

Just paid nearly 10k to get ours removed. It badly affected our brickwork. Get an independent survey first.

We’ve got Thermabead cavity wall insulation. It’s done it’s job. Warm and insulated house!

However it’s a bloody nightmare and 6 years later we find little beads everywhere still. Currently having loft conversion done and there are hundreds of beads in the garden and down the stairs. My vacuum is full of them. They come out the fan in the bathroom sometimes.

In hindsight I’d try another type of insulation!

@Littlecaf

We’ve got Thermabead cavity wall insulation. It’s done it’s job. Warm and insulated house!

However it’s a bloody nightmare and 6 years later we find little beads everywhere still. Currently having loft conversion done and there are hundreds of beads in the garden and down the stairs. My vacuum is full of them. They come out the fan in the bathroom sometimes.

In hindsight I’d try another type of insulation!

yes, I've heard of that, but I thought they were coated with glue now to hold them in place?

Loose-fill beads are a real nuisance if you do building work such as taking out windows or doors.

We have it, no complaints.

Piglet, yes it will be done under a government grant.

They said there would be a full retro fit survey before having the cavity wall insulation installed.

We are thinking of having a single story extension next year, will that make a difference?

Also what sort of questions do I need to ask them?

"government grant" is not itself a guarantee of good workmanship.

when you have your extension, the builders should (will probably) stuff loft insulation mineral quilt into openings in the walls, to fill the gaps and prevent the beads running out. You sometimes find gaps under windows.

If the extension is having cavity walls, you want slabs of foam put in during build. Not added later. This will probably be a requirement of the plans.

We have decided we are going to have it done.

It’s a 1960’s cold house and needs something. There is very poor insulation in the roof.

You receive a 25 year CIGA guarantee which covers any defects in materials and workmanship.

The companies that you can get the government grant through are very highly regulated. If a council are recommended a company ,the same thing.
The companies want these contracts and have worked hard to get them. They are not going to skimp on surveys, materials or workmanship.

OP I'm no expert but do try to get some independent advice - perhaps a fully qualified surveyor.

I say this because I know someone who got a government grant and had their walls cavity filled by a very profesional company. About 5 years later, the insulation all had to be taken out because it was causing damp - not just because of transmission but because of condensation on inner surface walls.

The same government scheme has subsequently paid for cladding and - although one obviously has to be very very careful about that, for horribly tragic reasons - that has worked much better.

I think so much depends on the specific details of your building and also on the local weather/climate.

Hi There,

Did you have the insulation fitted? If so, how is it? Any problems?

We are in the same boat, wondering if we should go ahead with it.

Many thanks, M

Yes we did and no problems 👍🏻