Internal wall insualtion ECO4

[Moon30]

Hi,

I'm just asking here to see if some of you may know a thing or 2 about internal wall insulation.

We have recently had IWI done, the work was due to take a week, we are now into our 4th week. I complained about poor work done in some area's, they have been out to inspect and are currently in the process of carrying out the remedial work. However I noticed the wooden battens, insualtion boards and skirting boards have been placed on top of our existing carpet. I queried this as it didn’t seem correct, as I thought the wall behind should be air tight and also carpet can hold moisture, particularly in houses that get alot of condensation (us), so surely this could cause issues with damp and mould further down the line? anyway the site manager said its standard practice. I have looked online and can not find anywhere that recommends placing the boards on top of carpet.
Speaking to them again today and they're adamant regulations have changed recently, I've searched again and can't find anything to confirm this, I even used chat gpt to double check the regulations incase I had missed anything.
Does anyone happen to know if this is standard practice or am I being fobbed off?

I don't need to hear reasons on why you think it was a bad idea to have iwi done, it was our landlords decision and since they're not the ones living in the house, i'd like to make sure it's been done correctly to prevent as many issues as possible.

Anyone?

What happens when you want to change the carpet? Sounds crap to me but I haven't had wall insulation installed. I assume you have checked that your house is new enough that you won't have breathability issues from the wall insulation? It's not great in most older buildings.

Ignore the last bit. Didn't read your post properly.

If its rented then I guess the fact that it's over the carpet probably doesn't matter either?

What does your landlord say? I totally agree that’s the wrong thing to do. What if carpets are removed and laminate laid. There are many dodgy practices linked to the eco improvement businesses. Local building control officers should be able to give you advice.

Speaking to them again today and they're adamant regulations have changed recently, I've searched again and can't find anything to confirm this

Ask them to link you to these regulations. Insist actually since you can't find them. Personally I'm the same as you and think his pants are on fire but I would love to be proven wrong.

The estate agents sent someone out just after they had finished the plastering, he took some photos and said any concerns we have need to be taken up with the energy company. So everytime i've raised an issue with the work he tells me to call them. But tbh he didnt even pick up on the poor quality of work that was carried out with the plaster finish. We've had to have them back to reskim all the windows and fill large holes the first men left. So I'm.not sure how far I will get with them as they're not particularly great at dealing with issues to begin with. I'm only really bothered because we already had issues with mould in the home and I expressed my concerns about the issue becoming worse after the work is done. Our son is suspectable to pneumonia due to scaring on one of his lungs, mould triggers it so I always have to keep on top of the mould in the winter, so my concern is that if these walls arent airtight, we'll get cold spots causing mould in those areas and behind the insulation boards.

I raised the issue with changing the carpets to the energy company too and the site manager told me that we would just cut the carpet along the skirting boards and leave the carpet underneath, the new carpet would go upto the new skirting boards as they usually would, I've been told this would cause an even tighter air seal apparently 🤷‍♀️
I was hoping to take the carpet out and have laminate in the lounge but theres going to be a small gap now, unless we beaded around the skirting boards.

Big fat no. The carpet and skirtings should be removed. The carpet can trap moisture.

Presumably they will be installing a specific manufacturers system, that will require sign off and a warranty. Are you able to find out what system they are using and contact the manufacturer for more information?

You could perhaps even contact one and see if they can provide some guidance anyway. Wetherby are a reputable system manufacturer.

https://www.wall-systems.co.uk/interia-internal-wall-insulation-iwi-systems/

Thank you. It's the Wetherby insulation board system that they've used. I emailed them last night, so just waiting on a reply from them.

The energy company have not mentioned an independent inspection, only ones from their own site inspectors. Who have already been and told us that it's now standard practice to fit on top of carpets, but if this isn't the case I'm assuming he said this because otherwise they will have to rip it all out and start again, so it will cost his company more money.

I have a little experience in this general field (quite a while back now, granted and I'm no expert), but I would say you're right to not take the word of the enregy company. Some of the people who do the compliance checks are great and will absolutely not accept less than perfect, but some simply want to tick the box and get the worked signed off.

However, I do recall Wetherby being very keen to ensure compliance so I would think they will be helpful to you.

The Wetherby system specifies that the IWI should extend fully to the floor and behind skirtings. If this is a retrofit measure, it is imperative to comply with the PAS 2035 government standard.

I am still waiting on an email back from Wetherby unfortunately 😔