Pitstop Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 I want to retrofit insulation inside a 1970's bungalow. Want thinnest + effective option. Why doesn't everybody use Aerogel if it's such a good thermal insulator? Your thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jilly Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 Price? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pitstop Posted February 3 Author Share Posted February 3 Hi... I will probably import from China. My enquiry is more about practicality, ease of retrofitting, and effectiveness. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMo Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 Well, multi foil only functions with an air gap, so not really that thin. Aerogel is major expensive and only performs about 25% better than PIR. So 10mm Aerogel is about the same performance 13mm PIR. Cost ratio is about 10 to 1 comparatively. I would just use PIR, readily available and way cheaper. Or battens and mineral wool, attach plasterboard to the battens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iceverge Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 32 minutes ago, Pitstop said: I want to retrofit insulation inside a 1970's bungalow. Want thinnest + effective option. Why doesn't everybody use Aerogel if it's such a good thermal insulator? Your thoughts? A good airtighess layer is the best bang for your buck, start there. After that PIR wins the cost Vs thinness competition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pitstop Posted February 5 Author Share Posted February 5 Thank you all for your input Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pitstop Posted February 5 Author Share Posted February 5 Ideas on best value air-tight membrane? Also....this 1970's bungalow in Hastings has cavity walls with no filling inside. Best left alone?, or is there a modern product to fill them with that won't attract mold from the sea air? Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iceverge Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 My preference. External brick coated in brick cream. EPS beads. Internal leaf Parge coat sealed with tape to floor slab, windows and roof membrane . 47*42 mm timbers fixed to the wall to form service cavity infilled with mineral wool. Plasterboard Skim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conor Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 4 hours ago, Pitstop said: Ideas on best value air-tight membrane? Also....this 1970's bungalow in Hastings has cavity walls with no filling inside. Best left alone?, or is there a modern product to fill them with that won't attract mold from the sea air? Thank you! Assume 100mm cavity? Then greyEPS bonded beads, job done. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Temp Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 There is a slight risk of water crossing the cavity via insulation but the grey coated EPS systems seem to be least prone. If the outside is rendered the risk reduced to virtually nil if it's kept in good condition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Temp Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 On 04/02/2024 at 04:33, Pitstop said: Hi... I will probably import from China. My enquiry is more about practicality, ease of retrofitting, and effectiveness. Thanks The effectiveness of insulation depends mostly on.. a) The thermal conductivity of the raw material it's made from. Lower is better. b) The thickness. Pure Aerogel has the lowest thermal conductivity but in it's raw form it's very fragile and expensive so it's not normally used except perhaps on spacecraft. Usually it's in a different form like a blanket and these have a higher thermal conductivity. Beware sellers quoting the thermal conductivity of raw Aerogel in adverts. Compare with the actual specification of the prouct. Post the numbers including the units of any product you are looking at and someone might be able to comment. Next best is probably something like a PIR based foil covered foam. Typical all insulation products have thermal conductivities that vary by perhaps 30% so none can be 1/10 the thickness of another and have the same performance. Beware some manufacturers quote U-values for their product when installed with an air gap. Anyone can make their product look better by requiring an air gap. I'm currently on a train in India so might not be able to reply. Family are at home so it's not a risk me posting this. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 1 hour ago, Temp said: Pure Aerogel has the lowest thermal conductivity Vacuum is best. In reality, when you look at the numbers, there is not much in the normal range of insulation and other losses will soon dominate. Material Thermal conductivity [W·m−1·K−1] Notes Silica aerogel 0.02 Polyurethane foam 0.03 Expanded polystyrene 0.033–0.046 Fiberglass or foam-glass 0.045 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conor Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 Aerogel is horrible to work with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 2 hours ago, Conor said: Aerogel is horrible to work with. It is used as a filler with some paints and resins. Comes in a large bag and goes everywhere as soon as you open it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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