# Insulating old house



## robinho (5 Jul 2010)

Hi,

I'm looking at buying a house that is about 20 years old. I haven't got a BER Certificate yet but I am expecting that the rating will be quite low and that works will be required to bring it up to scratch.

I'm looking at insulating the house's internal walls. 

Does anyone have any idea how much a complete job would cost? The house is standard 4 bed semi and I would need to insulate all of the internal walls.

Thanks!


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## RKQ (5 Jul 2010)

Assuming its a standard cavity wall, 100mm external leaf, 100mm cavity (with 50mm cavity insulation) 100mm internal leaf.

The cheapest way to insulate the wall is to use "blow-in" cavity bead or fibre insulation. 

Internal dry-lining would be more expensive, using an insulated plasterboard slab. Services such as radiators, wall sockets & light switches would have to be moved out the thickness of the board, on all external walls (3 no. walls in a semi-d.)

The most expensive way would be to insulate the walls externally. Cills, down-pipes would have to be adjusted, the thickness of the insulation.

SEI offer grants for all three types of insulation. You will have to insulate the attic too. 

Always get 3 written quotes from reputable installers for the works - see SEI site for list of contractors n your area.


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## robinho (5 Jul 2010)

Thanks RKQ ... do you know in or around how much something like that would cost. I'm not necessarily looking for the cheapest, I just want to know how much I should budget for


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## FioBi (5 Jul 2010)

External Insulation is a better way to go. My mum just had this done to an old house and her BER cert went from a G rating to a B2. She also got attic insulation and a heating controls upgrade.

The house is 3 bed semi-d and cost about 12K but she got a grant of 4.5k. 

Of course it depends on the size of the house etc.. The builders that did it for her were plasterers by trade and the external insulation is covered with an acrylic plaster that can be any colour and that saves you the cost of getting the house painted also. They are on SEI website - Mccauley & Bird Ltd


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## Jazz01 (25 Jul 2011)

It does depend on what you get done & there will/should be recommendations from the person doing the BER cert.

I paid around €1800 for attic insulation (top up of 150mm / 200mm) & cavity wall fill for a detached 3 bed dormer bungalow (excluding the grant).

I also got a replacment oil boiler & heating controls, radiatiors & pipes changed, which came in over €3000 (excluding grant).

You will also need to take into account the windows / flooring / doors / lighting / exposure / etc ... many factors to take into account in relation to the BER rating. 

A good BER assessor will give all the recommendations to improve the rating. Make sure you look for that recommendation sheet(s) before you purchase & get a copy of it to read. The lower the rating, the more you have to put into it... you should off set-set the costs against the asking price...


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## Shawady (25 Jul 2011)

Robhino, If you are looking to insulate the internal walls I think you are talking about internal drylining.
For a 4-bed semi d, I would say it could cost approx 5K but you will get a grant for it. I got the grant last year. It was 2.5K but I think it has reduced slightly now.


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## Leo (25 Jul 2011)

All, note this thread is over a year old.


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## Shawady (25 Jul 2011)

Must be a monday morning thing Leo.
I just noticed it a the top of the forum this morning and assumed it was recent!


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## onq (25 Jul 2011)

Well, at least we got some current prices!



ONQ.


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