Need to remove water tanks to put down insulation. Worth it?

I live in a dormer. We discovered that our attic floor is only partially insulated. i.e. above the landing only, with nothing at all in the attic floor above the bedrooms at either end.

Fixing one end is fine.
Fixing the other end will require at the very least significant disconnection and perhaps temporary removal of several water tanks because it is not possible to access the other end with the tanks and piping in place.

I wonder is it possible to drill pilot holes in the ceilings below and pump up a layer of 'stuff' because doing the disconnection / removal of the tanks sounds like huge hassle, to the extent I'm thinking I might even leave it as is.

I have seen insulation placed over the tank. I don't know how you'd manage though. I expect it can be got in protected rolls.

Can you manoeuvre around the tanks if they are empty without disconnecting the water supply to them? It’s relatively straightforward to empty the tanks – simply tie up the ballcock & turn on the cold water tap in the bathroom , flush the toilet ect. Insulation does make a noticeable difference to heat loss in a house & saves money on heating costs in the medium to long term – another option may be to insulate between the roof rafters instead.

And don't insulate beneath the tank as this should be left bare to ensure that heat from below keeps the tank from freezing. I

I'm inpressed Clubman. Only heard that a year ago snagging a house, but true, don't insulate under. What my builder did was drape (spelling) it over with the tank covered with ply of course

Our tank is (slightly precariously!) wrapped in glass fiber and then topped with a sheet of polystyrene (with a hole for the overflow or back pressure (?) pipe that feeds back into the tank). Not ideal but better than nothing I suppose.

Can you manoeuvre around the tanks if they are empty without disconnecting the water supply to them?

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Afraid not ! Half of the attic space is inaccessible because of the position of the tanks and the plumbing inbound/outbound. If I am to put in insulation from within the attic, be it in rafters on roof or in floor, access will be required unless I can block it off and inject it with insulation (top to bottom and full length of inaccessible space is approx 8-10 cubic metres).

Thanks for the tip on emptying the tank but I suspect water will need to be turned off out at the road, and then drain as you described so that inbound and outbound pipes will be empty.

might be easier to take off a few roof tiles? dont take slates off though

Jeepers, don't take off the roof! It would be far less invasive to take down part of the ceiling in the offending bedroom and get in that way. And install a trapdoor while you're at it in case you need to access this part of the roof space again.

Wow. thanks extopia. Feel free to quote "thinking outside the box" on your resume.

I think I'll cut open just enough for a trap door, do my insulation thing, and then put in the trap door.

My other half will have a canary though !