Wall insulation in Highcliffe

Reading the wall comes first. A borescope through one drilled hole in a Highcliffe wall shows the cavity width, mortar snots bridging the ties, whether existing fill has slumped, and whether anything in there is wet. Half a mile from the water that last one matters more than it does inland, and no specification gets written before it.

Cavity fill on the seaward side. Where the cavity is clear, dry and wide enough the wall is drilled on a pattern and filled in a day. On an elevation that takes driven rain off the sea bonded polystyrene bead beats blown mineral wool, because bead does not wick water across the gap. Exposure to wind driven rain is a measured thing, and BS 8104 is what it is assessed against.

Internal wall insulation, IWI, in a flat. Where a Highcliffe wall is solid, or the lease rules out touching the outside, the lining goes on inside: insulated plasterboard bonded to the masonry, or a batten and stud frame filled with mineral wool. PIR laminate such as Celotex or Kingspan reaches the target in the least depth, with the vapour control layer taped so warm damp air cannot get behind the board.

External wall insulation, EWI, on a block. Boards, a render carrier and a render finish over the whole elevation. It works well on a 1960s Highcliffe block because it warms the concrete and the joist ends together, but it is a whole building decision, it needs a scaffold, and it is never one flat owner's to make.

Fill that has failed. Wool blown in decades ago settles and leaves a cold band under the eaves, which reads inside as black mould along the top of a bedroom wall. A wet cavity where water is bridging shows as damp patches that come and go with the weather. Both begin with extraction, drilling out and vacuuming the old material, before anything new goes in.

The junctions. Reveals, the threshold, the floor junction, the eaves and the joist ends decide whether the room feels different. A cold bridge, or thermal bridge, left at a reveal collects condensation whatever the u value of the wall beside it. Reveals get a thin high performance board, aerogel where a frame leaves barely 40mm, and a party wall between flats gets a cavity barrier.

Ventilation and draughts. Highcliffe flats go tight quickly, and a sealed room with a family in it makes a lot of moisture. Trickle vents, a working extract fan in the kitchen and bathroom and air bricks left clear are part of the work, and Approved Document F sets what is expected. Airtightness without ventilation is exactly how a warm flat turns into a mouldy one.

We never quote wall insulation by the metre. The open wall is quick; the time goes on every window, door and floor junction.

Cavity or solid. An empty, dry cavity is filled from outside in a short visit. A solid wall has no cavity to fill, so the choice is lining it inside or wrapping it outside, both bigger jobs. The borescope answers which you have before any price is written.

Exposure. A south west wall close to the cliff takes driven rain that a sheltered wall never sees. Filling that cavity without checking the pointing, the render and the wall ties can bring damp across to the inside, so the exposed elevation may need repairs first or a different system.

Flats and space. Internal lining in a top floor flat off Lymington Road takes a little room off each outside wall, moves sockets and skirting, and the plaster has to be made good and the decoration redone.

The junctions. The thickness specified matters less than the detailing at reveals, the floor edge, the eaves and any party wall. Get those wrong and heat leaks out and condensation appears on the cold spot. They take most of the labour.

Access. Bungalows need a tower, three storey blocks a scaffold, chosen under the rules on working at height.

Ask any other installer whether they have looked inside with a borescope, what they propose for the exposed side, whether ventilation is being dealt with, and who puts the plaster right after.

We survey and insulate walls in Highcliffe, Walkford, Chewton Common and Friars Cliff, all in the area of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council. Our base is in Boscombe, 5.7 miles away. Thomas Hannen owns and runs the business.

He drills the test hole, reads the borescope and prices the job himself. A customer verified by Checkatrade gave us a 10 out of 10 score. The survey visit and the written quote, with each item on its own line, are free. Our details at Companies House: Bournemouth Roofing & Building Ltd, registered in England and Wales, company number 15471719. Before you book a visit in Highcliffe, you can read our customers' Google reviews, word for word, on our reviews page.

Most repairs in Highcliffe need no application at all. What decides whether a change to the outside of your house does is who the council is, whether a conservation area or a listing applies, and whether the place sits in a protected landscape.