If you have a loft or garage that has storage space you are simply not using, than undergoing a garage or loft conversion can be a great way for you to add an extra bedroom to your home. Alternatively, you may be looking to a loft or garage conversion as a means of adding a home office to your property.
Whatever you wish to achieve by converting a garage or loft, you will need to consider a number of areas. And while planning permission is perhaps one of the most important things that will need to be taken into account - as what you are able to do will vary depending on your location and circumstances - home insulation is another area that should rank highly.
With the assistance of reputable tradesmen, you can get a loft and/or garage conversion that will incorporate the right level of home insulation to ensure that the newly-renovated part of your residence boasts a high level of energy efficiency.
And as more than one-third of the heat lost in the average home escapes through the walls and loft, home insulation is an area that should be given full consideration.
Indeed, failing to insulate properly could see you lose hundreds of pounds every year in the form of unnecessarily high energy bills.
While you can install loft insulation yourself, you may find that enlisting the services of a reputable tradesman will not cost you much more than the expense that a DIY insulation job will entail.
You will also find that you will need an expert to carry out cavity wall insulation in your home, as this involves the insulator materials being blown or injected into a home through tiny holes drilled into a property's exterior bricks.
If possible, it may be an idea to find a tradesman who will do both insulation jobs for you.
What materials can be used for loft insulation projects?
A variety of materials can be used for loft and wall insulation projects and over the years, various substances - including those that are organically-derived and others which are entirely manmade - have been produced. If you're interested in renewable loft insulation projects you should endeavour to check that the tradesman you enlist to carry out work on your home uses suitable materials.
One possible choice of material is sheep's wool, which comes in slabs made of fleece offcuts. These are treated to make them resistant to both fire and insects, and the fact that sheep's wool grows back makes them a sustainable choice.
You may also want to choose material made from recycled and scrap cotton, rolls of hemp and flax, while mineral wool - as the name suggests - uses naturally occurring minerals.
Meanwhile, glass wool is made out of recycled glass and sand that is heated and spun into fibres.
There are a number of companies which provide mineral wool and glass wool - as well other kinds of loft insulation - so whether you're keen to use a brand that you're familiar with and trust, or want to try something different, there is bound to a suitable insulation product for you.
When considering what impact your choice of loft insulation will have on the environment, you should bear in mind how much energy it will prevent from leaving your home and the subsequent effect this can have on your utility bills.
However, there are several other things that you might want to think about, such as how much energy has been used to produce and transport the material and whether it is recyclable or biodegradable.
Wall insulation materials
There is also a section of materials that can be used when insulating walls, whether this is in the main home or in the garage. Among them is blown mineral fibre, which consists of strands of fibreglass or mineral wool forced into the cavity between bricks, while polystyrene beads and granules can also be used.
Urea formaldehyde foam sees two chemical components injected into the wall, which then mix and expand to fill out the cavity.
Use Rated People for help with your home insulation needs
Rated People offers you a simple way to find reputable local tradesmen and the best price for the loft conversion you want carried out, as well as any loft or garage insulation work that needs doing.
Register with the site and post details of the work you want to undertake. Rated People will then introduce you to suitable tradesmen in your local area so that you can arrange for them to provide a quote.
You will then be able to make a decision about who to use not only based on how much they charge but also by the on-site ratings left by other Rated People users.
The specialist tradesmen who use the site cover a wide range of projects, so whatever your home improvement needs Rated People should be able to put you in touch with professionals who can help.
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