I've just bought my neighbours little house, so I can live there and use my existing larger house as my 'factory'.
It's a small traditional swedish 'Torp'. Single story, 60m2, red with white windows. It's thought that it dates from about 1860, but proper records were't kept in those days for new houses inthe countryside.
I decided to put in an air/air heat pump for background heating, so needed to drill a largish hole in the wall for the pipes. I also thought it would give me a chance to check out the wall insulation situation while I was there. The total wall thickness is about 400mm, and consists of (from the inside): some sort of fibreboard 1/2" thick, then a 1" airspace, then thin hardboard, a thin layer of straw, then 12" solid logs (just squared off tree trunks sat on top of each other), a small air gap, the original wood facade about 3/4" thick, than 1" of fibreglass wool, waterproof lining, then finally the later tin facade.
So is this a well insulated wall?
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Sounds better than an average cavity wall house in the UK.
Also sounds very flammable!
Last edited by: Lygonos on Thu 12 Jan 12 at 08:51
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>>So is this a well insulated wall?<<
dunno, does the house retain it's heat?
This ere 18th century cottage with 2ft thick granite walls retains it's heat very well compared to our previous 1930's house so it stands to reason that if ones insulation is 'up to scratch' the house will lose less heat and so feel warmer in winter and be more energy efficient in the process.
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I would be fairly paranoid up keeping that lot dry from the ground up.
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Ask one of this lot
tinyurl.com/7lmlewf
Last edited by: VxFan on Thu 12 Jan 12 at 13:00
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It seems the R value of softwood is actually lower (better) than something like Rockwool slabs. So 12" ought to be pretty good.
Ha, yes, there is a fire risk, and many houses here do go up in flames. The combination of wood construction, old electrics, wood fired heating, and the swedish love of candles, is not a good start. Although it's fair to say that with very low property values and high renovation costs, many of these fires are usually started with a little 'outside' help.
It's built on a plinth made of squared off rocks, and it's all sunk a bit towards one end over the years. But damp doesn't seem to be too much of a problem. As long as the old construction methods are respected, ie ventilation, are they are usually ok. The problems come when new types of paint, materials, and methods are used. Tin roofs, for instance, cause a lot of condensation and stop the roof timbers from breathing. And many people block all the ventilation and chimneys to save on heating bills. Lino and laminate floors stop the original boards breathing and airflow through the cracks. But I figure it's lasted this long, so I dare say it will see me out.
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How good is my house insulation - Lygonos
