Hello everyone,
Last year, I bought an older house that has been partially insulated. Now, I am considering whether to insulate the living room further but I am unsure if it’s worthwhile. Here is a description of the room:
- One long wall is already fully insulated.
- One short wall borders the hallway and is not relevant.
- The other short wall faces the garden and will not be insulated because it is too large and would significantly exceed my budget.
- The question is about the second long wall, which is L-shaped and partly opens into another room that doesn’t need insulation. So, only the remaining half of this wall is under consideration. Most of this area consists of windows (this side also has the heating), leaving only a small strip of about 12 square meters (about 130 square feet) that would need insulation. The previous owner left most of the materials for this work, so the costs would be around €400 (approximately $430) including the windowsill, eaves, etc.
Although the costs are relatively low, I want to insulate only if it makes sense in the medium term because:
- The windows are all old and will not be replaced for now.
- One wall will definitely remain uninsulated.
To sum it up: does insulating any single wall save energy, or is insulation only really effective when all walls are well sealed and the windows are modern?
What do you think, should I insulate this one wall? Thanks in advance for your suggestions.
P.S.: For the insulation boards, I have 12 cm (5 inch) Alsecco boards with an insulation value of 0.035.
Best regards,
Guido
Last year, I bought an older house that has been partially insulated. Now, I am considering whether to insulate the living room further but I am unsure if it’s worthwhile. Here is a description of the room:
- One long wall is already fully insulated.
- One short wall borders the hallway and is not relevant.
- The other short wall faces the garden and will not be insulated because it is too large and would significantly exceed my budget.
- The question is about the second long wall, which is L-shaped and partly opens into another room that doesn’t need insulation. So, only the remaining half of this wall is under consideration. Most of this area consists of windows (this side also has the heating), leaving only a small strip of about 12 square meters (about 130 square feet) that would need insulation. The previous owner left most of the materials for this work, so the costs would be around €400 (approximately $430) including the windowsill, eaves, etc.
Although the costs are relatively low, I want to insulate only if it makes sense in the medium term because:
- The windows are all old and will not be replaced for now.
- One wall will definitely remain uninsulated.
To sum it up: does insulating any single wall save energy, or is insulation only really effective when all walls are well sealed and the windows are modern?
What do you think, should I insulate this one wall? Thanks in advance for your suggestions.
P.S.: For the insulation boards, I have 12 cm (5 inch) Alsecco boards with an insulation value of 0.035.
Best regards,
Guido
You wouldn’t be asking this question if you had lived in it during winter.
Where you don’t insulate, thermal bridges will form. As a non-expert, I think you will “feel” this wall—that is, you will notice the cold coming through. The insulated parts then end up being a waste of money.
My colleague bought an old house (1960s?) last summer. He has a panoramic window that he didn’t want to replace. His exact words: “I’m not going to spend 3000 on a new window, I might as well just heat the air.” After this winter, he now has to replace it. It’s very cold there, there are drafts, and the whole room feels it.
Where you don’t insulate, thermal bridges will form. As a non-expert, I think you will “feel” this wall—that is, you will notice the cold coming through. The insulated parts then end up being a waste of money.
My colleague bought an old house (1960s?) last summer. He has a panoramic window that he didn’t want to replace. His exact words: “I’m not going to spend 3000 on a new window, I might as well just heat the air.” After this winter, he now has to replace it. It’s very cold there, there are drafts, and the whole room feels it.
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