In the UK our climate is unpredictable at the best of times, but while we know it will generally be cold for most of the year, we also know that when it does get hot, it can get very hot and uncomfortable in our homes. This is particularly the case if our homes are poorly insulated. When homes get hot during the summer we often open the windows, but for large parts of the day this isn’t the answer, because you are merely allowing warm air to enter the home when you want it to be cold. Air conditioning is an effective but potentially costly alternative, but the real solution is insulation, and we shouldn’t just insulate our homes in the summer in readiness for the winter, but also to help in the summer.
The main purpose of insulation is to prevent heat passing through it. Traditionally we think of this as a benefit during winter, but it is also a benefit during the summer. Because insulation doesn’t let heat pass through, it is easier to maintain a more stable temperature and hence it is easier to regulate the indoor temperature all year round. In the summer months, therefore, insulation will prevent heat coming in from outside, and in the winter it will stop warm air escaping from inside, i.e. when we have radiators on.
How to insulate your home all year round
Maintaining a constant temperature all through the year makes it easier for air conditioning systems to work, if you have them, but is also a major justification for installing a heat pump, because the boiler is doing less work in regulating the temperature and you are therefore using less energy. This makes a heat pump much more efficient than a traditional gas boiler because good insulation has given your home better thermal qualities.
Installing insulation in summer will both regulate the temperature in the home, making it more comfortable in hot weather, and also prepare your home for the harsher weather during the cold, winter months. But where do you need to consider insulation?
- Roof – Go as high up in your home as you can during the summer and see how hot it is. The home absorbs most of its heat through the roof, so insulation needs to prevent it coming and stop the heat at source, particularly if you have a loft room.
- Windows – Glass windows enable a huge amount of heat to pass through into the home, and while you can’t insulate the windows themselves, you can keep blinds and curtains shut during hot days to keep a cool, regulated temperature. In the winter, the reduced daylight hours tend to mean we shut the blinds and curtains earlier anyway, and this helps to trap warm air in.
- Walls – Walls are a major element of the thermal properties of a home as they are exposed to large amounts of sunlight, and heat is easily transferred inside if they are not insulated properly. In most modern homes, insulation is located in cavity walls, i.e. the small gap between the inner and outer walls.
- Pipes – Pipework for boilers should be insulated to minimise heat loss, particularly where this pipework leads outside. This is a major factor in making heat pumps more efficient, because insulating pipes means they have to do less work to produce hot water and hence become more energy efficient.
Talk to the experts in home insulation at Go Greener Energy Services
At Go Greener Energy Services we have experts on hand who can advise on cost-effective home insulation and help you with a programme of making your home more thermally efficient. We can advise on grants and incentives to help with this cost, such as the Great British Insulation Scheme, and can provide a quote to insulate different areas of your home according to your needs, and with the ultimate aim of regulating the temperature and making your home more energy efficient. So don’t panic in the winter months and think you need to quickly insulate your home to prepare for the cold weather, you can do it in the summer and make sure you have a comfortable and regulated home temperature all year round.
