Insulation In Attic

masterK

I was having a look in my attic yesterday and noticed that the bricks from the external walls in the house are fully visible and not covered by any sort of insulation. Is this normal? I live in the first house in a street so the entire left side of my house is entirely unprotected. We have had a lot of problems with dampness on that side of the house over the last number of winters and that got me thinking if the bricks being left bare could be causing this.

Any thoughts?

rooferPete

Hi masterK,

The insulation point should stop at the ceiling unless you converting the attic, if the gable wall is damp, not to be confused with cold then the problem can be from a few sources.

High up on the gable could be you need more ventilation in the attic, I know it doesn't read right to be letting cold air in to the roof space but if you have condensaton on the wall the chances are you will have it on the rafters as well.

If the roof was renewed take a look at the under felt and see if there are droplets of water on the underside, this is ideal weather to check it because your insulation may be tight to the eaves and preventing a through flow of air, if your insulation is 100 mm that would be enough to allow some heat through causing condensation on the cold surfaces like the wall and the felt.

Second check the pointing in the joints of the brick work outside, if it has crumbled and pieces fallen away then dampness can find it's way in between the joints of the brick work.

Third if the house is very old check the bricks to see if they are soft, spalling, (pieces breaking away), also take a look at where the roof comes out passed the bricks, presuming slates they should extend out approximately 2".

You may need to :

Upgrade your insulation and provide through flow ventilation.

Have the joints in the brickwork raked out and re-pointed.

Have the bricks treated with a proprietry sealer (I do not like Thompsons waterseal).

I hope the above is of some help.

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