Insulating inside gable and front bedroom walls - cost

NickNickleby

Hi everyone,
This is a bit like "how long is a piece of string", I know, but I'm really in the dark so would appreciate some numbers.

I'm looking to get that foam backed plasterboard fitted and then skimmed over with finish plaster.

When I get a quote, I won't know if its wildly over priced or not. I go by word of mouth for this kind of thing, and so far have only one (very good) recommendation. However, I am told this guy is a master of his craft and is very thorough and professional during all stages, including cleaning up afterwards - which may mean slightly more expensive. I don't mind paying for quality, but I don't want my naivety to encourage gouging. So, can anyone tell what kind of quote to expect.

The job is for gable end of s/d ie - hall, up the stairs, then up another flight of stairs. Then two walls in the box room and front wall of front bedroom. I think the stuff he's going for is about 35mm plus finish using those mushrooms. I think it works out at 20 sheets of the stuff. He will apply 2 coats of finish.

This guy has qualifications out the wazoo for venting, dampness etc, so its not a huckster job (I've read all the stuff about cold bridging and vapour barriers or whatever and he has addressed all this stuff).So I've no fear of being poisoned in 3 years time.

Thanks in advance, any and all comments welcome.
Nick

NickNickleby

anyone?
I'm just looking for an idea of the price. to the nearest 500 would be accurate enough for my purposes.

Cheers
Nick

Calahonda52

NickNickleby wrote: »

..... (I've read all the stuff about cold bridging and vapour barriers or whatever and he has addressed all this stuff).So I've no fear of being poisoned in 3 years time.

Thanks in advance, any and all comments welcome.
Nick

Given the above:

1. whats the rationale for this project
2. what other insulation projects are completed
3. what other insulation projects are contemplated

IMO, based on what you have penned, you have been snowed re the CB etc
The answers to the above will hopefully prove me wrong:pac:

In terms of pricing it, its difficult as there is nothing about
skirting boards, sockets,switches, rads, sill boards, curtain, blinds etc etc
is stairs single flight, open underneath etc.
It sounds like a very tedious job which may be very expensive to get done looking right and still not be cost effective

NickNickleby

Hi Calahonda,
Thanks for taking the trouble to reply.

In case you think I'm putting myself forward as some sort of know-it-all in home insulation, far from it. I've read a lot about the options and pitfalls, so i know there's lots of unknown unknowns (by me that is :-) )

What my reading did, was allow me to understand what the guy was talking about in sufficient detail to think that he seemed to know what he was talking about.

This is the only wall insulation that will be done, in the foreseeable future. The front of the house faces West, and the gable is on the south facing end. There's a gap of eight feet between me and my neighbour and in winter the cold wind whistles through there. The box room and front bedroom are the coldest rooms in the house. THe hall and landing are also quite cold in the winter. Last year I paid a lot of money to replace the front door, and there was an immediate and welcome improvement in the hall. But there's still a coldness radiating off the gable wall (yes, I know...) and I suspect the draught we feel is convection down 2 flights of stairs. The gable always feels cool to the touch in winter, although there's never any obvious moisture on it. Under the stairs is covered in as storage. No draughts emanate from it.
At the top , there's a very well built dormer roof extension with PVC windows. Its cosy all year. Roof spaces are all properly insulated.
ALL other windows are aluminium. THese will be replaced over the next few years as the money becomes available.

So, what's he going to do (he was here and I now have a quote for "somewhere around 2k" to be firmed up face to face).
1. apply this board to all external walls previously described. He will stop at the window openings, as the existing window frames are simply too narrow to allow the insulation to be wrapped round the openings. He pointed here about the cold meeting hot and the pitfalls, but I told him i simply cannot afford the replacement windows yet. There will be 3 windows involved, three lengths of skirting, one set of sockets, one radiator - all to be taken care of by him.
Curtains, built in wardrobes etc - I'm getting them out of the way myself and restoring them (I hope!!) when its finished.

So, that's whats going on, and now I have an estimate for a quote. 2,000.

He could have said 3,000 and I wouldn't have been able to bat an eye.

I will accept that I'm doing this in a piecemeal fashion, but its all about money. Last guy came in about a year ago, I told him I had a couple of grand to spend and he said I was wasting my time, and insisted that only do external all over the house for a bargain 35k. So I bought the door instead.

Cheers, and thanks for engaging on this,
Nick (my name is from Dickens, probably should be Scrooge, but Scrooge was mean, I'm just broke :-)