It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

On Jun 8, 12:18*pm, stuart noble wrote:
No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.
Perhaps they installed it during a re-roof? Doing that sort of work is
ten times worse in summer especially in a confined area wearing a
decent mask and paper suit so wait until sept or oct if you can. I'd
say its worth bagging up the old stuff and vacuuming up the dust.
Otherwise you will be constantly kicking up the horrible itchy stuff
into the air.
The rolls of white coloured insulation made from plastic bottles is
completely itch free and can be installed without wearing any ppe.

Dave.

No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

And why not? Or get a thin bird in! If you can get 8x1 Celotex in then
you can get a body in.

I've put insulation between and over the joists in the loft of our "back
extension" by crawling around it: 375mm x 500mm hatch and a maximum
height between joists and rafters a good deal less than you have. It
helps though if you can put down something slippery to slide along (eg
old melamine boards) rather than the usual, rough boards. It may also
help to have done a bit of caving in one's youth

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's
the only way I can see it getting done.

Won't you have problems with air getting under the chipboard and/or
between the chipboard and the Celotex?


--
Robin
PM may be sent to rbw0{at}hotmail{dot}com

On 08/06/2011 13:28, Robin wrote:
No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

And why not? Or get a thin bird in! If you can get 8x1 Celotex in then
you can get a body in.

But would I get her out again?

I've put insulation between and over the joists in the loft of our "back
extension" by crawling around it: 375mm x 500mm hatch and a maximum
height between joists and rafters a good deal less than you have. It
helps though if you can put down something slippery to slide along (eg
old melamine boards) rather than the usual, rough boards. It may also
help to have done a bit of caving in one's youth

I'm very old and very tall, so I don't think so

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's
the only way I can see it getting done.

Won't you have problems with air getting under the chipboard and/or
between the chipboard and the Celotex?


Is air a problem? I thought the whole idea of insulation was to trap
air. You probably didn't mean that though.
A long length of mdf skirting might be a good start if I can get it up
in the loft. Then I could maybe slide end-jointed lengths of celotex
along it on edge.

On Jun 8, 12:18*pm, stuart noble wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

Why not use blown insulation, or if you can reach to the back with a
rake-like thing, then poured. Polystyrene bead isnt bad to work with.


NT

On Jun 8, 12:18*pm, stuart noble wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

If you have sufficient headroom in your extention,some kind of
additional ceiling/suspended ceiling below the existing with
insulation between the two?

On 08/06/2011 12:18, stuart noble wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's
the only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have
been a solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?
What about this?
http://guide.rockwool.co.uk/products...nsulation.aspx


I've also got an awkward area to insulate in the roof space , I shall
be interested in comments, adverse or supportive.
Cheers
Don

On 08/06/2011 15:53, Tabby wrote:
On Jun 8, 12:18 pm, stuart wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

Why not use blown insulation, or if you can reach to the back with a
rake-like thing, then poured. Polystyrene bead isnt bad to work with.


NT

Bit of a fire risk I would think. Blown mineral wool would be better,
but there are no doubt rules about it only going into cavities. Perhaps
there are other loose fill materials out there
A 16 foot "rake-like thing" going across the joists doesn't sound
promising somehow

On 08/06/2011 18:04, Donwill wrote:
On 08/06/2011 12:18, stuart noble wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's
the only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have
been a solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?
What about this?
http://guide.rockwool.co.uk/products...nsulation.aspx


Ah, that's interesting. I wonder if a contractor would have a way of
lifting that hose in the video into inaccessible places, possibly some
kind of fishing rod arrangement.
Not a product I'd fancy using on a d-i-y basis, even if you could get
hold of it, which I doubt.

I've also got an awkward area to insulate in the roof space , I shall be
interested in comments, adverse or supportive.
Cheers
Don

On Jun 8, 6:26*pm, stuart noble wrote:
On 08/06/2011 15:53, Tabby wrote:



On Jun 8, 12:18 pm, stuart *wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

Why not use blown insulation, or if you can reach to the back with a
rake-like thing, then poured. Polystyrene bead isnt bad to work with.

NT

Bit of a fire risk I would think. Blown mineral wool would be better,

fair enough. Loose fill loft insulation it is.


but there are no doubt rules about it only going into cavities. Perhaps

nope, its lawful to use it


there are other loose fill materials out there
A 16 foot "rake-like thing" going across the joists doesn't sound
promising somehow

sounds liek a good practical solution. Just some 2 by half with a
crosspiece on teh end, with the crosspiece sitting on top of the flat
handle so it doesnt catch all the time.

I get the impression you just dont want to do the job.


NT

On 08/06/2011 18:46, stuart noble wrote:
On 08/06/2011 18:04, Donwill wrote:
On 08/06/2011 12:18, stuart noble wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's
the only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have
been a solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?
What about this?
http://guide.rockwool.co.uk/products...nsulation.aspx



Ah, that's interesting. I wonder if a contractor would have a way of
lifting that hose in the video into inaccessible places, possibly some
kind of fishing rod arrangement.
Not a product I'd fancy using on a d-i-y basis, even if you could get
hold of it, which I doubt.

I've also got an awkward area to insulate in the roof space , I shall be
interested in comments, adverse or supportive.
Cheers
Don




The only snag I can see is that it will cover existing cables which
would have to be de-rated I suppose.
Don

On 08/06/2011 19:45, Tabby wrote:
On Jun 8, 6:26 pm, stuart wrote:
On 08/06/2011 15:53, Tabby wrote:



On Jun 8, 12:18 pm, stuart wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

Why not use blown insulation, or if you can reach to the back with a
rake-like thing, then poured. Polystyrene bead isnt bad to work with.

NT

Bit of a fire risk I would think. Blown mineral wool would be better,

fair enough. Loose fill loft insulation it is.


but there are no doubt rules about it only going into cavities. Perhaps

nope, its lawful to use it


there are other loose fill materials out there
A 16 foot "rake-like thing" going across the joists doesn't sound
promising somehow

sounds liek a good practical solution. Just some 2 by half with a
crosspiece on teh end, with the crosspiece sitting on top of the flat
handle so it doesnt catch all the time.

But the end of the handle would still catch all the time, and how much
would half an inch thickness bend over 16ft? Aly tube maybe?

I get the impression you just dont want to do the job.

You're dead right there old sport.
I was hoping one of those subsidised insulation firms would sign me up
and not notice the lack of access.

I'm very old and very tall, so I don't think so

Fair enough. I've never done "tall" so it weren't a problem for me.

Is air a problem? I thought the whole idea of insulation was to trap
air. You probably didn't mean that though.

I had in mind that if the celotex is not fastened down then draughts
could get below it, by-passing your expensive insulation.

But from what others and you have since said it looks as if you will be
going for blown. Good luck with that. (Lots of people around here have
had that done through the free or subsidised loft insulation scheme.
Seems to work for them - so long as they don't then want to crawl around
installing new cable.)

--
Robin
PM may be sent to rbw0{at}hotmail{dot}com

On Jun 8, 8:34*pm, stuart noble wrote:
On 08/06/2011 19:45, Tabby wrote:



On Jun 8, 6:26 pm, stuart *wrote:
On 08/06/2011 15:53, Tabby wrote:

On Jun 8, 12:18 pm, stuart * *wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

Why not use blown insulation, or if you can reach to the back with a
rake-like thing, then poured. Polystyrene bead isnt bad to work with.

NT

Bit of a fire risk I would think. Blown mineral wool would be better,

fair enough. Loose fill loft insulation it is.

but there are no doubt rules about it only going into cavities. Perhaps

nope, its lawful to use it

there are other loose fill materials out there
A 16 foot "rake-like thing" going across the joists doesn't sound
promising somehow

sounds liek a good practical solution. Just some 2 by half with a
crosspiece on teh end, with the crosspiece sitting on top of the flat
handle so it doesnt catch all the time.

But the end of the handle would still catch all the time, and how much
would half an inch thickness bend over 16ft? Aly tube maybe?

If its going across joists, 16" or so, half inch doesnt bend much. If
along joists, the pusher head will sit on the joists, and I'd probably
add a 2nd pusher head at 8'. It would surely run better if the leading
edges were rounded over. If no router, just flicking it up slightly
does the job. You can do that with half inch wood better than you
could with ali tube.


I get the impression you just dont want to do the job.

You're dead right there old sport.
I was hoping one of those subsidised insulation firms would sign me up
and not notice the lack of access.

If you qualify for a govt grant, great.


NT

On 08/06/11 12:18, stuart noble wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

Make a bigger access hole.
I've got a long thin hole between two joists
and I can almost get 4x8 boards up it,
a coffin hatch some call it.

[g]

On Wed, 08 Jun 2011 12:18:04 +0100, stuart noble wrote:

Blown vermiculite would have been a solution but it seems nobody uses
that any more.

Maybe because any draught in the space moves it about into a big
heap in one corner. B-)

Make the access from the loft at the front big enough for a "normal
human"? 3' of head romm isn't great but is more than enough to crawl
about in.

--
Cheers
Dave.

You're dead right there old sport.
I was hoping one of those subsidised insulation firms would sign me
up and not notice the lack of access.


Surveys are free. Eg
http://www.britishgas.co.uk/energy-e...nsulation.html
http://www.britishgas.co.uk/energy-e...nsulation.html



--
Robin
PM may be sent to rbw0{at}hotmail{dot}com

On 09/06/2011 08:31, Dave Liquorice wrote:

Make the access from the loft at the front big enough for a "normal
human"?

I think I'd be removing seriously structural timber if I did that

On 08/06/2011 21:41, Tabby wrote:
On Jun 8, 8:34 pm, stuart wrote:
On 08/06/2011 19:45, Tabby wrote:



On Jun 8, 6:26 pm, stuart wrote:
On 08/06/2011 15:53, Tabby wrote:

On Jun 8, 12:18 pm, stuart wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

Why not use blown insulation, or if you can reach to the back with a
rake-like thing, then poured. Polystyrene bead isnt bad to work with.

NT

Bit of a fire risk I would think. Blown mineral wool would be better,

fair enough. Loose fill loft insulation it is.

but there are no doubt rules about it only going into cavities. Perhaps

nope, its lawful to use it

there are other loose fill materials out there
A 16 foot "rake-like thing" going across the joists doesn't sound
promising somehow

sounds liek a good practical solution. Just some 2 by half with a
crosspiece on teh end, with the crosspiece sitting on top of the flat
handle so it doesnt catch all the time.

But the end of the handle would still catch all the time, and how much
would half an inch thickness bend over 16ft? Aly tube maybe?

If its going across joists, 16" or so, half inch doesnt bend much. If
along joists, the pusher head will sit on the joists, and I'd probably
add a 2nd pusher head at 8'. It would surely run better if the leading
edges were rounded over. If no router, just flicking it up slightly
does the job. You can do that with half inch wood better than you
could with ali tube.


I get the impression you just dont want to do the job.

You're dead right there old sport.
I was hoping one of those subsidised insulation firms would sign me up
and not notice the lack of access.

If you qualify for a govt grant, great.

Only the "grant" it seems we're all entitled to whereby they lay £50
worth of insulation and charge you £199. I'm a couple of years short of
the get it all free band.

On Jun 8, 12:18*pm, stuart noble wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

I'm not clear why there wouldn't be enough room in the loft of a 16x10
back extension to work in. How low is your roof pitch? I lived in a
terraced house with a back extension slightly smaller than this, and
when I lost storage space by converting the main loft, I put a hatch
in the rear extension and had no problem kneeling about up there
fitting small loft boards.

Possibly I've misunderstood something in your post.

Cheers
Richard

On 09/06/2011 10:05, geraldthehamster wrote:
On Jun 8, 12:18 pm, stuart wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

I'm not clear why there wouldn't be enough room in the loft of a 16x10
back extension to work in. How low is your roof pitch? I lived in a
terraced house with a back extension slightly smaller than this, and
when I lost storage space by converting the main loft, I put a hatch
in the rear extension and had no problem kneeling about up there
fitting small loft boards.

Possibly I've misunderstood something in your post.

Cheers
Richard

The hatch would only be used to install the insulation, so I guess I'm
reluctant to go to that trouble if there's another way. It's about 3
feet high, tapering down to zero, so a central hatch would at least
allow me to do some of it from below.
Seems the logical way would be to blow mineral wool via the opening into
the main loft, but how practical that would be I'm not sure. Someone
should presumably check the eaves air flow, so we'd be back to square one.
I might do a trial run and see just how difficult it is to snake myself
through the triangular opening from the main loft. I've got plenty of
melamine chip to slide about on once I'm in there.

On Jun 9, 11:15*am, stuart noble wrote:
On 09/06/2011 10:05, geraldthehamster wrote:





On Jun 8, 12:18 pm, stuart *wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

I'm not clear why there wouldn't be enough room in the loft of a 16x10
back extension to work in. How low is your roof pitch? I lived in a
terraced house with a back extension slightly smaller than this, and
when I lost storage space by converting the main loft, I put a hatch
in the rear extension and had no problem kneeling about up there
fitting small loft boards.

Possibly I've misunderstood something in your post.

Cheers
Richard

The hatch would only be used to install the insulation, so I guess I'm
reluctant to go to that trouble if there's another way. It's about 3
feet high, tapering down to zero, so a central hatch would at least
allow me to do some of it from below.
Seems the logical way would be to blow mineral wool via the opening into
the main loft, but how practical that would be I'm not sure. Someone
should presumably check the eaves air flow, so we'd be back to square one..
I might do a trial run and see just how difficult it is to snake myself
through the triangular opening from the main loft. I've got plenty of
melamine chip to slide about on once I'm in there.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Make sure there's enough room to turn round and come out again ;-)

I'd be tempted to screw insulated plasterboard under the existing
ceiling, and have it reskimmed. If it's an old house with decent
ceiling heights, you could probably afford to lose a few inches off
the height of a back bedroom.

Cheers
Richard

On 09/06/2011 12:20, geraldthehamster wrote:
On Jun 9, 11:15 am, stuart wrote:
On 09/06/2011 10:05, geraldthehamster wrote:





On Jun 8, 12:18 pm, stuart wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

I'm not clear why there wouldn't be enough room in the loft of a 16x10
back extension to work in. How low is your roof pitch? I lived in a
terraced house with a back extension slightly smaller than this, and
when I lost storage space by converting the main loft, I put a hatch
in the rear extension and had no problem kneeling about up there
fitting small loft boards.

Possibly I've misunderstood something in your post.

Cheers
Richard

The hatch would only be used to install the insulation, so I guess I'm
reluctant to go to that trouble if there's another way. It's about 3
feet high, tapering down to zero, so a central hatch would at least
allow me to do some of it from below.
Seems the logical way would be to blow mineral wool via the opening into
the main loft, but how practical that would be I'm not sure. Someone
should presumably check the eaves air flow, so we'd be back to square one.
I might do a trial run and see just how difficult it is to snake myself
through the triangular opening from the main loft. I've got plenty of
melamine chip to slide about on once I'm in there.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Make sure there's enough room to turn round and come out again ;-)

I'd be tempted to screw insulated plasterboard under the existing
ceiling, and have it reskimmed. If it's an old house with decent
ceiling heights, you could probably afford to lose a few inches off
the height of a back bedroom.

Cheers
Richard

Floor to ceiling cupboards ennit?

On 09/06/11 12:20, geraldthehamster wrote:
On Jun 9, 11:15 am, stuart wrote:
On 09/06/2011 10:05, geraldthehamster wrote:





On Jun 8, 12:18 pm, stuart wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

I'm not clear why there wouldn't be enough room in the loft of a 16x10
back extension to work in. How low is your roof pitch? I lived in a
terraced house with a back extension slightly smaller than this, and
when I lost storage space by converting the main loft, I put a hatch
in the rear extension and had no problem kneeling about up there
fitting small loft boards.

Possibly I've misunderstood something in your post.

Cheers
Richard

The hatch would only be used to install the insulation, so I guess I'm
reluctant to go to that trouble if there's another way. It's about 3
feet high, tapering down to zero, so a central hatch would at least
allow me to do some of it from below.
Seems the logical way would be to blow mineral wool via the opening into
the main loft, but how practical that would be I'm not sure. Someone
should presumably check the eaves air flow, so we'd be back to square one.
I might do a trial run and see just how difficult it is to snake myself
through the triangular opening from the main loft. I've got plenty of
melamine chip to slide about on once I'm in there.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Make sure there's enough room to turn round and come out again ;-)

I'd be tempted to screw insulated plasterboard under the existing
ceiling, and have it reskimmed. If it's an old house with decent
ceiling heights, you could probably afford to lose a few inches off
the height of a back bedroom.

Cheers
Richard
another advantage of this
is that you can have the vapour barrier on the warm side,
under the old ceiling,
I worry about warm moist air percolating up through old ceilings
and condensing in the rockwool.

probly only a problem with bathrooms and kitchens though
and rooms full of plants.

[g]

On Jun 9, 12:20*pm, geraldthehamster wrote:
On Jun 9, 11:15*am, stuart noble wrote:



On 09/06/2011 10:05, geraldthehamster wrote:

On Jun 8, 12:18 pm, stuart *wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

I'm not clear why there wouldn't be enough room in the loft of a 16x10
back extension to work in. How low is your roof pitch? I lived in a
terraced house with a back extension slightly smaller than this, and
when I lost storage space by converting the main loft, I put a hatch
in the rear extension and had no problem kneeling about up there
fitting small loft boards.

Possibly I've misunderstood something in your post.

Cheers
Richard

The hatch would only be used to install the insulation, so I guess I'm
reluctant to go to that trouble if there's another way. It's about 3
feet high, tapering down to zero, so a central hatch would at least
allow me to do some of it from below.
Seems the logical way would be to blow mineral wool via the opening into
the main loft, but how practical that would be I'm not sure. Someone
should presumably check the eaves air flow, so we'd be back to square one.
I might do a trial run and see just how difficult it is to snake myself
through the triangular opening from the main loft. I've got plenty of
melamine chip to slide about on once I'm in there.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Make sure there's enough room to turn round and come out again ;-)

I wouldnt do that, you'll need to come out backwards. What does matter
is that you've got someone else there in case of a problem. Its very
easy to wind up stuck in those low spaces, often due to unforeseen
issues, and if you're on your own it quits being funny fast.


I'd be tempted to screw insulated plasterboard under the existing
ceiling, and have it reskimmed. If it's an old house with decent
ceiling heights, you could probably afford to lose a few inches off
the height of a back bedroom.

Cheers
Richard

More money less work.


NT

On Jun 9, 4:00*pm, Tabby wrote:
I wouldnt do that, you'll need to come out backwards. What does matter
is that you've got someone else there in case of a problem. Its very
easy to wind up stuck in those low spaces, often due to unforeseen
issues, and if you're on your own it quits being funny fast.

NT- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

You could probably punch your way out through the roof tiles ;-)

Cheers
Richard

In message , stuart noble
writes
On 08/06/2011 21:41, Tabby wrote:
On Jun 8, 8:34 pm, stuart wrote:
On 08/06/2011 19:45, Tabby wrote:



On Jun 8, 6:26 pm, stuart wrote:
On 08/06/2011 15:53, Tabby wrote:

On Jun 8, 12:18 pm, stuart wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

Why not use blown insulation, or if you can reach to the back with a
rake-like thing, then poured. Polystyrene bead isnt bad to work with.

NT

Bit of a fire risk I would think. Blown mineral wool would be better,

fair enough. Loose fill loft insulation it is.

but there are no doubt rules about it only going into cavities. Perhaps

nope, its lawful to use it

there are other loose fill materials out there
A 16 foot "rake-like thing" going across the joists doesn't sound
promising somehow

sounds liek a good practical solution. Just some 2 by half with a
crosspiece on teh end, with the crosspiece sitting on top of the flat
handle so it doesnt catch all the time.

But the end of the handle would still catch all the time, and how much
would half an inch thickness bend over 16ft? Aly tube maybe?

If its going across joists, 16" or so, half inch doesnt bend much. If
along joists, the pusher head will sit on the joists, and I'd probably
add a 2nd pusher head at 8'. It would surely run better if the leading
edges were rounded over. If no router, just flicking it up slightly
does the job. You can do that with half inch wood better than you
could with ali tube.


I get the impression you just dont want to do the job.

You're dead right there old sport.
I was hoping one of those subsidised insulation firms would sign me up
and not notice the lack of access.

If you qualify for a govt grant, great.

Only the "grant" it seems we're all entitled to whereby they lay £50
worth of insulation and charge you £199. I'm a couple of years short of
the get it all free band.

Nah, when we had ours done a few years ago (one of the supplier subsidy
schemes) IIRC the cost of buying the insulation for me was about the
same as the whole job cost.


--
Chris French

On 8 June, 12:18, stuart noble wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

Hi, In a similar situation I made a big funnel on the end of some
plastic downpipe and poured in vermiculite...I presume that you could
make a
long-handled plunger device for the pipe if you do not have enough
fall for it to feed down to the far end....or the rake idea previously
mentioned.
Good luck...D

On 10/06/2011 09:29, gilli wrote:
On 8 June, 12:18, stuart wrote:
It's about time I upgraded the insulation in the back extension of my
Victorian terraced house, an area 16'x10'. No access from the loft at
the front for a normal sized human, and installing a loft hatch in the
back bedroom would give me barely 3' height down one edge. No idea how
the original 4" of fibreglass was installed unless child labour was
employed.

I'm thinking of maybe pushing an 8x1 chipboard sheet across the joists
via the limited loft access and hoping that a second sheet would shunt
the first one to the back. It should then be relatively easy to slide
celotex over the chipboard surface. A bit of a dog's dinner but it's the
only way I can see it getting done. Blown vermiculite would have been a
solution but it seems nobody uses that any more.

Anyone got any bright ideas?

Hi, In a similar situation I made a big funnel on the end of some
plastic downpipe and poured in vermiculite...I presume that you could
make a
long-handled plunger device for the pipe if you do not have enough
fall for it to feed down to the far end....or the rake idea previously
mentioned.
Good luck...D

How innovative! Got me thinking rubbish chutes now, but 12" diameter
would rule that out.
Amazing how much meaningful work you can do on a project from a seating
position. No, she doesn't buy it either