Authors - M George, A Geens and J Littlelewood: (09-12-05)
Beware of the Blanket Approach
In 2003 at the University of Glamorgan, a pilot research project commenced to investigate methods for achieving savings in carbon dioxide (CO2) attributable to space heating in dwellings. This research has raised a number of questions, illustrating as it does, the relative benefits of heating system efficiency and insulation thickness within the building envelope. Mike George, Andrew Geens and John Littlewood explain.
Publications to date have demonstrated that increases in gas boiler efficiency produce savings comparable to those generated by insulation upgrades. It is also illustrated here (and elsewhere that the insertion of any floor insulation to a solid floor contributes little (and in some cases nothing) to energy / CO2 savings.
As a result of the above findings the authors made a contribution to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) consultation process into the new Part L. This stated concerns that insulation levels have reached (and in some cases) exceeded their optimum level for dwellings that are new-built or renovated, and are not designed for zero heating ...
