Ground Level: Cold Floor & External Walls

[JasL]

Posted in plasterboard and flooring

Hi

I know relatively little about all this stuff, but I'm trying to find out!!!

The house:
Located in Cambridge
Built in 2006, to 2005 regs. No air leakage tests.
3 story towm house.
Suspended bloack and beam
Dob & dab plasterboards /1 cm gap/ lightweight therma block / filled cavity / brick.
Building regs signed off by NHBC
NHBC : Insurance coverers stucture only now, as 3 years+ old.

The problem:
Does not retain heat very well. After the heating is turnned off, the heat disappears!!!
The external walls are cold to touch, particularly at ground level to about 2/3 ft.
The floor also feels very cold when walking around in bare feet - especially in the mornings.
I've recently taken the skirting board off in an area, and can fee cold air blowing in between the floor anf the plaster in the gap between them. I've also cut a hole in the plasterboard, and you can feel cold air. I belive there is air leakage into the gap behind the plaster board. No idea why the floor is also cold.

How to indentify the problem and Fix it:
This is where I'm stuck.....
I've tried to obtain the detailed construction plans, but Taylor Woodrow will not release them to me. Thx!!!!!
Suggestions on a way forward have been:
1. Employ a charted building survyor speialising in building defects to survey the house.
2. Employ a compnay that specilises in: Air leakage testing (+ /- / Smoke) and Thermal testing.
I'm sure a surveyor won't be cheap, and I know thermakl testing is quite expensive.

I've yet to decorate any of the ground floor, and I intend to chnage all of the existing wood laminate floors at some point. - so no worries there.

I've moved form a house built in 1996 (with non dob & dab) that was lovely and warm. This house feels soooooo col!!!!

Anybody got experience of this type of problem and any ideas what I can do???

HELP!!!!

Thx for looking.

Jason

 

[An72]

Seek the professional advice.

 

[Bristol_Bricky]

This type of floor construction in my opinion is the worst, because the void under the floor needs to be ventilated this makes the whole floor cold which in turn makes the bottom part of your walls cold, this is called Cold Bridge.


A product like Benefil

Would be the best thing to use, I have emailed them to find out what U value thier product has.

The other option, which may not be possible, is to make access in to the void and fix Celotex to the under side of the blocks.

 

[Dawsy]

Could you not remove the skirting board and use some expanding foam where the floor joins the walls. this way the floor is sealed and the walls can still circulate the air behind them.