Holes, thin walls and timber frames

[blue-round-the-edges]

I'm sure other people must have this problem, but couldn't find a link with search, or looking quite a way down the list of topics.

I live in a timber framed house, originally labourers' cottages. It has a rubble base and lath and plaster and brick in filling with a thatch. The latch and plaster ceiling does not have a loft hatch. Despite heating my nursery thermometer has registered 10 degrees for much of Jan in my bedroom- it doesn't go any lower than this! The walls are v thin, but also there are gaps (you can see light!) and big draughts between timber frame and in filling and also where roof beams hit the walls.

I now have an electric blanket & big duvet for the bed, jumpers, woolly hat and down jacket for all other times. I even have a blanket to sit under on the sofa (required on many evenings this winter!). Never-the-less it's been b***y chilly and getting dressed is traumatic to say the least.

Questions are:

How best to plug the holes. There are quite big ones under the thatch eves which we have filled with bits of fibre glass insulation roll as an emergency measure. Also can we put in internal wall insulation? I know that this can be prone to problems with damp, but we really don't have a problem with adequate ventilation at present! Thought about wool fleece and dry lining, even if this does cover up some beams - there are plenty so a few missing would be Ok with us, but not sure about LBC. Someone also suggested rendering over everything including frame outside with thicker lime mortar, as the building would probably not have had exposed timbers externally originally.

Hoping to have a good 8 months before a solution is really necessary!

thank you for your advice.

 

[middi]

Well, what you are describing is the "good" conditions that the old folks used to live in and, traditionally, if they didn't like too much of a draught through the gaps between studs and infill panels they " stuffed" strands of sheep fleece soaked in lime in the gaps, if they felt in an atistic mood they would smooth the gaps over the fleece with lime putty then limewash.

If you used this approach you would definetely be warmer. ( i doubt if it would meet curent regulastion for thermal insulation though).

You can use thermal lined plasterboard tacked on the inside walls and plastered over as a temporary measure. ( untill someone feels they don't like it and want to change to diifferent approach). You will not destroy anything on the building and is an easy thing to do.

 

[chuckey]

Why not put in a loft hatch? I have done three and its such a trivial job I can't remember any particular wheeze to expedite it. Only make sure you start of in the middle of two ceiling joists. Else you may have to cut a joist and put in a pair of trimmers to carry the cut ends.
Frank