Insulating a redundant door

[JasonBall]

Hi,

I live in a listed property near Harrogate in North Yorkshire. We have a redundant external door which leads into a bedroom on the first floor and I want to insulate it and sound proof it better. The council's guidance does not allow us to brick up the door which would be the most ideal solution. We have a wardrobe in front of it and this would continue to be the case in the future.

I was thinking of installing some insulating and sound proofing board in the door recess on a wooden frame. Does anybody see any problems in doing this? Would it be effective? Would Kingspan work better than insulating wool? Could it result in the door deteriorating with the lack of air circulation (although I think there's plenty of draughts already)?

Thank you,

Jason

 

[Mrs McG]

You’re not altering the original structure and what you’re proposing to do would be considered a ‘temporary’ change so I can’t see why conservation would have an issue.

 

[Cubist]

You don't say what class of listing the property possesses. If it's G1 or G2*. then you will almost certainly need approvals for the desired changes - even if regarded as temporary - typically 'temporary' changes are only permitted while other, more important, restoration works are in progress. If the classification is G2 alone then you could fit insulating panels to the door itself and perhaps use caulking cotton to around the door edges and the frame to eliminate draughts and reduce sound penetration. However, you would need to make sure that these new inner surfaces do not become a breeding ground for moulds.