Why should I insulate my home?

Insulating your home can offer several benefits, making it generally a good idea. In this article, we will look at the reasons why you might consider insulating your home.

Table of contents: 

• Reduce energy costs
• Reduction in heat loss
• Increased Building Energy Rating (BER)
• Insurance discounts
• Property value increase
• Grants availability
• Conclusions 

Reduce energy costs 

Insulation helps to keep your home warm in the winter and cool in the summer, reducing the need for heating and cooling systems. This can lead to significant energy savings. According to the Sustainability Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), insulating your home against heat loss can reduce your heating bills up to 600 Euro per year¹. 

By improving energy efficiency, insulation can lower your utility bills. The initial investment in insulation can pay off over time through these savings.

So how does home insulation actually reduce energy costs? Insulation materials have high thermal resistance (R-value), which slows down the transfer of heat. This means less heat escapes from your home in the winter and less heat enters in the summer, reducing the need for heating and cooling.

Insulation also helps seal gaps and cracks in your home's structure, preventing drafts and air leaks. This minimises the loss of conditioned air and the entry of unconditioned air, leading to more efficient heating and cooling.

By maintaining a more consistent indoor temperature, insulation reduces the workload on your heating and cooling systems. They don't have to work as hard to maintain the desired temperature, which reduces energy consumption. In addition, the use of supplemental heating or cooling devices such as like space heaters or fans, can consume a lot of energy. These might not be needed in a well-insulated home.

Overall, effective insulation creates a barrier to heat flow, leading to a more energy-efficient home that requires less energy to maintain comfortable temperatures, ultimately resulting in lower energy costs.

Reduction in heat loss 

A well-insulated home maintains a more consistent indoor temperature, enhancing comfort for you and your family. Heat loss can be reduced by up to 30% according to SEAI².  Heat loss reduction can differ depending on the type of insulation you have in your home, for example floor insulation tends to reduce heat loss by about 10%, while walls can reduce heat loss by about 30%. 

Essentially when it comes to insulation and heat loss, it’s all about conduction reduction and convection control. Insulation reduces conduction, which is the transfer of heat through solid materials. By adding insulating materials to walls, roofs, and floors, the direct transfer of heat through these structures is minimised.

Insulation materials can also help control convection, which is the transfer of heat through air movement. In attics and walls, insulation can reduce the movement of air within these spaces, preventing warm air from rising and escaping.

Some insulation materials, like reflective or radiant barriers, are designed to reflect radiant heat away from the home. These barriers can be particularly effective in attics, where they reflect heat back into the living spaces during winter, reducing heat loss.

Ideally, insulating all parts of the home, including walls, attic, floors, and basement, creates a continuous barrier that reduces heat loss through the entire building. This comprehensive approach ensures that there are no weak points where heat can easily escape.

Increasing BER rating 

A Building Energy Rating (BER) is an assessment of the energy efficiency of a building, and improving home insulation can significantly enhance this rating. Here are the ways in which home insulation contributes to a better BER rating:

• Reduced energy consumption
• Enhanced thermal performance
• Air tightness
• Consistent indoor temperature
• Improved heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems efficiency
• Reduced demand on energy systems
• Reduces the carbon footprint of a building by lowering energy consumption
• Long-term energy savings
• Compliance with standards

By improving the insulation in your home, you can significantly enhance its energy efficiency, leading to a better BER rating. This, in turn, can increase the property's value, reduce energy bills, and contribute to environmental sustainability. Our article on how to improve your home BER rating has lots of tips and advice on how to increase your home BER rating.  

Reduction in insurance costs 

Insulation can contribute to the overall structural integrity of a home by protecting it from temperature extremes and moisture-related issues. A well-maintained, structurally sound home is less likely to experience significant damage, which can result in lower insurance costs.

Zurich offer savings on home insurance for homes with a BER B rating or higher. Proper insulation is a key component of energy efficiency, and qualifying for such discounts can reduce your overall insurance costs. Check out some of the discounts we offer on home insurance if your home has a BER rating of A or B.

While the direct impact of insulation on insurance costs can vary depending on the insurer and specific policy, these factors highlight how a well-insulated home can be perceived as lower risk and potentially lead to reduced insurance costs. It's always a good idea to discuss potential discounts and benefits with your insurance provider.

Increase of property value 

As already mentioned, if the energy costs decrease, the property value can increase.  A well-insulated home is often more attractive to buyers and can have a higher market value.

Grants and loans on home energy improvements 

Warmer homes scheme 

The Warmer homes scheme is co-founded by the Government of Ireland and the European Union. This scheme provides full funding for energy upgrades to homeowners who receive some welfare payments. For qualifying criteria visit the SEAI website.

If you qualify under this fund, SEAI can fully fund: attic, cavity wall, external and internal wall and some secondary works.

National Home Energy Upgrade Scheme

The National Home Energy Upgrade Scheme provides grants to upgrade the energy efficiency of your home to a minimum B2 BER rating. Under this scheme, insulation such us attic, walls and floors are usually included.  

The SEAI administer the grants, and a private company manage the work. There is a list of registered private companies called One Stop Shops.

Better Energy Homes scheme 

If you want to do certain upgrades only and want to manage the project yourself, SEAI offers the scheme Better Energy Homes. 

Insulation is also covered in this scheme and the grants available start from €700 for cavity wall insulation up to €8,000 on external wall insulation for detached houses. Learn more about the Better Energy scheme. 

Home Energy Upgrade Loan 

There is a government-backed low-cost loan available to upgrade the energy performance of your home. The loan can go from €5,000 – 75,000 and term is up to 10 years. You can learn more about the Home Energy Upgrade Loan.

Conclusions 

While the costs associated with insulating your home can be high, there are a number of grants and loans available to bring down these costs. The benefits are many such as less heat loss and consequently a decrease in energy bills.

If you are considering insulating your home, it might be beneficial to consult with a professional to determine the best type of insulation and the areas of your home that would benefit most from it.

If you undertake any work, remember the value of your home will likely increase, so make sure it is properly insured and avoid underinsurance.