For the last year or so I have been working on and off on an older property near Stockwell. It’s a lovely house but it does get pretty cold and draughty, especially in the harsh winter we have been having. Last year I fitted some secondary glazing on the stairs and in the bathroom reducing the draughts from these and the residents were very pleased with the difference it made. However I have been itching to have a go at the very draughty hallway and stairs, if we can improve the temperature there it should make the whole house warmer. I did a trial on different methods of floorboard sealing last year and concluded that Draughtex worked the best, the flexibility meant it didn’t fall out when people walked on the floor.
So with all the cold weather this winter the client decided it would be a good idea to proceed with draught proofing in the hallway so I got my chance. First I did some sustainable movement of materials using my bike, quite pleased with the amount I can get on it and move around.
After this I worked on the front door which had loads of draughts coming round and through it. First I used brush pile and some epdm strips to seal round the leaky door. It took a while to get right, especially making sure the door shut properly afterwards. Then I had to tackle the letterbox, several previous attempts to seal this by the owner hadn’t worked so I was pleased to see the Ecoflap at the Ecobuild exhibition. The inventor was very enthusiastic and it looked like a good solution so I ordered one. It looks pretty good and is doing the job so far, also seems far more robust than other letterbox covers.
To finish things off I needed to seal the rest of the floorboards and round the skirting. There were a few boards starting to fall apart so I had to replace those. As expected the Draughtex was pretty easy to install and did a good job of sealing the rest of the floorboards. A combination of beading for the larger gaps and builders caulk for the rest sealed around the skirting boards and finished the job.
So, what difference did it make? Well, the first day on the job was cold and windy and I was freezing in the hallway getting the work done. I finished off the floorboards on Friday in pleasant conditions, then when I opened the door I realised the temperature had dropped and it was as cold and windy as the first day. So pretty pleased with the work and the client is chuffed too. We are monitoring the gas bills but it will take a while for that to reveal any differences.
Now for the rest of the house.
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