Saving energy and applying for funding.
You ask, we answer.

A. Yes. InstaGroup has been investigating the possibility of insulating flat roofs, and we're pleased to say we can now offer this service. We can provide a full range of flat roof systems that are suitable for both domestic and non-domestic properties.
To find out more get in touch or call our friendly team on 0118 932 8811.
 
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A. How long it takes can vary, depending on the size of your property, number of windows, and how easy it is to reach all the external wall areas. We usually estimate 1-2 weeks from start to finish.

Before we book in your External Wall installation we check that outside walls are structurally sound and have no penetrating damp.

If everything looks good, the InstaGroup project manager will cover off any points with you such as access to electricity and water, temporarily removing wall furniture such as outside lights, drainpipes and satellite dishes, plus – if needed – clearing areas around walls for scaffolding.

Installation itself is straightforward. First our team will affix a system of insulation panels to the outside walls of your property, then apply weather-proof render in the colour and finish of your choice. We will give extra attention to the areas around windows and sills to ensure no break in the insulation which could impact its overall effectiveness.

Installing external Solid Wall insulation takes place outside your home, so you can carry on your daily life pretty much as usual. You can trust us to keep disruption to a minimum.

Insulation experts

Our External Wall insulation systems are professionally installed and meet current building standards regulations. InstaGroup's accredited and experienced technicians use only BBA-approved materials and products.

For honest, expert advice on saving money and warming up your home with insulation get in touch or call our friendly team on 0118 932 8811.
 
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A. At InstaGroup we understand how expensive it can be to heat a home using electricity, oil or LPG (Liquified Petroleum Gas).

If your home is under-insulated it can make the problems of heat loss and high energy bills even higher.

As your home is off the gas mains, ask us about funding for insulation and heating systems available through ECO4 or HUG. You can find out more about these schemes to improve energy efficiency on our 'Funding' page.

Or get in touch for honest, expert advice on saving money on your heating and warming up your home.

Insulation experts

All installations are carried out by InstaGroup's accredited and experienced technicians using approved materials and products.

Find out how we could help with your home insulation or call our friendly, helpful team on 0118 932 8811.

 

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A. It’s all about knowing when your home was built, as methods of construction changed after the 1920s.

As a quick guide, most homes built after the 1920s will have cavity walls. Those built pre-1920s are likely to be of solid wall construction.

Another clue is to take a look at the pattern of the brickwork on the outside of your home.

Pre-1920s homes of solid wall construction will feature a long brick, always followed by a short end brick.

If you’re looking at a cavity wall of post-1920s build, it will only feature bricks laid lengthways.

If the outside walls of your property have been covered or rendered, you could find out the method of construction by measuring the thickness of the walls.

Go to one of your outdoor-facing windows or doors and measure the external wall width. If the wall measures more than 260mm it is probably a cavity wall. A much narrower wall is probably of solid wall construction.

Why are they called ‘cavity walls’?

Cavity walls are built with a gap between two layers of brick, designed to stop rain and damp from outside walls seeping through to the inside. Cavity Wall insulation fills that gap or cavity.

Insulation experts

For advice you can trust, ask your InstaGroup surveyor at your no-obligation survey. You can be sure that our insulation materials meet approved quality standards and your installation will be carried out by qualified and experienced technicians.

Find out how our friendly expertise can help improve your home and energy efficiency. Get in touch today or call our helpful team on 0118 932 8811.

 

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A. If you want to install External Wall insulation for your home you should inform the Building Control Officer at your Local Authority. They can tell you whether or not planning permission is required for your property.

Many properties won’t require planning permission as insulation falls under ‘permitted development’ if the finished result doesn’t dramatically alter the building’s original external appearance.

What is ‘permitted development’?

For the installation to be ‘permitted development’ the materials used would need to be of a similar appearance to those used in the original construction of the building’s exterior. We would take this into consideration when recommending design and wall finishes such as paint, pebbledash or brick slips.

However, if your property is a listed building, or is sited in or near a listed building or conservation area, or if you live in a flat or maisonette, getting planning permission may not be as straightforward.

If walls cannot be insulated externally we can offer alternative solutions such as internal wall insulation. This ensures the character and external features remain unchanged on a property while still giving you the comfort and money saving benefits of insulation.

Insulation experts

You can rest assured that our External Wall insulation systems are professionally approved and meet current building standards regulations when installed as specified. All installations are carried out by InstaGroup's own fully accredited and experienced technicians using only BBA-accredited products.

Find out how one of the leading experts in home insulation can make a big difference to your home and your energy use. Ask for a no-obligation home assessment or call our helpful team on 0118 932 8811.

 

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A. Your home energy assessment will be carried out by InstaGroup’s fully-qualified Domestic Energy Assessor, who is trained to provide expert recommendations for domestic properties.

Our experienced surveyor will arrive at your pre-booked appointment and spend time both inside and outside your home, checking out key areas where your property could be losing heat.

You are welcome to go around with the assessor if you prefer. It’s a good opportunity to talk about your experience of ‘cold spots’, draughts or ‘hard to heat’ areas in your home.

Your surveyor will check the condition of walls and pay close attention to any extensions or conservatories. They will also take photographs of the outside of your property, so we have a visual record for the insulation technicians back at our base.

Another check is to have a look into your loft or roof space: if loft insulation is already installed it’s worth knowing that it might not meet today’s recommended standards.

Lastly, the surveyor will measure up any areas to be treated in order to provide you with an accurate quote.

The survey will take around 15-45 minutes, depending on the size of your property.

Our assessor has years of experience on how you can improve a home’s energy efficiency. They will give you expert recommendations for effective solutions such as Cavity Wall insulation, Solid Wall insulation and Loft insulation.

We can assure you that our no-obligation survey is definitely ‘no obligation’ and you will not be put under any sales pressure. There is no commitment to go ahead with our recommendations and we can leave our written quote while you take time to decide.

The VAT-inclusive InstaGroup home survey fee is £99, but this fee is often covered under Local Authority schemes and grants. In other cases, if you proceed with the work we’ll take the survey fee off the final cost of the installation.

Your home energy assessment will form part of InstaGroup’s 25-year guarantee for workmanship, as our recommendations and survey findings are passed on to a Chartered Surveyor for approval.

Meet our surveyor and find out more about the importance of a home energy assessment.

Recommended insulation from InstaGroup

Find the expert solution to improve the comfort and energy efficiency of your home.

Get in touch now or call our friendly team on 0118 932 8811.

 

Get in touch

 

A. Yes. If you’re receiving the Guaranteed Pension Credit you’ll get your TV licence for free, plus there’s a good chance you’ll qualify for fully-funded insulation. We just have to check that your property is suitable.

If you’re eligible, InstaGroup is approved to carry out the work under the government-backed ECO scheme. This provides funding to help improve the warmth and comfort of homes that need it most.

We offer extensive experience in applying for insulation grants through ECO, so ask our advice. If you qualify we’ll even take care of all the necessary paperwork.

It could be worth spreading the news to family or friends that a free TV licence could also mean free insulation. So more people can look forward to enjoying the TV in cosy comfort this winter.

Recommended insulation from InstaGroup

We offer expert solutions to improve home energy efficiency across the south-east and south-west of England.

Get in touch now or call our friendly team on 0118 932 8811.

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A. If your home is joined to another property we can plan your Cavity Wall installation around it.

For semi-detached or end-of-terrace properties our installers will use a special wall cavity barrier or ‘brush’. This effectively blocks the shared wall cavities and prevents the insulation material spilling into neighbouring cavity wall sections.

Our installers usually refer to this as ‘brushing off’ sections of wall where this will be necessary.

We offer shared and party wall insulation

It may be worth asking your neighbours if they want to add Cavity Wall insulation to their home at the same time as your installation. We can carry out an installation for both properties easily.

Take our expert advice

You can ask our expert surveyor about insulating a home with shared walls at your no-obligation home survey.

We can also advise on grants and funds that may be available to cover the cost of installing your Cavity Wall insulation, including the government-backed ECO scheme.

Recommended insulation from InstaGroup

InstaGroup has over 35 years’ of experience and offers your home the reassurance of a professional installation.

We’re recommended insulation installers across the south-east and south-west of England. Whatever your property’s size or age, our expert team can help.

To find out more contact us today or call our friendly, helpful team on 0118 932 8811.

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A. When installed properly insulation shouldn’t increase condensation in your home. In fact, it can actively help to prevent it.

Installing External Wall insulation and Cavity Wall insulation will warm up the surface temperature of indoor walls, and this makes water vapour less likely to condense on the walls. With less condensation, there’s less worry about damp walls.

Insulation and ventilation

Today’s homes can be fairly air tight, and everything from breathing and bathtime to cooking and doing the laundry can produce water vapour. So adequate ventilation is always vital.

If you’re planning on adding insulation it’s well worth asking a professional installer such as InstaGroup to first carry out a thorough home survey. As part of our service we’ll check to see if your home needs extra air vents to help it ‘breathe’ effectively, which will help to remove any excess moisture.

We offer the same conscientious approach when we install Roof and Loft insulation. A good ventilation system in the loft area will prevent potentially troublesome condensation forming, which can happen when air from the warm rooms below meets the colder surfaces in the loft.

Take our expert advice

You can trust our expert surveyor when they recommend adding air vents to your property as part of your installation. With our extensive experience we can supply a variety of solutions including roof vents and trickle vents.

If you would like any further advice, including installing insulation through schemes such as ECO, please get in touch.

Insulation experts

InstaGroup has over 35 years’ of experience and can give you and your home the reassurance of a professional installation.

We’re recommended insulation installers across the south-east and south-west of England, so whatever your property’s size or age, our expert team can help.

To find out more contact us today or call our friendly, helpful team on 0118 932 8811.

Get in touch

 

A. It’s possible you could install insulation in your home with funding through ECO4.

ECO is the Energy Company Obligation – a government-backed energy efficiency scheme that helps to save energy and warm up homes for people on lower incomes while also reducing UK carbon emissions.

ECO4 is focused on the households who need the most help to improve their energy efficiency. Funds will help to reduce energy bills and keep homes warmer.

Under the ECO scheme the larger energy suppliers help to fund the installation of energy efficiency improvements for eligible households.

The energy suppliers work with installers such as InstaGroup to improve homes by installing approved measures such as Loft insulation and Cavity Wall insulation, and in some cases Solid Wall insulation and boilers or heating systems.

Do you qualify?

We can help find out if you could qualify for ECO grant if you contact us and our expert surveyor carries out a no-obligation home energy assessment.

But as a quick guide, take a look at our Funding page in the main menu.

We often work with local authorities to help support the installation of insulation in social housing, so if you can apply through a local scheme we can let you know.

Take our expert advice

If you would like any advice on improving your energy efficiency at home, including installing insulation through schemes such as ECO, please get in touch.

InstaGroup has over 40 years’ of experience and can give you and your home the reassurance of a professional installation. You can be assured that we are able to carry out work under ECO – just ask to see our credentials at your survey.

Insulation experts

We’re recommended insulation installers across the south of England, so whatever the size or age of your property, our expert team can help.
To find out more contact us today or call our friendly, helpful team on 0118 932 8811.


 

A. First we’d need to know how old your property is, plus some more details about its internal layout, so we could give you an accurate answer.

At InstaGroup we treat all homes as unique, which is why we always recommend an expert home assessment before we tailor a solution that suits you and your home.

Take our expert advice

If your home was built before the 1970s, we can tell you that Loft insulation was not routinely installed back then. So, our first action would be to check the loft and roof for any insulation.

If your house is uninsulated, the heat from downstairs (where it’s lovely and warm) will be rising and escaping through the uninsulated roof or loft space.

Older features such as ‘boxed out’ dormer windows could be another potential issue. Dormer windows projecting out of the pitched roof in upstairs rooms were often left uninsulated. Without insulation, the heat will be leaking directly out – and your home would definitely feel much colder upstairs.

Solutions for all homes

We can offer a number of solutions for treating a home that’s cold upstairs.

Depending on the property, we could recommend specialised insulation boards, which we can fix securely to the inside of the pitched roof and on the inside of sloping ceilings and dormer walls to help keep in the warmth.

We could also offer remedies that involve insulating previously ‘hard to reach’ places, such as in tight roof corners and under the eaves. For this we could use insulation material or special insulating wool that can blown by machine into any problem areas we’ve identified.

Recommended insulation from InstaGroup

As more and more people are converting loft space into valuable living and bedroom space, it’s becoming increasingly popular to retrofit roof insulation to maintain a warm and cosy home. Please ask us about Room in Roof insulation if you’re planning on expanding your home upwards.

We’re recommended insulation installers across the south-east and south-west of England, so whatever the size, shape or age of your property, InstaGroup can help.

For an effective solution that will suit your home and warm up your rooms, book your no-obligation home assessment now or call us on 0118 932 8811.

 
Find out more about Loft Insulation

 

A. We can reassure you that our Loft insulation does not attract pests such as mice, birds, moths and insects.

All Loft insulation material installed by InstaGroup is specially pre-treated to repel pests and rodents. This helps to prevent the insulation becoming an attractive place for bedding or nesting.

Take our expert advice

We can tell you more about insulating your loft when you book a no-obligation home assessment.

We can estimate how long it might take for your particular property (it’s usually a matter of hours) and let you know how we’ll approach the installation. We can also talk through the extra attention to detail that comes with expert installation.

For example, you can be sure that we’ll pay close attention to any electric cables and downlights and take these into consideration when we carry out the installation. And we’ll check to make sure that there’ll be adequate ventilation in the loft space which is vital to ensure air movement.

Because warmth is no longer escaping up through the roof, the loft space will become colder. So we can advise on including insulation for the pipework or water tanks to prevent them freezing up when it gets cold.

Further professional recommendations include insulating around the frame of the loft hatch to prevent heat from the upstairs rooms leaking into the loft space above.

Recommended insulation from InstaGroup

We’re recommended insulation installers across the south-east and south-west of England, so whatever the size, shape or age of your property, InstaGroup’s expert team can help.

For an effective solution that will suit your home and warm up your rooms, contact us today or call us on 0118 932 8811.

Find out more about Loft Insulation

 

A. Depending on your circumstances, the government-backed ECO scheme could fully-fund the installation of your Loft insulation and Cavity Wall insulation.

Please check our Funding page in the main menu to find the most up to date information.

Recommended insulation from InstaGroup

If you qualify for the ECO scheme we’d be happy to help you apply for insulation grants.

We can offer years of experience in securing home energy efficiency grants for our customers. We can also let you know if any further funding is currently available through your Local Authority or local council to cover the cost of insulating your home.

It’s good to know that we’re recommended insulation installers across the south-east and south-west of England. If you want to know more about what we can do for you, please get in touch.

Take our expert advice

In some cases, an ECO grant can be used towards the cost of installing Solid Wall insulation and even a replacement Boiler. Just ask us about this when you contact us, or find out more at your no-obligation home energy assessment.

Remember that schemes and grants can end or change, so if you have any questions on what’s currently available, give us a call on 0118 932 8811.

Find out more about ECO

 

A. Many customers ask us if it’ll be alright to store boxes, suitcases and other things on top of the Loft Insulation once it’s installed.

Our answer is that squashing down the insulation will reduce its effectiveness. Once flattened, the fibre won’t be able to trap as much warm air, which will reduce the efficiency of your installation.

Take our expert advice

You can still use your loft or attic space for storage after insulation has been installed, it just takes a few simple adaptions.

We recommend laying loft boards over the joists after installation is complete – we may be able to provide this service for you at an extra cost. Another solution is to fit metal struts called ‘Loft Legs’ to the joists. These can support ply or chipboard panels, forming a useful storage platform above the insulation.

Recommended insulation from InstaGroup

You can tell us about your storage needs at your no-obligation survey. We’re recommended insulation installers across the south-east and south-west of England, so get in touch today on 0118 932 8811.

 
Find out more about Loft Insulation

 

A. No. We're pleased tell you that our Cavity Wall insulation is expected to have a lifetime of over 40 years. It's worth remembering, however, that you should still undertake normal home and building maintenance and wall repair to keep your home weather resistant.

We’re recommended insulation installers across the south-east and south-west of England. If you want to know more about what we can do for you, just get in touch.

A word of expert advice

When installed professionally, Cavity Wall insulation is almost always maintenance-free. But the efficiency of the insulation can be affected if any new structural work is carried out in the home. For example, if a conservatory or extension is added, or if new windows or doors are installed. In fact, anything that involves ‘knocking through’ external wall sections can cause the insulation material in the cavity to drop out. This can leave cold spots where the insulation is missing or incomplete, and that's not an ideal result.

Insulation experts

If you plan to make changes to your home, InstaGroup can quote for remedial work, making sure your Cavity Wall insulation continues to work at its best. We can also install replacement doors and windows at the same time, if needed. Our professional 'all-round' approach ensures you keep all the benefits of your insulation, while minimising the need for future improvements.

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