HEALTHY HOMES COOPERATION

WARMTH FROM HEAD TO TOE

IN THE COOLER WEATHER, WEARING SOCKS IS A QUICK FIX FOR COLD FEET, BUT DAMIEN MCGILL FROM THE HEALTHY HOME COOPERATION DELVES DEEPER AND CONSIDERS HOW TO WARM OUR FEET FROM THE GROUND UP.

DAMIEN MCGILL Director of the Healthy Home Cooperation

Heading into Easter, we’ll begin diving into the sock drawer for some thick woolly socks to keep our feet warm, so shouldn’t we also consider properly insulating the floors of our homes?

A warm, dry, healthy home starts at the foundations. With 10 to 35 per cent of your heating bill disappearing out through the sides and base of your floor, you’ll agree it’s worth doing something to reduce years of ongoing wallet pain.

New energy efficiency regulations came into effect on 29 November 2021, requiring a greater level of insulation for new homes under and around the floors.

In the South Island, this means minimum construction insulation values of R1.6 or R1.7 for concrete slabs and R3.0 for timber floors.

How can this be achieved? And where does this extra insulation need to go?

The biggest bang for your buck is always to insulate the slab edge as this area is most exposed to cold winter temperatures. BRANZ (the Building Research Association of New Zealand) recommends insulating a 1.2-metre strip back from the edge to further improve performance.

However, since under-slab insulation cannot be easily retrofitted or upgraded at a later date, I would always recommend that the whole slab be fully insulated, both underneath and around the perimeter. This includes the base of the ribs between the waffle pods, missing in the render above.

The insulation will most likely be polystyrene, as this currently is the most cost-effective material available. Slab insulation comes at a low cost to buy and install, but it needs good protection during construction so that the future insulation layer is not damaged.

One company I have been working with for nearly ten years specialises in providing insulated concrete slabs. MAXRaft has provided warm, healthy feet with reduced power bills to over 3000 homes since 2010.

MAXRaft provides a full range of insulated slab options to suit the ground conditions of your site and the degree of energy efficiency you require. A standard MAXRaft slab can provide insulation ratings in excess of R4, depending on the floor layout. Pre-cut in the factory to minimise site waste, with a site-specific layout plan, the insulation system goes together like a giant jigsaw puzzle for your builder, or MAXRaft can install it for you themselves.

For high-performance homes like Superhomes and Passive Houses, a fully insulated slab is a mandatory requirement.

It just makes sense to have comfortably warm feet.