Cold old house

[sxturbo]

in my original post I do state that a new damp course was put in.
The vents were blocked up after taking advice, it seems that old houses needed vents to keep coal fires lit. The chimney has been blocked up with a small vent .

They have vents to stop condensation and mould growth.

The condensation is caused by warm air hitting the cold surface of the single skin wall.

This isn't an issue on cavity wall construction houses so they don't need the vents In the wall.

 

[pyounger]

I have one of those surface laser thermometers that you point a laser beam at the wall to get the surface temperature. I’ve just popped round to do some measuring. The coldest room (ambient temp about 17 deg C) is the hallway. The outside wall (gable end of house) is just 15.2 deg C. The internal wall directly opposite is 18.3deg C. The radiator is some distance from where I took the measurements, there is no radiator on the other side of the internal wall, which is a small sitting room hardly used.

the wall surface temp difference in other rooms is similar. It’s mild today and dry. I don’t know if all that has any great meaning to the problem.

I must say that my last house was a similar age, size and construction, also an end terrace with a ‘wind tunnel’ of a gap between our side wall and next doors and our house was not nearly as cold as his and our gas use was lower……… maybe it’s a ghost!

 

[^woody^]

A surface laser is not the best instrument for measuring internal air temperature

 

[pyounger]

A surface laser is not the best instrument for measuring internal air temperature

sure, I used it to messer the surface temperature of the walls. I used a standard spirit room thermometer for the ambient room temperature

 

[sxturbo]

Insulated wallpaper works well.

 

[^woody^]

You still seem to be fixated on something that is not actually relevant. Your measurements don't actually mean anything, other than being temperature readings

 

[pyounger]

You still seem to be fixated on something that is not actually relevant. Your measurements don't actually mean anything, other than being temperature readings

no, not fixated, just answering a point Woody made. And as I said I just wondered if it was of any relevance.

Since starting this posting Jeff is thinking of trying 32mm insulated plasterboard on walls that don’t have radiators or the boiler up against them and trying out the previously recommended insulating lining paper on walls with radiators - fingers crossed!

 

[Old Salt]

If you want to know whats going on I would think you need to turn all the heating off, take the external temperature and then the ambient in each room hourly for several days. Only then will you know if the coldest room is really the coldest room or the one with the poorest heating or heat retention. I cant make any practical suggestions other than my bungalow has a colder room, its north facing with 2 external walls.