Free guide · 14-page PDF · Comparing quotes

Before anyone insulates your walls, ask these 15 questions.

Most of the quality in internal wall insulation ends up hidden behind new plaster. This free buyer's guide from Retrofit Assessor Wojtek Pankowski gives you the questions to ask every installer, what a good answer sounds like and the red flags to watch for.

15 questions covering moisture risk, system choice, thickness and detailing
What good answers sound like, and the red flags that should worry you
Building Regulations, ventilation, guarantees and grants, explained honestly
A side-by-side table for comparing two quotes fairly
A one-page checklist to take to every home visit

What's inside.

Homeowners with solid-walled 1930s or Victorian homes in Walsall, Sutton Coldfield, Solihull and nearby who are researching internal wall insulation or comparing quotes.

01Why ask questions before anyone insulates your walls?
021. How will you assess the moisture risk in my walls?
032. Which system do you recommend for my walls, and why?
043. How thick will it be, and how much room will I lose?
054. How will you detail the window reveals, corners and junctions?
065. What happens at the floor void and the joist ends?
076. What happens to sockets, radiators, pipes and skirting?
087. Does this job need Building Regulations approval?
098. What will you do about ventilation?
109. What guarantee and insurance do I get?
1110. Who will actually do the work?
1211. How long will it take, and how long before I can decorate?
1312. How will you protect my home and keep the mess down?
1413. What happens after you've finished?
1514. Can I get a grant for this?
1615. Can you break the price down so I can compare it fairly?
17How do I compare two insulation quotes side by side?
18Your one-page checklist for home visits
19Would you like me to answer these for your home?

Why ask questions before anyone insulates your walls?

Internal wall insulation (IWI) is one of the few home improvements where most of the quality ends up hidden behind new plaster. Two quotes can look almost identical on paper and produce very different rooms: one warm and dry for decades, the other with cold spots, damp behind the boards or mould around the window.

I'm Wojtek Pankowski, a Retrofit Assessor and Domestic Energy Assessor, and I run aPlastering in Walsall. I wrote this guide for people who are comparing installers and quotes. Ask these 15 questions of anyone, including me. A good installer will be glad you asked.

How to use this guide: each question has why it matters, what a good answer sounds like and the red flags. At the end there's a side-by-side table for comparing two quotes and a one-page checklist to take to your home visits.

Get the full guide free