I blame the tree-huggers

[marisca]

Driven by a government sponsored urge to save the planet I spent a small fortune on even more loft insulation. It does work and last year our gas spend was about the same as the previous year, despite the price hikes. This year I was quite pleased to see how the snow stayed on our roof - that was until the gutters were ripped out by the weight of the stuff. I now think it would have been considerably cheaper to just not bother.

So tip of the week - if you get loft insulation, get snow-boards fitted to your roof at the same time. Bah, humbug!

[sarabande]

being an ancient, I am supposed to qualify for the governmunt's free insulation scheme.

So...

I filled in the forms, spoke to a selection of fine ladies over the telephonic speaky thing (fearing not that our discreet conversation was being recorded for posterity and training porpoises) and eagerly awaited the arrival of "Our Engineer".

OE duly turned up, climbed the eighty yards (or 160 cubits as we say on Exmoor) of the 45 degree slope of the drive, regained his breath and said, There's no way we can get a 7 and a 1/2 ton lorry up this slope, so I am afraid we can't insult your house. And departed.

And there, despite three other visits from qualified, slope-climbing Engineers, we remain. A partially insulated house, full of frozen pensioners, cats and assorted dogs, because the standard operating procedures for the highly subsidised and profitable insulation companies preclude any service if they cannot drive their pantechnica up to the front door.

I reckon I am going to fill the roof void with sheep, and see what happens.

[Arghiro]

Ours was done & ever since the squirrels & rats have been very grateful for the lovely warm runways under the 8" of rockwool.

Very hard to catch'em it is too - you can't put walk boards down or the pressure between the joists can push the plasterboard off.

[Telo]

Ours was done & ever since the squirrels & rats have been very grateful for the lovely warm runways under the 8" of rockwool.

Can't be good for their lungs or complexions though.

[marisca]

Another result of the freeze. Cycled down to Port Edgar and the worst bit was avoiding the potholes, mostly new since the freeze. The cooncil has been very proud of the amount of salt they've thrown on the road but I bet they don't have the budget to repair the damage that could have been avoided by leaving the snow alone. So have sympathy for the poor cyclist weaving about on the road - he may just be trying to keep his wheels intact.

Was a nice gentle sail - another 2 sails sighted.

[Julian]

Driven by a government sponsored urge to save the planet I spent a small fortune on even more loft insulation. It does work and last year our gas spend was about the same as the previous year, despite the price hikes. This year I was quite pleased to see how the snow stayed on our roof - that was until the gutters were ripped out by the weight of the stuff. I now think it would have been considerably cheaper to just not bother.

So tip of the week - if you get loft insulation, get snow-boards fitted to your roof at the same time. Bah, humbug!

What are snow boards and how do they work?

[marisca]

They are planks of wood on edge, mounted on strong brackets attached to the roof. Their function is to stop snow sliding off. Particularly recommended where conservatories or other fragile roofed structures need protection.

[Julian]

They are planks of wood on edge, mounted on strong brackets attached to the roof. Their function is to stop snow sliding off. Particularly recommended where conservatories or other fragile roofed structures need protection.

would that not affect normal water drainage? Or do they have gaps along the length?

[marisca]

The boards are not tight on the slates so not a problem.
shows a hi-tech version

[Julian]

The boards are not tight on the slates so not a problem.
shows a hi-tech version

Right, that makes sense, thank you... it's a leaf collector lol