“I can keep my home at a comfortable temperature on most days without resorting to using air conditioning.”
Sharyn lives in Pretty Beach in a house built in 2003, which faces north and is sunny and warm in winter. However, when she first moved in, the house didn’t retain heat at all once the sun set, and it’s built on poles so the timber floors got really cold.
The house didn’t have air conditioning and on the warmer summer days Sharyn found that by mid-afternoon it was too hot to remain inside.
“The first thing I did was install blockout blinds on all my windows and a large ceiling fan, but that wasn’t enough. In 2019 I decided to investigate the insulation and discovered the only thing up there was foil lining under the steel roof and some polyester insulation in the wall cavities.”
Thanks to some online research, Sharyn found a product made from sheep’s wool, which could be pumped into the roof cavity. “This was great because I don’t like the idea of fibreglass batts, and I have gable ceilings in most of the house so installing batts would have required taking half the roof sheeting off”.
“I really like the fact that Woolcell is environmentally friendly” says Sharyn. “It’s made from wool, recycled paper, Borax and Boric acid, all natural products, so no fibreglass or materials that are toxic if they burn. The Borax and Boric acid are added to make Woolcell vermin proof and fire retardant”.
Sharyn used 4 Seasons Insulations, who not only pumped Woolcell through a manhole in the ceiling, but also suggested polyester under floor insulation, which was easy to install as the house is on poles.
“This has made a huge difference” says Sharyn, “On really hot days I close the windows and pull the blinds down, and the ceiling fan keeps the living area cool. Even if it’s 40 degree outside, the temperature inside only gets to around 27-28 degrees.”
Sharyn replaced her gas heater with reverse cycle air conditioning around the same time, but because of the insulation, she now only uses it for cooling on those 40 degree days, to bring the temperature down in the hottest part of day.
In winter the sun warms the house during the day and she finds that it now retains the heat really well. “On a sunny winters day I usually put the heating on at about 7pm. I use the ceiling fan on reverse, to push the warm air down. I no longer need snow boots to walk on the floor!”
Sharyn calculates that she has cut her winter gas and electricity bills by over 40%. Her summer cooling costs are minimal since she is only running a ceiling fan and, very occasionally, her air conditioning.
“My house is now a comfortable temperature all year round. I have a lot of glass so the next step will be to upgrade the window coverings for winter.”
4 Seasons Insulations installed the following for Sharyn:
Woolcell roof insulation
Polyester floor insulation
At a cost of $4250 in 2019
Read about all the simple ways you can reduce your energy use and cut emissions.