Another government ECO4 scheme farce
Discussion
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cz0ne0k70dro
It seems whenever Government schemes are offered there's always poor regulation to avoid the usual cowboys and overnight companies getting stuck in.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cz0ne0k70dro
Wasn't there similar issues with cavity wall insulation and the roof tile foam also?
Not only does it bring heartbreak and misery to the homeowners, it wastes taxpayer money and feeds the rouges.
It seems whenever Government schemes are offered there's always poor regulation to avoid the usual cowboys and overnight companies getting stuck in.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cz0ne0k70dro
Wasn't there similar issues with cavity wall insulation and the roof tile foam also?
Not only does it bring heartbreak and misery to the homeowners, it wastes taxpayer money and feeds the rouges.
BBC said:
Render is falling off Scott Proudman's home. As a result, the insulation underneath it is no longer waterproof and damp and mould could grow inside the house.
...
There is black mould on the walls while electric sockets hang loose with the wires exposed. The family says it has been in this condition for months.
Scott doesnt appear to have bothered to make any attempt to prevent the situation getting worse. He knows it's the render, and there's nothing pictured that shows any attempt to minimise the consequences. An umbrella? Bin bag? Anything??...
There is black mould on the walls while electric sockets hang loose with the wires exposed. The family says it has been in this condition for months.
They seem perfectly content to sit in a mouldy house because they didn't cause it.
Hopefully there will be a poster along momentarily to explain that there's some liability quirk which means that he can't touch it without voiding his insurance or such - if not, what a joke.
amusingduck said:
....
They seem perfectly content to sit in a mouldy house because they didn't cause it.
Hopefully there will be a poster along momentarily to explain that there's some liability quirk which means that he can't touch it without voiding his insurance or such - if not, what a joke.
This. I read the story earlier and thought similar. No doubt some of the instalations are poor, or badly designed.They seem perfectly content to sit in a mouldy house because they didn't cause it.
Hopefully there will be a poster along momentarily to explain that there's some liability quirk which means that he can't touch it without voiding his insurance or such - if not, what a joke.
However, once you find you have a problem, surely you would be wiping the walls down every day so this didn't occur.
No, I will just sit here in a mouldy house and ring the BBC.
It is like the householder takes no responsibility for on going care or maintenance.
If I had an issue with moisture ingress, I would document it and then fix it if the original installer wasn't helping.
I realise that would mean spending money - and in some cases maybe the 'victim' doesn't have any, so are backed in to a corner.
Some heat and ventilation might well help - but no, that is too hard.
These cases always look like they are trying to make it someone else's problem.
The issue is that this isn’t mould caused by poor ventilation and humidity. It’s water trapped in the walls and seeping in. You could wipe the walls to prevent the black mould, but that would only work in the places you could get too. Remember, this is coming in from the outside, so the mould will be behind skirting boards and cupboards and all sorts of other places.
As for the render coming away, it’s possible to cover the hole, but that’s just where it has got bad. There’s probably loads of cracks and gaps you can’t see where water is getting in. One hole like that isn’t going to cause huge damp.
It’s easy to look down on people and class them as “poor and stupid” but it’s not that simple. This isn’t just poor ventilation, but water in the walls from the outside being trapped.
As for the render coming away, it’s possible to cover the hole, but that’s just where it has got bad. There’s probably loads of cracks and gaps you can’t see where water is getting in. One hole like that isn’t going to cause huge damp.
It’s easy to look down on people and class them as “poor and stupid” but it’s not that simple. This isn’t just poor ventilation, but water in the walls from the outside being trapped.
Dog Biscuit said:
It seems whenever Government schemes are offered there's always poor regulation to avoid the usual cowboys and overnight companies getting stuck in.
.
While I agree that the funding and leaders of the scheme bear most responsibility here, these issues reflect a wider issue around the building industry. Cheap, fast and crap systems. Poor training and knowledge. Lack of pride, borderline deliberately crap in many ways, and attitude of uncaring. .
Those running these schemes should know this though and be looking for appropriately trained, knowledgeable companies and employees, looking to have clawback clauses or retained funds etc.
DeadShed said:
The issue is that this isn t mould caused by poor ventilation and humidity. It s water trapped in the walls and seeping in. You could wipe the walls to prevent the black mould, but that would only work in the places you could get too. Remember, this is coming in from the outside, so the mould will be behind skirting boards and cupboards and all sorts of other places.
As for the render coming away, it s possible to cover the hole, but that s just where it has got bad. There s probably loads of cracks and gaps you can t see where water is getting in. One hole like that isn t going to cause huge damp.
It s easy to look down on people and class them as poor and stupid but it s not that simple. This isn t just poor ventilation, but water in the walls from the outside being trapped.
It’s a stupid scheme and no one ever seems to check whether these types of properties are suitable for being sealed up.As for the render coming away, it s possible to cover the hole, but that s just where it has got bad. There s probably loads of cracks and gaps you can t see where water is getting in. One hole like that isn t going to cause huge damp.
It s easy to look down on people and class them as poor and stupid but it s not that simple. This isn t just poor ventilation, but water in the walls from the outside being trapped.
BBC said:
National Audit Office (NAO) spending watchdog found that 98% of homes fitted with external wall insulation under ECO4 and the Great British Insulation Scheme since 2022 had major issues that needed to be repaired.
Solar panels, better heating controls, new boilers and whole house heat recovery systems would be more worthwhile if ‘we’ have public money to burn.The vast majority of retrofit will have some sort of problem, regardless of whether done by a cowboy or 'properly'.
The design and materials of the original construction were never intended for it and you'll often end up with some sort of moisture issue.
People start from the idea that extra insulation is good, then work out a way to fit it, but often with little regard to the underlying construction (both the design and how actually built) or to the detailing.
It's all totally foreseeable how it fails.
The design and materials of the original construction were never intended for it and you'll often end up with some sort of moisture issue.
People start from the idea that extra insulation is good, then work out a way to fit it, but often with little regard to the underlying construction (both the design and how actually built) or to the detailing.
It's all totally foreseeable how it fails.
POIDH said:
I agree that retrofit of older, cheaper, post war housing is never going to go well.
But try telling the public, councils and government that as well as building more houses we need to start bulldozing a load of existing housing so we can build them properly...
Or just accept that using a lot of energy & effort to save a small amount of energy is maybe not a brilliant idea in the first place?But try telling the public, councils and government that as well as building more houses we need to start bulldozing a load of existing housing so we can build them properly...
Even at current energy prices a lot of the proposed refurbishment work on rentals for example would take decades to break even. Rebuilding even more so.
Energy efficiency is nice if you're building something new anyway but after the fact doesn't necessarily make sense if taken too far. Usually enough to just cover the lowest hanging fruit and leave it there.
My wife signed up for free cavity insulation while I was working away from home, and yes the house felt warmer the following winter.
The north facing side elevation of our house doesn’t have many windows, as it overlooks the neighbour’s property, and that started showing internal black mould in the corners of both bedrooms on that side. Nothing we tried prevented the mould from reoccurring, until three years ago, when we extended off that wall. Now it isn’t an external wall the issue has gone.
The north facing side elevation of our house doesn’t have many windows, as it overlooks the neighbour’s property, and that started showing internal black mould in the corners of both bedrooms on that side. Nothing we tried prevented the mould from reoccurring, until three years ago, when we extended off that wall. Now it isn’t an external wall the issue has gone.
CoolHands said:
Note to self, next time gov.uk set up any eco scheme , set up relevant company.
Retire to the Bahamas
I've had various people offer cavity wall insulation only for the firms' surveyor to say no - cavities are too narrow in multiple places.Retire to the Bahamas
The last one who came told me the guy he works for spins up a company when the grants are going, then folds it when they stop. He said to stop asking about CWI as eventually someone will say "yes", then if I have a problem I'll find the firm has shut down.
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