ROOF AND FLOOR INSULATION

High-spec insulation is obviously a central feature of a 'zero carbon' house. In our roof and ground floor we are using rigid phenolic boards, a synthetic product with the lowest heat conductivity (i.e. best performance) of any insulation on the market. It's important for a south-pitched roof not only for keeping us warm in winter but also for helping us avoid overheating in summer.

Synthetic products such as phenolic boards used to be a poor eco-choice because they were made using ozone-depleting CFCs, then HCFCs and HFCs (only slightly less bad). Happily, our supplier, Kingspan, now makes all its insulation materials using pentane, which does not have significant impacts on either ozone or global warming.

Contact Kingspan on 0870 850 8555, www.insulation.kingspan.com.