Consumer Watchdog: Hot tips on staying cosy

Homestar insulation assessor Verney Ryan. Photo / Ted Baghurst

Hundreds of dollars worth of heat is going out the window - and the ceiling, floor and walls - of poorly insulated New Zealand homes.

Homestar home assessors said about 1.6 million homes in the country are inadequately insulated. Insulation assessor Verney Ryan said Kiwis could save money and make their homes significantly drier and warmer with straightforward changes.

The Herald on Sunday accompanied Ryan as he assessed a typical family home in Auckland.

Waimarie Hadfield, a St John ambulance volunteer, lives in the two-bedroom rental property with her daughters, Cherish, 9, and Amiria, 16.

All three suffer from bad asthma and moved to Auckland from Turangi last year to be closer to specialised medical facilities. But their symptoms have become worse.

Ryan began his inspection in the roof and found the Hadfield house had loose "cellulose fibre" insulation, - only a centimetre deep in places.

He said a quarter of household heat was lost through ceilings that didn't have insulation, and that 30cms of fibreglass blanketing would solve the problem.

Installation would cost around $1500 in the Hadfield's house. The Government's Energy Wise $1300 subsidy would apply as the house was built before 2000.

In the floor space, Ryan discovered torn foil insulation probably caused by the neighbour's cats. He said a thick blanket of fibreglass, with polythene around the joisting, would significantly reduce the 25 litres of moisture that typically rose into a house every day from the soil.

"This moisture makes the air much more difficult to warm and encourages mould," Ryan said.

He pointed out small patches of mould growing in corners of the ceiling. "It's not an indication of uncleanliness in any way."

Moisture from cooking and steam from the bathroom were huge contributors and extractor fans above the stove and in the bathroom would reduce the amount of mould, Ryan added.

The Hadfield family do not hang laundry inside, which the assessor commended. "Otherwise, you get all this damp air circulating around."

In the bedrooms, Ryan recommended floor-length curtains to prevent heat being lost out of the single-glazed windows. And Roman blinds in the kitchen would trap more heat inside, especially as the living areas were open-plan.

The single fan heater in the living room would eat around 58 cents every hour, according to Consumer NZ, yet only heat the immediate area. Ryan said a portable oil column heater would be a power-friendly way of adding warmth. An even better option would be a wall-mounted heat pump, which the Energy Wise scheme would subsidise by $500.

Ryan said houses built before 1978 did not require buildings to have any insulation and modern homes were often built with the absoluteminimum required by law.

Homestar, an initiative put together by the New Zealand Green Building Council, Beacon Pathway and BRANZ, assesses homes and provides advice for becoming more energy efficient.

It also runs a free online tool for people to assess their home.