Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE
Volunteers needed to help explore energy efficiency of homes
The project, the first commissioned by the new Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and undertaken by the Leeds Sustainability Institute at Leeds Beckett, in collaboration with Cambridge Architectural Research Ltd, aims to find out how much heat is lost through cavity party walls as well as exploring the effectiveness of insulating cavity party walls.
David Johnston, Professor of Building Performance Evaluation at Leeds Beckett explained: “You may be surprised to hear that if you live in a semi-detached or terraced dwelling then you may be losing heat from your home through the wall between your home and your neighbour; the party wall. If this party wall has a cavity, then it could be an important route for heat loss, especially if the cavity is not very airtight.
“We already know that cavity party walls can cause considerable heat loss, but we need more data – we need to measure the heat loss in more homes – to see how big a problem this is. This research will allow us to better quantify the energy and greenhouse gas emission savings which could be achieved from insulating cavity party walls.”
The researchers are currently looking for volunteers to help with the research. Participants will have sensors fitted to their wall to log temperature and heat flow for up to a maximum of four weeks and will be offered a cash payment of up to £100 for taking part in the study.
Further details of the research project can be found at http://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/as/cebe/beispartywall/