Reduce height of ceiling to improve heating

[rreanor]

I have very high ceilings (old victorian property).

Can a fake ceiling be added to reduce the overall height and improve insulation? If so, what products would be used? I also have a loft space above which doesnt have a membrane, so despite a lot of insulation up there i could be losing extra heat.

 

[SFK]

Can a fake ceiling be added to reduce the overall height and improve insulation

Yes - have a look at metal frame ceilings

loft space above which doesnt have a membrane

A cold drafty loft is not an issue - and actually helps reduce possible moisure and rot up there.
You will not gain by adding membrane.
Better to add more insulation onto of ceiling.

However - presuming you have victiorian walls, there is a point where you will be losing more heat through cold walls.

SFK

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Suspended ceiling, as often used in offices? Add insulation over tiles to improve on it.

 

[^woody^]

But you would have to insulate the lower ceiling to the standard of the loft ceiling and design it to take the weight and spans, and that alone would make the whole thing a complete waste of time and money - more than the cost of the tiny amount of extra heating

 

[scbk]

If you reduced the ceiling height by say 1/5th, you then have 1/5th less volume to heat.

Also hot air rises, and hot air isn't much use if it's 12ft up.

 

[cwhaley]

My parents did the reverse in their 1900 house. They took out the ceilings and false beams to reveal another 4ft of space above them! The whole of the front room felt so much airier, brighter and bigger -- definitely worth it. I remember they insulated the outside walls only and the difference in heating costs were pretty negligible.

I'm also of the view it'd be of little worth.

 

[^woody^]

If you reduced the ceiling height by say 1/5th, you then have 1/5th less volume to heat.

Also hot air rises, and hot air isn't much use if it's 12ft up.

In a game of pseudo-science poker, I'll see your "hot air rises", and raise you a "air is a good insulator".

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

If you reduced the ceiling height by say 1/5th, you then have 1/5th less volume to heat.

Also hot air rises, and hot air isn't much use if it's 12ft up.

A ceiling mounted fan can help with that.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

I'm also of the view it'd be of little worth.

Double the air volume of a room, it will almost double the amount of heat input in needs to heat it - dependant on insulation.

 

[JP_]

Why not just insulate with insulated plasterboard. OK, it won't reduce total height much, but it will stop heat rising to the rooms above, and it will have to circulate down again, or at least, warm the whole room.

This is £94 / sheet, not cheap, but then lowering a ceiling is not going to be cheap either.
https://www.insulationsuperstore.co...nsulation-board-2400mm-x-1200mm-x-82-5mm.html

Are the floors insulated? Drafts and cold floors will make a big difference to the temperature of the room too.

My ceilings are 2.5m and the rooms are insulated and warm

 

[cwhaley]

Double the air volume of a room, it will almost double the amount of heat input in needs to heat it - dependant on insulation.

That's the key point I think -- depends on the specifics of the environment the ceiling is in.

 

[drpepe]

Upgrade the radiators, stop droughts & be less stingy with the heating.

I’ve done that in my last 2 Victorian houses successfully. Much cheaper and less destructive than installing new ceilings.

 

[^woody^]

Double the air volume of a room, it will almost double the amount of heat input in needs to heat it - dependant on insulation.

There are lots of things that can disprove that very narrow statement, but in practical terms in the case of the OP in his suburban house, the heat required to heat the room now, may well be the very same amount that is required to heat it if the ceiling was lowered.

But the key issue is, and always is whenever heating a home is concerned, is what's going to keep the heat in?

 

[BlueLoo]

Double the air volume of a room, it will almost double the amount of heat input in needs to heat it - dependant on insulation.

Isn't it more free surface area as it is that which is losing the heat (assuming reasonable hold-cold air circulation. The volume is irrelevant.

I would think insulation the walls and ceiling as is would be a better solution. A false ceiling won't cure heat loss either through it (unless its designed such) or through the walls. Adding a void above will just trap any heat leaking into it.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Isn't it more free surface area as it is that which is losing the heat (assuming reasonable hold-cold air circulation. The volume is irrelevant.

I would think insulation the walls and ceiling as is would be a better solution. A false ceiling won't cure heat loss either through it (unless its designed such) or through the walls. Adding a void above will just trap any heat leaking into it.

Much depends on the temperature of the room(s) above the one in question, the rooms next to it and the insulation of the adjacent outer wall. If a ceiling is added, the temperature of the air above the ceiling will be reduced and thus less warmth will be lost through surfaces adjacent to the above ceiling space. A lowered ceiling also has the advantage of the heat within the room not being able to rise so high, leaving it colder at the lower levels.