A Warmer Home, One Step at a Time

A Warmer Home, One Step at a Time

When Helen and her husband bought their 1960s weatherboard home in Rotorua, they knew it needed work but they weren’t rushing into renovations. Over the years, they made a series of smart improvements to get the home warmer and drier: an HRV system to reduce condensation, gas hot water, a heat pump upgrade.

But when it came time to repaint the exterior, Helen insisted on one more step.

"My husband’s a painter, so we were getting ready to repaint the house. I said, we’re not doing that until we’ve insulated the walls. It just made sense to get it done first."

Helen already knew wall insulation could be retrofitted. She remembered her mother having it installed in their family home back in the 1980s. So she got in touch with the team at Insulmax^® Waikato, who talked her through how the process would work and what to expect.

"The whole thing was really fast and easy. We’d been through retrofitting double glazing at another property, and that was a mission. This was completely different – minimal disruption and done in a day."

With ceiling and underfloor insulation already in place when they bought the house, wall insulation was the missing piece.

"Once it was in, we noticed the house held its heat better. We don’t need to run the heat pump as long or as high, and it just feels warmer. Cosier."

Helen says she hasn’t crunched the power bills down to the kilowatt, but for a household of three, their monthly power spend still sits under $200 which she’s more than happy with.

"We insulated the whole house, and I’d say it’s absolutely added value. I wouldn’t do double glazing again, but this? I’d recommend it to anyone. It’s one of the best upgrades we’ve done."