GB2063330A - Panel for the insulation of cavity walls - Google Patents

Abstract

The panel, for insulating the cavity 12 between the inner wall leaf 11 and the outer wall leaf 10 of a cavity wall, comprises a drainage board 13, preferably of foamed polystyrene bead material bonded to layer(s) 14, 14' of foamed polystyrene thermal insulation material. The panel may be retained in position in the cavity by cement slurry 15, as shown, or alternatively or additionally metal or plastics wall ties may be used which pass between the abutting edges of adjacent panels. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Method and insulation panel for the insulation of cavity walls This invention relates to an insulation panel for use with a cavity well, the panel in use being placed between the inner and outer wall leaves of the cavity wall to provide thermal insulation and at the same time to prevent moisture passing from the outer wall leaf to the inner wall leaf of the cavity wall. The invention also relates to a method of insulating a cavity wall using such a panel.

The insulation of cavity walls is well known and in addition to the insulation technique which provides for the filling of the cavity with pieces or beads of insulation material, it is also known to use sheets of foamed polystyrene material located and held in position between the outer and inner wall leaves by metal or plastics wall ties which bridge the outer and inner wall leaves of the cavity wall.

The present invention provides an insulation panel for use between the inner wall leaf and the outer wall leaf of a cavity wall, the panel comprising a drainable board secured to a layer of thermal insulation material.

Preferably the drainage board is bonded to the layer of thermal insulation material by adhesive or the like securing means, to form a laminate panel.

The drainage board preferably consists of a foamed (expanded) polystyrene bead material, the said bead material allowing water to pass freely therethrough. The layer of thermal insulation material is preferably a water impermeable layer of foamed (expanded) polystyrene material.

In use the insulation panel is placed between the inner wall leaf and the outer wall leaf of the cavity wall with the exposed surface of the drainage board against the outer wall leaf. A cement slurry (mortar grout) is placed between the faces of the insulation panel and the adjacent faces of the cavity wall such that when the slurry has set it supports and holds the panel in position.

Any water seeping through the outer wall leaf of the cavity wall will pass into the drainage board and will pass downward under gravity through the drainage board to the bottom of the cavity wall where it may be drained away in any conventional manner or allowed to seep into the ground. The latter procedure is a real alternative since the amount of water involved is very small.

The insulation panel also acts as a support and/or reinforcement to the cavity wall in that it extends substantially across the entire width of the cavity between the outer and the inner wall leaves and through the cement slurry is effectively bonded to both the inner wall leaf and the outer wall leaf which comprise the cavity wall.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention a further layer of thermal insulation material is secured to the drainage board on the opposite side thereof to the first layer of such material. Apart from providing added thermal insulation properties this further layer protects the relatively fragile drainage board from damage during on-site handling.

Instead of using a cement slurry to hold the panel in position, conventional metal or plastics wall ties could be used.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 illustrates in cross-section a first embodiment of insulation panel in position in a cavity wall, and Figure 2 illustrates in cross-section a second embodiment of insulation panel in position in a cavity wall.

Referring first to Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings, a cavity wall has an outer wall leaf 10 and an inner wall leaf 11 with a cavity 12 therebetween. An insulation panel comprising a drainage board 13 of a foamed polystyrene bead material adhesively secured to a thermal insulation layer 14 of foamed polystyrene material is inserted into a cavity between the wall leaves 10 and 1 , with the exposed surface of the drainage board 1 3 being placed against the interior surface of the outer wall leaf 10.A cement slurry 1 5 is inserted between the exposed face of the thermal insulation layer 14 of foamed polystyrene material and the interior face of the inner wall leaf 11, and also between the exposed face of the drainage board 13 and the interior face of the outer wall leaf 10. When the cement slurry sets hard it effectively bonds the panel to both the inner wall leaf 11 and the outer wall leaf 10.

Any water which may pass through the outer wall leaf 10 will reach the drainage board 13 and since the board 13 is a bead material the water will not pass transversely through the drainage board 13 but will drain downwards under gravity to the bottom of the cavity wall, where it can safely drain/seep away without causing any damage.

The bonding by cement slurry of the panel to the inner and the outer wall leaves of the cavity wall in addition acts to tie the inner and outer wall leaves together to form an effective cavity wall construction. It will be appreciated that metal or plastics wall ties may additionally or alternatively be employed if considered appropriate.

Referring now to Figure 2, the insulation panel shown therein differs from that shown in Figure 1 of the provision of a second layer of foamed polystyrene thermal insulation material 14' on the opposite side of the drainage board 1 3 to the first layer 14. As before, the layer 14' is bonded to the drainage board 1 3 by adhesive so as to form a laminate panel. However, in both this embodiment and the embodiment of Figure 1 the adhesive should be applied as a discontinuous layer so as to ensure that it does not form a vapour barrier and inhibit the natural movement of water vapour from inside the building.

It is envisaged that the panels be supplied in a range of standard square or rectangular sizes, so that a large area cavity wall may be insulated by assembling the panels edge to edge in the cavity.

To facilitate such assembly each panel would be tongue and grooved at its edge; for example tongues would be provided along two adjacent sides of the panel and complementary grooves provided along the other two sides of the panel.

These tongues and grooves are preferably formed at the edge of the insulation layer 14 which faces the inner wall leaf 11 of the cavity wall, but they may be alternatively or additionally provided at the edge of the layer 14' in the second embodiment.

Where wall ties are used to support the panels, these pass through the joints between adjacent panels, i.e., between the abutting edges of the panels.

In the embodiment described above it is stated that to facilitate assembly of the panels each panel is tongue and grooved at its edge. It will be understood that as an alternative to the provision of tongue and grooved edges on each panel, the said edges may be rabbet joint edges. The use of rabbet joint edges does have, in use, the advantage of minimising waste in the manufacture of the panels, while providing panels which have, in use, the said characteristics and advantages of the panels of the described embodiment.

Claims (12)

1. An insulation panel for use with a cavity wall, the panel comprising a drainage board secured to a layer of thermal insulation material.

2. An insulation panel as claimed in Claim 1, including a further layer of thermal insulation material secured to the drainage board on the opposite side thereof to the first layer.

3. An insulation panel as claimed in Claim 1 or 2, wherein the or each layer of thermal insulation material comprises foamed polystyrene.

4. An insulation panel as claimed in Claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the drainage board comprises a foamed polystyrene bead material.

5. An insulation panel as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the drainage board and layer or layers of thermal insulation material are bonded together to form a laminate structure by a discontinuous layer of adhesive.

6. An insulation panel as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the panel is tongue and grooved at its edge so as to permit a plurality of such panels to be assembled together edge to edge.

7. An insulation panel as claimed in Claim 6, wherein the tongues and grooves are formed at the edges of the, or one of the, layer of insulation material.

8. An insulation panel substantially as described with reference to Figure 1 or Figure 2 of the accompanying drawings.

9. A method of insulating a cavity wall comprising inserting in the cavity between the inner wall leaf and the outer wall leaf one or more insulation panels as claimed in any preceding claim, the layer of thermal insulation material, in the case of a panel having such a layer on only one side of the drainage board, being adjacent the inner wall leaf.

10. A method as claimed in Claim 9, wherein the panel or panels are held in position by grouting.

11. A method as claimed in Claim 9, wherein the panel or panels are held in position by wall ties.

12. A method of insulating a cavity wall substantially as described with reference to Figure 1 or Figure 2 of the accompanying drawings.