FreeSurvey across Colinton and the surrounding area
Loft Insulation Colinton
Colinton grew from a village in a steep glen on the Water of Leith, and it is now one of the city's conservation areas. Its best-known houses are the Arts and Crafts cottages Sir Robert Lorimer designed in the early 1900s, and their roofs are a long way from a standard loft.
- Free, no-obligation survey
- Written quote, no hard sell
- Colinton and the surrounding streets
“He took videos to show what was happening in loft and what would be required.” Heather, Trustpilot
Get your Colinton loft survey
FreeNo obligationWritten quote
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- £0
for the survey and written quote, with nothing to pay if the work is not worth doing
- 1 day
is all most lofts take, with the eaves kept clear and the house left tidy
- 7 days
a week, 9am to 7pm. Call free on 0800 433 2068
- 2016
family-run and working across Scotland ever since
Steep roofs, coombed rooms and listed buildings
Colinton's older houses were built with steep, complicated roofs: big gables, slopes that sweep down low over the walls, and bedrooms tucked into the roof under coombed ceilings. That is a large part of their character, and it means there is often very little open loft left at all.
Where there is a loft, it may be a narrow triangle above the upstairs ceiling, reached through a small hatch. Where the rooms run up into the roof, the heat is lost through the sloping ceilings and the short walls at the eaves, and that is room in roof insulation rather than a loft floor job.
What needs permission, and what does not
Insulation laid at ceiling level is internal and invisible from the street, so conservation area status does not restrict it. A number of Colinton houses are also listed, and listing covers the interior as well as the outside. Laying insulation between and over the ceiling joists is normally treated as reversible, but work at rafter level in a listed building is a different matter and may need listed building consent.
We are not the authority on your particular building. If it is listed, a short call to the City of Edinburgh Council before work starts is free and settles it.
Colinton housing and what it needs
- Arts and Crafts cottages and early 1900s houses: steep roofs, rooms in the roof and small, awkward loft spaces that need careful surveying.
- Victorian and Edwardian villas along Colinton Road: tall roofs with a real loft above the top floor, usually slate on sarking boards.
- Twentieth-century bungalows and semis around the village: conventional lofts and straightforward work.
- Converted attics: the most common reason a Colinton job turns into rafter-level work.
- Modern infill and newer houses: often already near full depth, so there may be little to add.
Whatever the property, the target is the same: 270mm of mineral wool at ceiling level, laid in two layers because joists are typically 100mm deep, with the eaves left clear so the roof can still ventilate. That depth is guidance for an existing home rather than a legal requirement, and it is the point past which extra material stops paying for itself.
We install loft and roof insulation only. No cavity wall insulation, no underfloor work, and no spray foam, which bonds to the roof timbers and causes problems at sale. Where old material is dry and clean it is topped up rather than removed, which is cheaper and works just as well.
On a roof like this, the cheapest installer is rarely the right one. Insulation installed without regard to the eaves causes condensation, and on an old Colinton roof that costs far more to put right than it ever saves on energy bills. Ask for a written note of what will be done at the eaves before any work starts.
Old timber, natural slate and why the roof has to breathe
Most of Colinton's older roofs are natural slate on close-boarded sarking with no modern membrane underneath. That construction stays dry because air moves through the roof space and carries moisture away.
Insulating the ceiling makes the roof space colder, and colder air holds less moisture before it condenses on the underside of the sarking. So the eaves have to stay clear. Packing insulation hard into the eaves to stop a draught is the most common fault we find in older lofts, and on a roof like this it can turn a dry loft damp within a winter or two.
The old village sits low in the glen beside the Water of Leith and the Dell, which is damper ground than the open suburbs above it. That is another reason to get the ventilation right, and to look for any existing damp before new material goes down.
Other areas we cover near Colinton
We work right across the city. If your street sits on the boundary, these are the neighbouring pages.
- Loft insulation Juniper Green, Currie & Balerno
- Loft insulation Oxgangs
- Loft insulation Craiglockhart & Longstone
For the citywide picture, including grants and how we price the work, see loft insulation in Edinburgh.
The work, filmed as it happens
Short clips from real jobs. Nothing staged, and nothing loads until you press play.
What people say after the survey
Our reviews are published on Trustpilot under Easy-Sprayaway, the other name we trade as.
“Ross showed me the video he took of my loft and explained his findings. I went for the Easy Quilt.”
“James McMillan came & completed a full survey of my loft space. Explained everything clearly & answered all my questions.”
“Rayan was very efficient and knowledgeable about the product. He explained the benefit of having the work done.”
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Loft insulation at ceiling level is internal and invisible from outside, so conservation area status does not restrict it. Rooflights, dormers and external wall insulation are different and do need consent.
Insulation laid between and over the ceiling joists does not usually need listed building consent, because it alters nothing visible and can be removed. Work at rafter level, or anything that changes the roof, may need it. Check with the City of Edinburgh Council before work starts.
It varies more here than almost anywhere in the city. A villa with an open loft is a standard job. A cottage with rooms in the roof is priced on the slopes and dwarf walls, which takes longer. The survey turns it into a fixed written price.
Mineral wool is right for most lofts. On older breathable construction where moisture is a concern, natural fibres are worth considering, and our hemp and mineral wool comparison sets out the trade-offs. We recommend the material after seeing the roof, not before.
Only if the ventilation is ignored. A colder roof space holds less moisture before it condenses, so the eaves must stay clear. Keeping that air path open while reaching full depth is the part that takes care.
Yes. We work right across the south west of the city, including Juniper Green, Bonaly, Craiglockhart, Oxgangs and Currie.
Book a free Colinton loft survey
We go into the roof space, tell you what it needs and put a written quote in your hands. No pressure and no obligation.