FreeSurvey across Fairmilehead & Comiston and the surrounding area
Loft Insulation Fairmilehead & Comiston
Fairmilehead and Comiston sit on the southern edge of Edinburgh, on ground that rises towards the Pentland Hills. The housing is mostly family houses and bungalows with lofts of their own, which makes this one of the most straightforward parts of the city for the work, and one of the most worthwhile.
- Free, no-obligation survey
- Written quote, no hard sell
- Fairmilehead & Comiston and the surrounding streets
“He took videos to show what was happening in loft and what would be required.” Heather, Trustpilot
Get your Fairmilehead loft survey
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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
Higher ground, more wind, more heat loss
The south side climbs steadily from Morningside towards the city bypass, and by the Fairmilehead crossroads the Pentlands are directly ahead. Houses up here catch more wind than those in the sheltered middle of the city, and wind is what strips heat from a poorly insulated roof.
In a loft with a thin, settled layer of old insulation, cold air coming in at the eaves passes straight over the top of it. The ceiling below loses heat through the thin layer and to the air washing across it. Bringing the depth up to 270mm deals with both, and on an exposed plot the difference is felt more than it would be on a sheltered terrace lower down.
Ventilation still matters
The answer to wind is not to block the eaves. The roof space needs air moving through it to stay dry, and an exposed roof is if anything more likely to let wind-driven rain in. We keep the ventilation path at the eaves open, fit eaves trays where the insulation meets the roof slope, and seal the hatch and the gaps around pipes and cables, where warm, damp air from the house would otherwise rise into the loft.
Fairmilehead & Comiston housing and what it needs
- Interwar and post-war bungalows: generous open lofts, often with an original layer that is now thin and compressed.
- Family semis and detached houses: large roof areas and good access, so the biggest savings available locally.
- Victorian houses in Comiston: tall roofs of slate on sarking, where the eaves need the most care.
- Buckstone's later estates: built with some insulation, but rarely to the depth now recommended.
- Newer developments on the old hospital and waterworks sites: usually close to current standard already, so we will tell you if there is little to gain.
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.
A good installer looks at the whole roof, not just the depth on the joists. Heat loss through gaps around the hatch and recessed lights can be as large as the loss through a thin layer, and fixing both is what brings energy bills down. If you would like easier access to the storage, a loft ladder can be installed on the same day.
Where Fairmilehead sits, and why that matters
Fairmilehead centres on the crossroads where Comiston Road becomes Biggar Road, with Comiston to the north, Buckstone to the east, Oxgangs to the west and the bypass and the hills to the south. Comiston is the older of the two, and its springs supplied the city with piped water from 1680.
The area is mostly owner-occupied family housing, and many households have been in the same house for a long time. That usually means a loft that was insulated once, years ago, and has not been looked at since. Old insulation settles and compresses, and a layer that was 100mm when it went in is often nearer 60mm now.
Lofts here are also more likely to be used for storage. If boards have been laid straight onto the joists, the insulation underneath is trapped at joist depth. Raised boarding on legs lets the full depth go in underneath without losing the storage.
Other areas we cover near Fairmilehead
We work right across the city. If your street sits on the boundary, these are the neighbouring pages.
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
Usually, yes. If you can see the tops of the joists, there is roughly 100mm or less, and the second layer laid across the joists is where most of the gain comes from. If the loft is already close to 270mm, we will say so.
Houses here have larger roof areas than the city average, so expect the middle to upper part of the range rather than the bottom. The survey turns it into a fixed written price rather than an estimate.
Yes. Boards laid directly on the joists crush whatever is underneath. We can lift them, insulate to full depth and fit raised boarding on legs, so you keep the storage.
The target depth is the same, around 270mm of mineral wool. What changes is how carefully the eaves, the hatch and the gaps are detailed, because wind finds every weakness on higher ground.
Possibly very little. Recent builds are insulated to a much higher standard than older homes. If the survey shows yours is already close to full depth, we will tell you and leave it there.
Yes. We work right across the south of the city, including Buckstone, Swanston, Oxgangs, Greenbank and Morningside.
Book a free Fairmilehead 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.