Loft Insulation Pollok
Most Pollok homes have a loft worth insulating. The thing that catches people out is not the roof, it is getting into it, because the hatches in this stock were never designed for anyone to use.
- Free, no-obligation survey
- Written quote, no hard sell
- Pollok and the surrounding streets
Get your Pollok loft survey
Free · No obligation · Written quote
Your details are used only to arrange your survey. See our privacy policy.
The hatch is usually the hard part
Pollok was laid out from the 1930s and expanded after the war into one of the largest housing schemes in Europe. The houses are sound and the lofts are perfectly usable, but the access was designed when a loft was somewhere pipes lived rather than somewhere anyone went. Hatches are often small, sometimes sited in a cupboard or over a stairwell, and occasionally painted shut from decades of decorating.
That is not a reason to leave the loft alone. It does mean a quote given without opening the hatch is worthless, because the installer has no idea whether they can get material through it, and it is a common reason a cheap price goes up on the day.
What we do about it
We open the hatch at the survey rather than at the job. If it is too small to pass rolls through, we say so and price accordingly, and in some cases enlarging it is the sensible first step. If it is over a stairwell, that changes how the work is done but not whether it can be done.
Where the hatch is genuinely unusable, we will tell you before taking any money. We would rather lose the job than turn up and discover it.
Pollok lofts in practice
- Interwar and post-war terraces: the bulk of the area. Simple roof structures, joists around 100mm, and usually one old layer short of current depth.
- Cottage flats: the roof space belongs to the upper homes only.
- Housing association stock: often insulated by the landlord already, so ask them before paying anyone.
- Right to buy and later private homes: the loft is yours and the decision is yours alone.
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.
Storage, boarding and the mistake we see most
Pollok houses are not large, so lofts here get used for storage more than most. The usual approach is to lay chipboard straight onto the joists, which creates a floor at about 100mm and crushes whatever insulation is underneath it.
Compressed mineral wool does not work. The material insulates by holding still air in its thickness, so squashing 100mm of it under a board removes most of the benefit you paid for. A loft that looks tidy and boarded is frequently performing worse than a messy one.
The fix is a raised system: legs and battens that hold the deck above the full 270mm, so you keep the storage and the insulation at the same time. Our guide to loft boarding explains how it goes together.
Other areas we cover near Pollok
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 Glasgow.
The work, filmed as it happens
Short clips from real jobs. Nothing staged, and nothing loads until you press play.
Frequently asked questions
Usually yes. Rolls can be compressed to pass through a small opening and opened out inside. We check the hatch at the survey rather than discovering it on the day, and if it genuinely will not work we will tell you before you pay anything.
If they are fixed straight onto the joists, yes. That limits you to about 100mm and crushes it flat. A raised deck keeps the storage and lets the insulation reach full depth underneath.
Speak to them first. Social landlords usually handle insulation themselves and may have it scheduled, which costs you nothing. We work for owner-occupiers.
Terraces here have modest roof areas, so they sit at the cheaper end. Access affects it too, which is part of why we survey before quoting rather than after.
Most Pollok houses are done in half a day to a day, depending on the loft size and how awkward the access is. You can be in the house throughout and nothing needs switching off.
Not if the ventilation is kept. A colder roof space holds less moisture before it condenses, so the gap at the eaves has to stay open. Packing it solid is what causes damp, not the insulation itself.
Book a free Pollok 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.