Kingspan Insulation in Eke

[gwt_uk]

Hello all,

This year I have ordered a sheet of 50mm kingspan to insulate 4 hives. I was just going to fit this in an eke and place above the crown board. Will this be sufficient?

cheers

 

[pargyle]

50mm is used by a lot of people on here ... it will make a lot of difference. Me ? I put and empty super on top of the crownboard and I have two slabs of 50mm in them - giving 100mm of insulation but perhaps this is overkill ?

 

[user 819]

50mm is used by a lot of people on here ... it will make a lot of difference. Me ? I put and empty super on top of the crownboard and I have two slabs of 50mm in them - giving 100mm of insulation but perhaps this is overkill ?

It can't do no harm Philip, costa del sol all year round for the bees.

 

[pargyle]

It can't do no harm Philip, costa del sol all year round for the bees.

Yes ... that's how I figure it as well ... I don't think you can have too much insulation but I suspect, at some point, additional insulation probably does not yield any tangible additional benefits.

I've often considered setting up a Zest style hive ... not a Long hive (I have a highly insulated long hive) but with a 14 x 12 size brood box made from the same blocks as the zest hive - these blocks must be the ultimate insulation for hive walls. It's obviously going to be a static hive but I don't see that as a problem in my situation. A roof made from Celotex would complete a very highly insulated box ...

https://beekeepingforum.co.uk/threads/cheap-insulated-hive.32515/

 

[Amari]

Hello all,

This year I have ordered a sheet of 50mm kingspan to insulate 4 hives. I was just going to fit this in an eke and place above the crown board. Will this be sufficient?
cheers

Ample I think. I use one layer of 25mm Kingspan under an Abelo poly-roof. The persisting snow-caps on the roofs suggest that no significant hive-heat is escaping.

 

[Rosti]

I use 50mm, simply cut 18x18 and placed as a layer under roof. 1 thing to add (from experience), I use the foil faced variant and gaffa tape the sides to stop creepy crawlies boring into / destroying your precious insulation.

 

[IndiBee]

Anyone got a good priced source for kingspan?

 

[enrico]

Let's face it anything is better than nothing. For years I just used four matchsticks and that was enough!

 

[enrico]

Anyone got a good priced source for kingspan?

Spot someone doing renovations on roof and go ask for the cut offs. We have just had ours done and I have some nice scraps!

 

[pargyle]

Anyone got a good priced source for kingspan?

There's always loads for sale on auction on ebay ... just have to wait until a lot comes up within economic collection distance. The last lot I got was £15 for 3 sheets of 25mm 1.2m x 2.4m - bargain. I also keep my eye out for builders skips - they will usually give you any offcuts they can't use if you ask nicely.

 

[Erichalfbee]

.. I don't think you can have too much insulation but I suspect, at some point, additional insulation probably does not yield any tangible additional benefits.

But do remember to put more on the top than the sides

 

[oliver90owner]

My timber 14 x 12s all had 50mm of insulation under the roof and most were insulated on the recessed ends with 25mm polystyrene. I previously filled a shallow with a polystyrene block but gave up with that idea after a couple of seasons.

 

[Sayle]

50mm is used by a lot of people on here ... it will make a lot of difference. Me ? I put and empty super on top of the crownboard and I have two slabs of 50mm in them - giving 100mm of insulation but perhaps this is overkill ?

75% of heat is lost vertically in the hive and in a tree trunk insulation is effectively infinite, which then constrains (natural) heat losses to wall thickness. If all your heat is being lost through the walls then great, because all the condensation is going to happen on the walls at a nice warm temperature where the bees can use it, and not above the hive at a colder temperature they may not enjoy dripping down onto them. Course some wall insulation will still help (a lot), but if you're doing the bare minimum than just slamming an empty super full of Kingspan or wool above the brood box will make their winter a lot easier for them and help keep the cluster more mobile.

 

[Moobee]

50mm is used by a lot of people on here ... it will make a lot of difference. Me ? I put and empty super on top of the crownboard and I have two slabs of 50mm in them - giving 100mm of insulation but perhaps this is overkill ?

Blimey, that’s more than we’ve got in our house roof!

 

[Moobee]

Hello all,

This year I have ordered a sheet of 50mm kingspan to insulate 4 hives. I was just going to fit this in an eke and place above the crown board. Will this be sufficient?

cheers

I have 6” deep roofs with 50mm kingspan in all year round.

 

[pargyle]

Blimey, that’s more than we’ve got in our house roof!

So... you are probably under insulated ... these days it is recommended that you should have between 250mm and 300mm of tradition rockwool type insulation installes in a cold loft. If you are going to have a warm loft (ie: where the roof is insulated between the rafters using PIR (Celotex/Kingspan etc). you are looking at 75mm ....

 

[Moobee]

So... you are probably under insulated ... these days it is recommended that you should have between 250mm and 300mm of tradition rockwool type insulation installes in a cold loft. If you are going to have a warm loft (ie: where the roof is insulated between the rafters using PIR (Celotex/Kingspan etc). you are looking at 75mm ....

Old converted chalet bungalow that was built in 1923 with rooms in the roof that are definitely underinsulated! Need to tackle it at some stage….. even my OH jokes that the bees are better housed than we are!

 

[pargyle]

Old converted chalet bungalow that was built in 1923 with rooms in the roof that are definitely underinsulated! Need to tackle it at some stage….. even my OH jokes that the bees are better housed than we are!

We did my son's 1913 terraced house in Sheffield some years ago (he had an attic room that served as a refrigerator in winter !) we removed the old lath and plaster ceiing (that was a job and a half !) put 50mm of Kingspan between the joists and replaced the ceiling with modern plasterboard and a skim ... unbelievable difference - with a radiator installed it's now the warmest room in the house when the heating is on whereas, previously, no amount of heating would warm it up. Made a difference to the whole house and the saving on his winter heating bills alone paid for it in about two years, let alone the benefit of having a room that could be used.

 

[gmonag]

So... you are probably under insulated ... these days it is recommended that you should have between 250mm and 300mm of tradition rockwool type insulation installes in a cold loft. If you are going to have a warm loft (ie: where the roof is insulated between the rafters using PIR (Celotex/Kingspan etc). you are looking at 75mm ....

...ahh, but I treated mine with Acoustic Dye, which improves the insulating value by 100%.

 

[user 20297]

So... you are probably under insulated ... these days it is recommended that you should have between 250mm and 300mm of tradition rockwool type insulation installes in a cold loft. If you are going to have a warm loft (ie: where the roof is insulated between the rafters using PIR (Celotex/Kingspan etc). you are looking at 75mm ....

I think it's more than that. Our house is made from panels called SIPS.(Structural Insulated panels). The PIR insulation is moulded between OSB (oriented strand board). The building regulations changed whilst the house was being built and by the time the completion certificate was issued, the 125mm thickness of solid, PIR insulation in the "warm" roof had been superseded by more stringent requirements.