Anglian Insulations Ltd
Air Pressure Testing - What Is it?
   
Family Run Business

Established in 1985, this family run business with premises in Drayton near Norwich covers East Anglia servicing both private customers and corporate clients including Building Firms, Local Authorities and Housing Associations.
   
Specialists in Cavity Wall and Loft Insulation

Specialists in Cavity Wall and Loft Insulation:
We are also able to provide domestic air pressure testing. Call us for more details about this new service.
 


Air Pressure Testing - BACK TO THE TOP »

The Building Regulations 2006 Part L1a makes it a legal requirement that new domestic dwellings must pass a mandatory airtightness test before being occupied.

Air Pressure Testing

How do I comply with the Building Regulations? - BACK TO THE TOP »

All buildings require a certain amount of air to be exchanged to allow for the removal of pollutants, for combustion air, to alter the moisture content and create a healthy living environment. This is separated into two types,

1. controlled ventilation i.e.: a trickle vent on a window or extractor in the bathroom.
2. un-controlled ventilation i.e.: gaps around pipe entry points or around windows.

Controlled ventilation is calculated to allow enough air into the building to provide adequate ventilation.
Un-controlled ventilation is the free flow of air into and out of the building structure. This not only causes draughts but wastes energy in the form of escaping heat and the consequential need for the heating system to work harder.

An airtightness test quantifies these losses and allows for the building structure to be tested to determine whether these losses meet the targets imposed by the Building Regulations and the Design Requirements. It is also a definitive test of the quality of the construction process, since shoddy practice will show up to some degree in the test results.

Airtightness Test

What is an airtightness test? - BACK TO THE TOP »

The test consists of putting a fan contained in a temporary screen into an outside door rebate and pressurising or depressurising the building whilst recording the air leakage rates.

The air pressure, wind speed and temperature are taken at the same time since they have a bearing on the results of the test.

The test will show if the building has passed the Building Regulations and also show how much air is leaking through the structure.

The use of smoke pencils can help to show up specific leakage points which can subsequently be repaired in order for a failed structure to pass the test.

Computer Testing

What is required to perform the test? - BACK TO THE TOP »

Pressure testing will be required in accordance with the following table.

Number of instances of dwelling type Number of tests to be carried out on the dwelling type
4 or less One test of each dwelling type
Greater than 4, but equal or less than 40 Two tests of each dwelling type
More than 40 At least 5% of the dwelling type, unless the first 5 units pass, when the frequency can be reduced to 2%

Two pieces of information are required to do the test, both of which should be provided by the client and are available from the SAP assessment, the area of the building envelope and the design air permeability.
The building should be complete and ready for occupation with both electricity and water available.

The weather is also a factor, with the wind speed required to be below 6m/s (about 15mph).

Anglian Insulations Limited: Building Testing Services - BACK TO THE TOP »

Our test engineers are fully qualified and registered with BINDT ( British Institute of Non Destructive Testing) in accordance with the requirements of The Building Regulations 2000 approved document L1a (2006 edition).

Our entire test apparatus is calibrated to the latest UKAS standards, so you can rest assured we will perform an accurate test of your buildings.

We aim to make the testing as painless as possible to our customers, all we ask is for you to provide a source of water and electricity at the test site along with the building envelope and the design air permeability figures available from the SAP assessment.

Please note: due to the nature of the test we can only test completed buildings, i.e. they must be ready for habitation or at a stage where the envelope and all electrical and plumbing installations are complete.

Should your building fail the initial test we will allow no more than one half hour for modifications to be made before a free re-test is carried out. Should this test also fail then a further test will have to be scheduled for a later date, which will incur additional cost.

For more details please contact us - BACK TO THE TOP »

Anglian Insulations Ltd
Frost Industrial Estate
Bidewell Close
Drayton
Norwich NR8 6AP

Tel: 01603 864458
Fax: 01603 864459

Email: