Is my roof insulated?
If you are unsure whether your roof is insulated, check the documents and invoices related to your home first. If you cannot find definitive information there, you can perform a visual check. Bear in mind that insulation may be found on the inside or the outside of a sloping roof or flat roof.
Sloping roof
If you can see the roof tiles or the underlayment in the attic, there is no insulation inside. If there are boards, it’s harder to determine whether any insulation is present inside. You could try looking for small spots where any isolation might be visible, such as in a front attic, behind partitions or around a vent pipe or chimney. Any insulation may also become visible when you remove a downlight.
Alternatively, the attic floor might be insulated.
To determine whether any insulation is present outside, you could try leaning out of a skylight or carefully climbing a ladder and moving a roof tile upwards to see if any insulation or foil is visible. If you only see timber under the tiles, there is no insulation outside.
Flat roof
If you have a flat roof, you can lift an internal ventilation grid or an external ventilation duct to see whether any insulation material has been attached to the inside of the roof. This may also become visible when you remove a downlight. In some cases, insulation on the outside of a flat roof can be seen lying on top of the roof covering. It is often covered by a layer of gravel and the roof is rather high relative to the eave, and under this there will be a strip around the insulation.
This article was published on 12-10-2023. Unless expressly provided otherwise, all information you consult or obtain here is entirely without obligation and for information purposes only. The information applies exclusively to the Brussels Capital-Region.