The Insulation Station Idea to help address part of the current Energy Crunch Crisis by providing low cost or donated insulation materials at local collection points

The Insulation Station is an idea by Paul Ridley of Cabinz cic  / SAHBN  to help address part of the current Energy Crunch by providing low cost or donated insulation materials at local collection points . 

With the proposed warm banks at museums and libraries, providing heated spaces for people needing to warm themselves in winter. Insulation Staions could be cupboards or mobile racks containing these items for users to take home & install in their homes.

I have contacted local Food Banks to see if they are interested in distributing insulative materials as there are current news articles saying some Food Banks are running out of food. 

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Edit:

Following a Tweet today 15-9-22 by Martin Lewis of MSE, who is funding Warm Bank guidance, I have sentthe following email to the organisers at warmbanks@cilip.org.uk who welcome useful ideas:

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Hi, thanks to Martin for the tweet and you taking up the challenge here

We are a N.Wales / Chester social enterprise & vol group suggesting a distribution point at the

 warm banks for donated non bulky items to help insulate the home /room, that users can take home with them to install.

My first thoughts are that these could include:

 

 Bubble wrap / cling film to insulate windows

Cardboard to put in gaps / insulate.

Fire resistant sealant in a tube & applicators to seal drafty cracks in window frames / doors

Padded fabric draught excluder rolls

water pipe insulation to stop pipes freezing

Warm clothes ( you probably thought of that)

rolls of sticky tape to tape on the inside hinge side of the door to stop draughts

rolls of draught excluder tape 

energy saving light bulbs (not LED) as they give out a little heat while having low energy cost

Materials to make insulative curtains over door or add to window curtains

rolls of fabric & scissors to cut off a length or off cuts of fabric

screws or nails to fix  curtain rails to top of door frame

wood or metal tube curtain rails

curtain hooks

needle & thread to stitch top of fabric over to slide curtain rail into.

Keyhole covers to stop draughts , (we have several 100 of these )

We would be interested in a trial in the Nw / n. Wales area and we could provide a storage trolley with shelves. We have 20 used of these which cost £1k new They are on castor wheels, are double sided , twice as deep as seen in pic & HDuty to take 2 deep ice cream tubs )

I am calling this shelf on wheels full of insulating accessories, the INSULATION STATION  InsulationStation.org.uk

we are currently working on the HIBERNATER  ,as part of D.I.G.R.S. - DIVIDE- rooms with portable insulated panels, fabric or green walls to save energy & aid function

Currently talking to designer of the hexayurt Vinay Gupta about hexayurt -like room divider systems

New ideas will be posted here -  www.Energycrunch.co.uk

More about 'Shelter and Hardware Bank Network' (SAHBN)   https://cabinznet.blogspot.com/2019/09/press-release-17819-by-paul-ridley-of.html www.re-use.com

Edit - 11-12-22: I am talking to food banks about trialling the ideas here in the NW . I'm now thinking it might

be best to widen the focus from Insualtion to insulation & repair.

Best Regards Paul Ridley

Founder / director Cabinz cic / SAHBN

 

The HIBERNATER or HIBERNATOR is a name for a temporary insulated shelter built inside a building or outside to survive extremes of cold or heat. An idea as part of the DIGRS Project by Paul Ridley of Cabinz Cic / SAHBN

The HIBERNATER or HIBERNATOR is a name for a low cost temporary insulated shelter built inside a building or outside to survive extremes of cold or heat.  An idea as part of the DIGRS Project by Paul Ridley of Cabinz Cic / SAHBN 

People should be able to retreat to the Hibernater, safe in the thought that it will cost very little to heat, and is big enough to perform many homely functions, such as sleeping, writing at a desk, watching tv.

To preserve resources & keep cost low, the shelters are ideally made reusing materials or clearance stock sourced locally.

The current Energy Crunch gives an ideal opportunity to design, prototpe these shelters. 

There are fire resistant designs like Hexayurts using foil sided PIR rigid foam boards taped together, that can be reused when a shelter is no longer required due to temperature normalising for external wall insualtion. 

If on a low budget, used tents, insualated fabric,  non fire resistant shelters can be used. The DIGRS project has been exploring designs & buying materials to build them  using low cost wood, fabric, insulation & hardware / fixings,