Scouting Hut efficiency grant.

[MR GUS]

My daughters Beaver group (not forgetting cubs, scouts etc) is lucky enough to have an old fire engine shed 9floor still slopes) as their hall.
(also used by mums & toddlers).

The temporary 30yr old floor needs replacing, & a grant is to be applied for, could anyone with experience in this area pm / make sme suggestions as to how to propose basic improvements in a favourable manner as I think i'll need to pry some ideas into the as yet unwritten proposal.
cheers
Gus

(nb, I know a few of you folk are in the scouting movement & may have hoop-jumped for similar) ..so any tips welcome.

I do need to get into the seerate area loft to check insulation, however for an idea of whats what, sealing of unused window (to be bricked up) , ..alot of foil insulation ofr the exposed beams ceiling area to deflect & retain heat from 4 or 6 whacking great heating elements mounted high up the wall.

A heavy thermal curtain for the main window in the hall &  possible renovation of toilets (boiler broken, no hot water, old metal windows in office area...

will ask if I can grab some pictures to illustrate.

This is a very pro-active & giving group we could use our own villages beaver group however they don't do much with the children, so i'd like to assist to show my own appreciation of the nearby group who clearly do care.

[Justme]

How many sessions per week is it in use & how many hours per session?

Could be better to use heaters that heat the person & not the air if the usage is for small periods of time.

Even with all the insulation possible it is still going to take lots of energy (4 plus hours?) to get the building up to temp for it all to be wasted after the two hour session is over.

[brackwell]

Justme makes a very good point and maybe one of these industrial overhead gas tubes would be just the job.  OK tell me you have not got gas.

[MR GUS]

NO gas as far as i'm aware...

Used a few evenings per week from 5-9 or later & for various short day sessions by mums & toddlers, not to mention sunday school.

I'm in agreement as to quartz heaters, the building is probably 100yr old in the main so some form of low level heating to dry / maintain areas I've noticed are suffering.

I'd like to see the high ceiling insulated with a good wedge of thick  celotex or similar, which would be quite expensive (if not for seconds & co or similar).
I'm going to have a gander into the new (40yr old) section to see how the insulation is lying as i've a feeling it's part of the problem up against the  eaves.

any suggestions for the loo's other than the obvious dual flush, insulate pipework, overflow return (to bowl), aerator taps, limescale inhibitor etc?

Most vermin proof floor insulation?

The doors are pretty much open for the throughflow of parents & children, so I would like to see more separation of area in terms of office & kitchenette sliding doors (unheated) ..the office needs a bit of drying out overall so low background heat in some shape or form to get it back on track, so I guess a well sealed sliding door (narrow passage) woud help.

I haven't looked at thre roofs angle or direction, suffice to say it has large, VERY large trees & taller buildings around, one possible aspect, but fabric of building more important currently than energy export / offset, & if solar water heating was viable I don't think it's foolproof enough for the throughflow of users! (could be wrong) ..solar tubes HW would certainly  get little use overall I anticipate, not to mention water seems to be heat upon demand (broken).

[solar_cambridge]

What is the current floor?  Dig down, or overlay with minimum 150mm of PIR foam. Screed or chipboard over the that. Similar spec for the walls/ceiling.

Heating? Probably cheaper with infrared. With that much insulation they'd be opening doors to cool off. Skimp on the insulation and be prepared for HUGE energy bills.