Leading building materials manufacturer Glidevale Protect is continuing to play its part in creating energy-efficient homes of the future by having its reflective membrane technology used as part of an innovative new heated skirting board system by Manchester based manufacturer DiscreteHeat Co. Ltd, maximising the product’s thermal performance.
DiscreteHeat’s patented product, ThermaSkirt, is set to dramatically change the way we heat our homes by removing the need for traditional wall-mounted radiators. ThermaSkirt is a compact aluminium skirting board system, which is connected to the home’s heating system, whether that’s a traditional solution such as a gas-powered boiler or a renewable alternative like an air source heat pump. It then radiates heat evenly and efficiently around a room.
The DiscreteHeat system has been developed with both new-build and refurbishments in mind and tests have shown that when combined with Glidevale Protect’s VC Foil Ultra reflective membrane, its energy-efficient benefits are further enhanced.
One of the leading air and vapour control layers (AVCLs) on the market, Protect VC Foil Ultra has a high-quality aluminium foil surface, giving it a superior thermal resistance, which in turn increases the performance of DiscreteHeat’s ThermaSkirt. To achieve these results the membrane is installed directly onto the substrate with the foil surface facing into the room. DiscreteHeat’s system then fits neatly over the top, using clips to maintain the airspace and enhance radiant heat.
After meeting as part of the Energy House 2.0 research project at the University of Salford, the two companies quickly recognised the benefit of collaborating to enhance the overall energy efficiency of the system. Initial tests demonstrated that with the addition of the Protect VC Foil Ultra membrane, the radiant heat in the home provided by ThermaSkirt is improved by at least three degrees centigrade — thus reducing the energy consumption of the home overall.
The membrane has been installed at eHome 2, the concept house for national housebuilder Barratt Homes built at Energy House 2.0 and also a project in New York, USA. This combination of ThermaSkirt and Protect VC Foil Ultra membrane is also currently being trialled by Taylor Wimpey at a live development site in Sudbury where the housebuilder is putting house prototypes through their paces with low carbon technologies to assess performance in alignment with the 2025 Future Homes Standard (FHS).
Ethan Wadsworth, Sales and Marketing Director at DiscreteHeat commented: “We’re really proud of our ThermaSkirt heated skirting board system and see it as playing a key part in making the UK’s homes more energy-efficient for the future. When we saw the potential of combining ThermaSkirt with a specialist reflective membrane such as Protect VC Foil Ultra, we immediately began testing and were impressed with the significant difference it made — increasing temperature levels by at least three degrees centigrade.”
John Mellor, Senior Product Manager at Glidevale Protect added: “There’s a real synergy between our two companies — not only are we both rooted in the North West, but we’re also innovative and passionate about helping to deliver energy-efficient homes for the future, having both been involved in the Energy House 2.0 project. It’s fantastic to be able to highlight the tangible thermal difference our Protect VC Foil Ultra product makes when installed as part of the ThermaSkirt system. We’re proud to align ourselves with DiscreteHeat and are looking forward to seeing the ThermaSkirt becoming more commonplace in the UK’s homes.”
Glidevale Protect is currently supporting the new Energy House 2.0 development, which is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund. The project involves a collaborative research partnership with the University of Salford and national housebuilders Bellway Homes and Barratt Developments, designed to understand more about how to create energy efficient homes of the future by assessing a wide range of products and materials. Glidevale Protect is an official research partner as the company’s specialist construction membranes are installed in Bellway’s ‘Future Home’.
