Resources

Thermal imaging camera

The Parish Council bought a thermal imaging camera two years ago, and it is available for residents and businesses in the area to borrow.

The camera shows the temperature of walls, floors and ceilings, making it easy to spot unexpectedly cold areas inside the house and warm areas outside it — signs of heat escaping. You can take pictures to keep for future reference.

A volunteer can visit

Volunteers who are familiar with the camera, and the sorts of issues it can spot, can come to your house and walk through the rooms and around the outside with you, looking for problems. Many of these are simple to fix, and the volunteers may be able to suggest ideas based on their experience.

What it has found in Kington Langley so far

• Significant draughts around letter boxes and door frames
• Thin, porous or damaged stone walls leading to cold walls inside
• Cold patches on upstairs ceilings, indicating poorly laid or insufficient loft insulation
• Hot pipes that should be insulated
• Ground floor extensions allowing preserved original features to conduct warm air out of the house

Getting the best from it

The camera works best when the house is warm (the heating has been on) and it is cold outside. It is easy to use, but you need to think carefully about what you are seeing: some materials, especially glass, reflect the infrared the camera detects, so you end up measuring the reflection rather than the glass itself.

It is also useful for spotting pipe runs under floors and in walls, and for some plumbing issues such as underfloor heating problems.

Borrowing the camera

To borrow the camera, or to arrange a volunteer visit, email getinvolved@kingtonlangley-pc.gov.uk.