Self Build Heroes is an organisation which intends to support self-builders in achieving their dream of building their own home with military veterans.
In their latest project in Marlborough, Wiltshire, consisting of a series of five new starter homes and a detached five-bed property, the roofs and the building envelope was fitted with high-performing protective membranes from the A. Proctor Group.
Roofshield – which has long been recognised as one of the highest performing roofing membrane solutions, providing a pitched roof underlay, which is both air and vapour permeable – was used on the project.
Matthew Burrows, founder of Self Build Heroes, explained: “We chose Roofshield because of its superior air permeability and breathability. Roofshield has been used successfully on several of our projects and provides excellent robustness, versatility and protection.
“The ease of use and excellent protection makes it an ideal all-in-one solution. I have always believed that to scrimp on materials is a false economy, which often results in ending up paying twice to achieve the desired result. I confidently recommend Roofshield to my clients.”
The incorporation of Roofshield into a project can lead to savings in both labour and material costs, due to no ventilation or vapour control layer being required. The high-performance air permeability of it means that the roof space will have similar air changes to that of a roof using traditional eaves/ridge ventilation.
For the detached self-build property, a key objective was airtightness and enhanced thermal performance, and so Wraptite air-barrier from the A. Proctor Group has been used in combination with Isotex woodcrete insulated concrete formwork blocks provided by the company’s joint venture partner InsulHub (UK).
Regarding the selection of Wraptite, Matthew said: “We worked with the technical team at the A. Proctor Group to create a high-performance specification across all of the properties. Our philosophy of being dependable, reliable and motivated is key to our business and our clients. We have always been completely satisfied with the performance of the Roofshield membrane.
“Having researched the qualities and properties of the Wraptite airtight membrane, we were assured of its high-performance capabilities. We expect that the use of Wraptite in combination with the Isotex blocks will further enhance the thermal performance and the potential energy savings for the property.”
The self-adhesive nature of Wraptite removes the additional time, cost, and equipment which would otherwise be required in a traditional installation of an airtight membrane and speeds up the installation.
Wraptite is the only self-adhering vapour permeable air barrier certified by the British Board of Agrément (BBA). Applied externally on the outside of the structural frame, it simplifies the process of maintaining the envelope’s integrity, as there are fewer building services and structural penetrations to be sealed.
The high vapour permeability of Wraptite allows the substrate beneath to dry quickly and moisture vapour to escape, reducing the likelihood of mould, mildew, condensation, timber distortion and metal corrosion.
