New build homes are struggling in the intense heat, with indoor temperatures exceeding 31C and residents describing their properties as 'saunas'.
Heatwave pushes temperatures to unsafe levels
Another round of severe hot weather this week pushed temperatures up to more than 38C in some parts of the country, heat that has clung to some homes. Newbuild homes have absorbed the excessive heat to such an extent that they have passed the unsafe threshold, climbing to 31C.
To make matters worse, millions of renters have discovered they're living in heat traps and unable to remedy the extreme temperatures.
Homeowners describe 'sauna' conditions
Homeowners posting on social media support groups described their properties feeling like a "sauna" as the extreme heat sunk its claws in this summer. One writing on Facebook said: "My house feels more like a sauna than a home at the moment.
Even with the windows open, the heat seems to get trapped inside all day and well into the evening. Downstairs is currently around 30°C and it’s not much better upstairs!"
Another added: "At 9pm last night my bedroom was 31 degrees!!" And a third chimed in: "I didn’t take a photo but all three of our bedrooms were 32 last night. Still 30 this morning. If only they held the heat like this in the winter."
Citizens Advice highlights lack of control
According to Citizens Advice, Brits have been struggling with uncontrollable heat at their new homes this year. The charity found that half of all tenants feel they lack the basic control needed to stop their homes overheating, a sentiment shared by 40 percent of homeowners.
Among the issues preventing them from keeping temperatures down, they found, were fixed or locked windows they couldn't open, and this has forced them to take drastic actions. The charity found that some homeowners took to sleeping in unusual, but cooler, places like their kitchens or balconies, and booking air conditioned hotels.
Commenting on the research, Dame Clare Moriarty, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said: "For far too many people, a summer heatwave doesn’t mean enjoying the sun, it means being trapped in a sweltering home with no control over the temperature.
“We’re now facing a year-round crisis, where poorly designed housing stock is acting as a giant heat trap in summer and as an ice box in winter.
“The government has a vital opportunity to help fix this through the Warm Homes Plan. By investing in better insulation, ventilation, and heat network upgrades, we can ensure people’s homes are warmer in the winter and safer and cooler in the summer.”
Insulation blamed for 'vacuum flask' effect
Building experts say fire resistant insulation is to blame for raising the temperature significantly, with the extra layers designed for energy efficiency holding all the heat in. Among those experts are housebuilders Apmbuild, who said the insulation creates a "vacuum flask" where homes refuse to let go of any heat that makes its way inside.
The builders say: "A vacuum flask works in both directions. Whatever temperature is inside, it stays inside.
The insulation does not care whether you want the contents hot or cold — it preserves whatever state you started with. UK Building Regulations have, over the last fifteen years, asked house-builders to construct the residential equivalent of a flask.
Plenty of insulation, very little air leakage, large glazed openings to let the sun in. In a cold British winter that works beautifully. In a hot British summer it is a trap."
