Church Conversion Gets an Insulmax^® Intervention

Karl and Marie are no strangers to renovations – they’ve tackled 11 projects across New Zealand and Australia. But their latest one was a bit different. Marie had always dreamed of converting a historic brick church into a family home. So when they came across a 100-year-old gem in the small Southland township of Ohai, they knew they’d found their next (and final!) project. 

But like any building of that era, it had zero wall insulation. “There was a 200 mm cavity between the brick and the interior tongue-and-groove walls which made the house quite drafty and very cold,” says Karl. “Some nights, you could actually feel the breeze coming through the walls.”

Being an ex-church, the house came with a few extra challenges. Council compliance was essential, and the couple wanted to preserve the original structure without damaging its charm.

A great bunch to work with

When Karl heard about Insulmax^®, he realised it was just what they were looking for. “The fact that it was council-approved was a big advantage,” he says. “And the idea of installing insulation from the outside made so much sense – there was no way we wanted to strip out the walls and risk ruining the interior.”

Karl says he was impressed with Insulmax^®’s professional approach right from the start. “They’ve got a great bunch there! From the lady who answered the phone to the chap who came to do the measurements – they were friendly, easy to deal with, and professional. Just brilliant to be honest. I can’t say a bad word about them.

“The installation team were fantastic too – just good, down-to-earth blokes who got stuck in and got the job done,” says Karl.

Feeling the heat!

Karl says the difference in warmth was immediate. “Even with knee-deep snow around the house, it’s so much warmer now. They told us to expect a difference of about 3-5 degrees, but I reckon it’s at least 5-6 degrees.”

The insulation has also completely changed how they heat the house. “We’ve got a big 26 kW fireplace, and now we only need to run it for half an hour before the house fully heats up. We’ve also got a heat pump, but we barely use it now.”

And it’s not just the warmth that’s improved – the house is quieter too. “We live on a main road, so traffic noise used to be an issue,” says Karl. “Now, we don’t hear the road at all. When the neighbours had a big party recently, we barely noticed it. The soundproofing is just as big a difference as the warmth.”

Thinking about Insulmax^®?

Karl’s advice for anyone else considering Insulmax^® insulation?

“Go for it. It’s made such a big difference for us. And the Insulmax^® team are all fantastic – the standard of service was brilliant, they really know what they’re doing.”

Note: Our case studies are conducted through interviews with our customers to provide context and background to their experiences. We greatly appreciate their willingness to share their stories, and we respect their right to privacy, which is why we use pseudonyms to protect their identities. On our website, you can find numerous testimonials in our clients' own words, accompanied by images of their homes, all available in the "Testimonials" section. For the case study itself, we have utilised stock images instead of our clients' actual homes.