Thermographic Survey in Belfast

Belfast's housing stock gives us a wide range of thermal patterns. Terraced houses make up 37.6% of homes, semi-detached houses 29.8%, flats 23.3%, and detached homes 8.2%, so the city is not built around one construction type. In Ormeau Road and Stranmillis, many properties date from before 1919 and still rely on solid brick walls, slate roofs, timber suspended floors and sash windows.

That older fabric behaves differently from post-war estates and modern blocks. Inter-war and 1945-1980 homes around BT6, BT10 0BU and BT14 8FP often use cavity wall construction, but those cavities can be empty, partially filled or bridged by mortar snots and old repairs. Newer schemes such as The Gallery on Dublin Road, The James Clow at BT1 3DR, The Residence in BT9 5AB, Parkside Gardens in BT14 8FP and Richmond Green in BT10 0BU bring their own issues, usually around junctions, penetrations and uneven insulation continuity.

The city climate matters too. Belfast sits by Belfast Lough and the River Lagan, so wet, windy weather can push moisture through gaps while exposing cold bridges at eaves, wall plates and window surrounds. The average EPC rating for local homes is D, which means many owners are one or two steps away from a more efficient band if the weak spots are found and fixed in the right order. In conservation areas such as Cathedral Quarter, Linen Quarter, Queen's Quarter and parts of Malone Road and Stranmillis, thermal imaging helps us locate loss without guessing at intrusive upgrades.

Thermal images are usually blue at the cold end and red or white where surfaces are warmer. A blue streak along a skirting board in a Stranmillis terrace can point to heat loss, while a red patch around a boiler pipe may simply be normal surface temperature. The image alone is not the answer, so our surveyors read it alongside construction type, wind direction and room conditions.

Sunlight can heat a south-facing wall on Dublin Road and create a false hot patch, while reflective glass can distort readings around modern windows in BT9 5AB. We also watch for recent cooking, radiator placement and open fireplaces, because each of those can skew the temperature picture. That is why a winter survey carried out after the heating has been running gives cleaner results than a midday scan in bright sun.

Every key image is annotated, so you can see exactly which patch of the wall, roof or floor caused concern. We explain the temperature difference, the probable cause and the repair route, whether that means loft insulation, a seal around a door frame or a check on a wet patch under a bathroom. In older homes around Malone Road and the Cathedral Quarter, that explanation matters because similar-looking defects can have very different causes.

Thermal imaging surveys in Belfast start from £300. That fee covers external and internal scans, image analysis and an annotated report that points out heat loss, insulation gaps, damp patterns and other defects we can see in the infrared data. Larger homes, split levels and properties with hard-to-reach lofts can take more time, so size and access shape the final quote. We usually send the report shortly after the visit, once each image has been checked and labelled.

For the cleanest results, we work in October to March and ask for a minimum 10C difference between inside and outside. Heating should be on for at least 2 hours before the survey, and a dry, overcast day around Belfast Lough usually gives stronger thermal contrast than a bright afternoon on a south-facing wall. If you want the most accurate reading for a terrace in Ormeau Road or a flat in BT9 5AB, those conditions make a real difference.