Heating

[asroc]

We have gas central heating in a timber framed house built in 1997. Boiler replaced 3 years ago.
Problem is that the large room above the garage is always cold due to the void below and little insulation in the roof space above which is too small to allow any more insulation to be put in. We have seen Fischer Futureheat heaters advertised and wonder if these might be a useful supplementary heat source in the winter in a couple of places where there are no radiators? Has anyone used them under these conditions? Thanks.

[The Builder]

Any type of heater simply takes energy in and pumps heat out asroc. I'm afraid you're treating the symptoms rather than the cause.

Try and fit insulation to the garage ceiling, between the joists.
For the room above, it sounds drastic, but think about "planting" insulation on the existing ceiling, then new plasterboard and plaster. Perfectly straightforward DIY job that will turn the room into something useable.

[buildersmate]

Although more costly than fibreglass or Rockwool, one of the rigid foams (Celotex or similar) will give you 2x the insulation value per depth of insulation fitted.
Although too late to do anything about it now, if this room was designed as 'habitable' when the house was built in 1997, it sounds as if minimum insulation standards were not adhered to in this room - and it wasn't spotted by Building Control. In 1997, you couldn't get away with doing as little as that - stds are even higher now on a new dwelling.