EXTENSIONS RENOVATIONS NEW HOMES INTERIORS GARDENS
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10 ALL IRELAND IN DEPTH PROJECTS:
FROM HOME OF THE YEAR TO ENERGY RATING NIGHTMARE
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EDITOR'S LETTER / WELCOME
Welcome... Amidst efforts to stem the spread of the coronavirus, oddly it seems there remains one matter open for debate. Whether or not building sites, of all sizes, should stay open or closed. In NI the government admitted its own guidance was confusing and, in ROI, builder’s merchants still somewhat fall between two stools, having to close up shop to the public yet be available to supply tradesmen. The decision to shut building sites has now, in large part, been taken but at the cost of job losses and livelihoods threatened. When work on site stops, eventually everything that supports it does too. This force majeure has led self-build mortgage providers to offer a three month pause on repayments, but interest accrues during this time, which means this ‘holiday’ too comes at a cost. What’s clear is that for self-builders, containment measures now well and truly mean locking up your site. Even if some tradesmen ring you asking to come to work. Stay home, stay safe.
Certification
You need certificates of compliance to finance, sell or insure your house
Budget
Costing doors and woodwork
PV
Electricity from the sun
Repair or replace?
Choosing between demolition and renovation
Astrid Madsen - Editor astrid.madsen@selfbuild.ie
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PROJECTS Learn from the Irish self-builders who have been through the process of building and home improving
20 TOWERING ACHIEVEMENT Elaine Donaghy McCrory’s house in Co Tyrone boasts a tower and fairy tale interiors.
32 A BOYHOOD DREAM COMES TRUE Brendan and Sarah Cullinane’s Georgian inspired home was built to a budget in Co Waterford.
44 PERSEVERANCE Peter and Donna Hughes’ Co Antrim seaside renovation project made the most of the views and family living.
56 HEART AND MIND
Denise Fitzpatrick’s renovation and extension project was a means to go mortgage-free.
92 WELCOME TO HOLYWOOD A bells and whistles renovation in Co Down that showcases the latest interior design trends.
100 NERVES OF STEEL This Co Wicklow suburban new build had to make the most of the light, yet prevent overlooking, and contend with costly utility connections.
112 DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE Find out why this Co Cork new build chose to install a heat pump and PV panels.
127 THE RAINWATER POOL A DIY approach to rainwater harvesting and fresh water bathing rolled into one, in Co Leitrim.
118 ADVICE 68 SELFBUILD LIVE BELFAST Come meet the experts who were at Selfbuild Live Belfast this past February; a wealth of information at your fingertips!
73 ASK THE EXPERT This issue we look at alternatives to polished concrete and tips to keep your patio clean.
74 HOW MUCH DOES JOINERY COST? From doors to skirting boards to in-built units, find out what the cost factors are.
79 REPAIR OR REPLACE?
Making the decision between knocking down the house that’s on your dream site, or carrying out a renovation project.
82 CHECKS AND BALANCES To finance, insure or sell your house you need to prove you’ve built it to standard, and that’s done with certificates of compliance.
86 WHEN THE TIME COMES TO SELL… If you are planning on doing an energy upgrade, make sure to document the work you get done. Otherwise you could get an energy rating that’s worse than what the house deserves.
90 DIY THERAPY Working with wood can be a fantastic therapeutic outlet; find out how to embrace it.
110 PLUG AND PLAY ROOF
The cost of PV panels, which generate electricity from the sun, has come down drastically in recent years, now making it a real option for self-builders.
114 SO NEAR YET SO FAR
Advances in charging technology and infrastructure have yet to make it easier, or cheaper, to own an electric vehicle.
116 GASPING FOR IT How to use your garden’s most precious resource, water.
118 BIG IDEAS
How to build a tiny house on wheels from a self-builder who’s done it all himself in Co Down.
124 BACK TO NATURE
Swimming ponds are all the rage in Nordic countries but they are also very much suited to our wet and overcast climate.
130 SCRAPBOOK Outdoor lighting inspiration for those lazy summer evenings.
SELFBUILD: THE ALL-IRELAND All articles equally cover the 32 counties; when we refer to the Republic of Ireland the abbreviation is ROI. For Northern Ireland it’s NI.
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CONTRIBUTORS / TEAM
Contributors
EXTENSIONS RENOVATIONS NEW HOMES INTERIORS GARDENS
Selfbuild SELFBUILD.IE
SUMMER 2020 £3.90 / €4.50
Dream it . Do it . Live it
10 ALL-IRELAND IN DEPTH PROJECTS:
FROM HOME OF THE YEAR TO ENERGY RATING NIGHTMARE
Peter Dorman
Heather is a freelance writer and editor who writes about property, construction, travel and living overseas – when she’s not mixing cement for her home renovation project in Co Kilkenny. heathercampbell@crafted-copy.com
Peter is the founder of Enexis, an independent hub for the Irish construction industry specialising in innovative building systems at a direct local level. peter@enexis.org.uk
Vanessa Drew
Ciaran Hegarty
Vanessa is a qualified landscape designer Ciaran is a woodwork and construction studies teacher in Moyle Park with Tobermore; she is a keen gardener College, Clondalkin, Dublin. who grows her own fruit and vegetables and keeps chickens, goats and bees. tobermore.co.uk / NI tel. 7964 2411
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Heather Campbell
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Cover Photo Paul Lindsay Christopher Hill Photographic, scenicireland.com Editor Astrid Madsen astrid.madsen@selfbuild.ie Design Myles McCann myles.mccann@selfbuild.ie Shannon Quinn shannon.quinn@selfbuild.ie
Keith Kelliher
Gordon Le Moignan
Leslie O’Donnell
Fiann Ó Nualláin
Keith is a quantity surveyor with over 20 years’ experience and is the founder of Kelliher & Associates Quantity Surveyors. quantitysurveyor.ie
Gordon is a retired multi skilled engineer, contract manager, family support worker, still a sailor and never-give-up renovator.
Les is an engineer and architectural designer who runs Landmark Designs, a CIAT registered practice in Co Tyrone. landmarkdesigns.org.uk / NI tel. 8224 1831
Award winning garden designer, author and broadcaster, Fiann has a background in fine art, ethnobotany and complementary medicine. theholisticgardener.com / twitter @HolisticG
Marketing Calum Lennon calum.lennon@selfbuild.ie Subscriptions Becca.Wilgar becca.wilgar@selfbuild.ie Business Development Manager Niamh Whelan niamh.whelan@selfbuild.ie Advertising Sales David Corry david.corry@selfbuild.ie Nicola Delacour-Dunne nicola.delacour@selfbuild.ie Lisa Killen lisa.killen@selfbuild.ie Maria Varela maria.varela@selfbuild.ie
Debbie Orme
Marcus Patton
Michael Rauch
Andrew Stanway
Debbie is a freelance writer and editor, who writes about business, healthcare, property, maternity and the over 50s. She also ghost writes autobiographies. debbie.orme@talk21.com / NI mobile 077 393 56915
Marcus is torn between being an illustrator, an architect, an historian and a musician.
Michael is a design engineering graduate with a passion for sustainable and self-sufficient living. Instagram @michael_rauch / mrauch598@gmail.com
Andrew is a project manager with over 30 years’ experience. He is also a writer and the author of Managing Your Build published by Stobart Davies.
Patrick is an engineer and energy consultant based in Belfast. tel. 906 41241 / patrick.waterfield@ntlworld.com
Sales Director Mark Duffin mark.duffin@selfbuild.ie Managing Director Brian Corry brian.corry@selfbuild.ie
Come meet more experts at our Selfbuild Live event in DUBLIN in September - turn to page 108 for more details and FREE tickets Patrick Waterfield
Accounts Karen Kelly karen.kelly@selfbuild.ie
NI calling ROI prefix with 00353 and drop the first 0 ROI calling NI prefix with 048
Published by SelfBuild Ireland Ltd. 119 Cahard Rd, Saintfield, Co Down BT24 7LA. Tel: (NI 028 / ROI 048) 9751 0570 / Fax: (NI 028 / ROI 048) 9751 0576 info@selfbuild.ie / selfbuild.ie 08 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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The publishers cannot accept responsibility for errors or omissions nor for the accuracy of information reproduced. Where opinions may be given, these are personal and based upon the best information to hand. At all times readers are advised to seek the appropriate professional advice. Copyright: all rights reserved.
H I G H L I G H T S / W H AT ' S N E W
Get great advice and help a good cause… IF you are thinking about building or home improving, why not donate to a good cause and at the same time benefit from the knowledge and experience an architect brings to the table? In ROI the RIAI Simon Open Door event is running from Tuesday 5 May to Friday 15 May. It’s a partnership between the Simon Communities of Ireland and the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI). In return for a €95 donation to the Simon Community, you will receive an hour-long consultation with a RIAI registered architect. Consultations usually take place in the architect’s own office. In NI Ask An Architect runs a similar campaign but it is in aid of cancer research through Friends of the Cancer Centre. The minimum donation amount is £40 and bookings are now open with consultations taking place from now until the end of May 2020. The organisers are the Jill Todd Trust, PLACE, The Royal Society of Ulster Architects and Friends of the Cancer Centre.
Building energy ratings and why you need to care about them on page 86
Most construction sites shut down AT the start of the COVID-19 lockdown measures introduced mid-March, a lack of guidance on social distancing rules for small building sites originally led to confusion, as job losses amongst small building firms were taking hold, according to a Federation of Master Builders (FMB) survey published on the 19th March 2020 (left). NI director Gavin McGuire said that these UKwide survey results reflected the concerns of the NI membership “in very similar numbers”. The survey gives an indication of what impact the virus is having on the residential construction sector. The FMB represents small and medium sized builders with 7,500 members UK-wide including 300 in NI. Larger building sites, however, appeared to remain open in most cases. However further lockdown measures brought into force late March indicate they are closing as well, as the two meter personal distancing rules are nearly impossible to enforce. Meanwhile government support packages
for the self-employed have allowed building sites to close without having to worry about financial losses for the workers. In ROI building sites of all sizes continued to operate up until late March, with the Construction Industry Federation stating that many construction companies had embedded personal distancing into their daily routines including measures such as staggered work, social distancing in canteens, employees taking lunch individually and individual travel. However on the 28th of March the ROI Minister for Health confirmed that most construction workers would not be considered essential through the COVID-19 lockdown. The lockdown was put in place by the Taoiseach on March 27th, asking everyone to stay home with the exception of shopping for food or medicine, or exercising within a 2km radius. More about how COVID-19 has hit self-builds overleaf.
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How the coronavirus is affecting self-builders Updates from the coronavirus coalface THE coronavirus outbreak had, at the time of going to print, brought much of the economy to a standstill. The first case of the coronavirus was detected on February 27th in NI and February 29th in ROI; government measures on both sides of the border to stop the spread of the virus have been increasingly restrictive with penalties introduced for non-compliance. How this has been affecting self-builders has been a bit of a moving target but long story short, all building sites have been shut down as delivery of materials from builder’s merchants are no longer possible. The situation in ROI caused some confusion but at the time of going to print, the government’s guidance was that deliveries should only be done in the case of emergencies, e.g. for essential repairs. As of the 30th March 2020 the situation for self-builders could be summarised as follows.
Builder’s merchants
After the UK’s prime minister’s call to stop all non essential work on the evening of the 23rd of March, most self-build sites ground to a halt as of the 25th as builder’s merchants closed their doors to the public. In ROI hardware outlets remained open until the 27th of March with personal distancing rules which included customers waiting outside two meters apart until a member of staff signalled the occupancy level indoors was acceptable. The stores were asking that customers pay by credit card, with contactless payments having been increased to €50 from €30. Stores also encouraged customers to order over the phone for delivery on site or at the home. Builder’s merchants in ROI were one of 14 on the government’s list of “essential retail outlets” which included food suppliers, petrol 12 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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stations, dry cleaners and banks. Twelfth on the list were “hardware stores, builders’ merchants and stores that provide hardware products necessary for home and business maintenance, sanitation and farm equipment, supplies and tools essential for gardening / farming / agriculture.” However as of the 27th of March the list of essential retail outlets in ROI was reduced, with hardware stores expected to make deliveries only in the context of emergency call-outs. Leading DIY retailer Woodies closed its doors and stopped deliveries as of the 28th of March. The builder’s merchant McMahon’s, meanwhile, is operating a delivery service for trade emergencies.
developments. “Many of the systems including the Building Control Management System can be accessed remotely over the local authority network, while in the case of planning, there are established systems in place that enable people to view
Contracts
planning applications and make submissions on-line in many planning authorities, which can be maximised,” read the press release.
According to law firm Dillon Eustace, many private construction contracts in ROI are based on the Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland (RIAI) construction contract, with or without amendments. The solicitors point out that even though most internationally used construction contracts include a clause of force majeure, there is no standard legal definition of what such an eventuality means. Relying on this clause would mean having to show that “the impact of the pandemic is the sole reason” for not meeting obligations under the contract. Other clauses have to do with an inability to secure essential labour and materials. “A collaborative approach could potentially result in a more mutually commercially acceptable and less strictly contractual and possibly adversarial response to problems arising of a Covid-19 delay,” reads the firm’s briefing report released early April.
Building control
In ROI as of the 26th March 2020, planning and building control systems remained open for business with local authority public offices and the Offices of An Bord Pleanála remaining open. However measures may be introduced to delay applications, for example, to allow people to make objections or submissions to proposed
seems to be a way to get any kind of goods delivered. Online retailers in general do not seem to be significantly affected; for example clothing and accessories vendor Life Style Sports indicated their online sales were up 50 per cent as of the 23rd of March. As of the 29th the store’s website said their warehouses remained open for deliveries.
‘How this has been affecting self-builders has been a bit of a moving target’
Real estate
New house prices in ROI are expected to fall by 20 per cent due to the coronavirus, according to a report from Davy Stockbrokers. The economy, meanwhile, could contract by over 7 per cent this year and unemployment could soar to 18 per cent, the Economic and Social Research Institute has
warned. Selling your home now may seem incongruous but if you are already in the process, conveyancing firm JMP Solicitors says much of the process can continue as banks remain open.
Serenity now Pantone’s Colour of the Year for 2020 is the Classic Blue, which apparently “highlights our desire for a dependable and stable foundation on which to build as we cross the threshold into a new era”. According to Pantone, as technology continues to race ahead of the human ability to process it all, the trusted and easily relatable Classic Blue lends itself to relaxed interaction, tranquillity, resilience and concentration. Just what we need in these uncertain times.
Bills
Mortgage providers are offering three month holidays, whereby repayments are paused for three months if you are financially affected by COVID-19. However, interest will accrue over this three month period, so this measure is not like hitting the pause button. Then, with the family at home 24/7 and computers working all day, self isolation is fast translating into a high demand for power and heat. Tax breaks are available for people working from home to cover utility bills, which could help ease the burden. A survey from UK price comparison website USwitch indicates that the 16.8 million peoples working from home could cost the £195 more per household per year due to a 25 per cent increase in electricity demand and a 17 per cent increase in gas demand. An analysis by UCC, meanwhile, shows that households are now consuming electricity as they would at the weekends.
Online shopping
Leading online retail platform Amazon continued to make deliveries, and with the postal service still operating, this avenue SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 11
N E W S / W H AT ’ S N E W
Struggle to get planning for log cabin in Co Kildare Mobile homes proliferate as planning restrictions prevent log cabins from getting the green light, according to aspiring self-builder Becky Byrne. BECKY Byrne has been living for seven years in a mobile home behind her parents’ house and aspires to build her own home; her partner and his child moved into the mobile home last year. “Even though we have both worked full time since finishing school/college, neither of us have been in a position to save for a deposit for a house due to unavoidable circumstances in our lives,” explains Becky. “We can get a loan for up to €70,000 off our credit union without a deposit, but they won’t give it to us unless we have planning permission.” “My parents have an acre of land behind their house; you can drive all the way around so we have access for cars and can put our own entrance in,” says Becky. “They have offered to give us half of this land or more if we need more depending on septic tank requirements for a percolation area.” “We’re not looking to build a mansion or a two storey or even a dormer, just a bungalow, so our family can have a home.” “Because they are more affordable we are hoping to build a standard log cabin about 1,000-1,200 sqft in size. You can get a three-bed log cabin that is turnkey for less than €60,000.” “We can’t afford to build a block house but we can get planning permission for one. The next best thing to a log home that we could find was timber frame, but you’re still looking at €100/€120k for a similar house and a longer build period. We can’t currently get a loan for that much so that’s not an option for us
either.”
Becky’s experience “I have previously approached Kildare County Council (on more than one occasion), to ask about applying for planning permission for a residential log cabin and I have been told each time to not bother as they won’t approve
my parents’ house and our neighbours’ houses (bearing in mind that our neighbours have no issues with us living here).” “Right down the very back of the field is where we want to build. At the moment the mobile is just to the left of this photo, near my mam and dad’s and the neighbours.” Becky has set up a petition to change planning policies to allow for log cabin homes to be built on change.org, with a target of 50,000 signatures. At the moment the online petition is capped at a 5,000 signature target but it will increase as more people sign it. Becky also plans to start
‘More and more young families are being forced to live in mobiles and unsuitable/tiny houses...’
planning permission for log cabins.” “Our log cabin would be even further back than a bricksand-mortar house would have to be, and further away from
contacting politicians to garner further support. In it she says: “More and more young families are being forced to live in mobiles and unsuitable/tiny houses or are still living with their parents when they have children of their own.” “I know we are not alone in this struggle, I have seen mobile after mobile pop up in people’s gardens over the last number of years since I got mine and I know this would provide so many young families with their permanent home, including mine.” Section 16.4.1 of the Kildare County Development Plan suggests that log cabins are not “vernacular typologies” of the Kildare countryside and are therefore not generally considered appropriate, the planners told Selfbuild. SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 13
W H AT ’ S N E W / B O O K R E V I E W
The Art of Earth Architecture The Rauch House, birkhauser.com
© Nic LeHous / DIALOG
as it is non toxic and regulates both humidity and temperature. In fact most of the island of Ireland, despite the wet weather, used raw earth for generations as a construction material to great success. As the book laments, building regulations and industrialisation have made commercially produced products the norm. Yet earth walls, when built thick enough, have good insulation properties and of course, can store heat in the walls thanks to its thermal mass. A contemporary advocate of raw earth, Martin Rauch, says in the book: “If everybody lived in housing typical of industrialised countries, three planet Earths would barely be sufficient
14 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
© James Wang
THIS massive compendium of earthen architecture is as big in size, and weight, as it is ambitious. It aims to shake the misperception that building with mud is less robust than building with any other material. In fact it posits that building with raw earth should become a cornerstone in the fight against climate change. The book covers the history and world reach, from 75 countries across five continents, of this humble material, from antiquity to the present day. Stunning images and illustrations are complemented by 35 articles, written by 15 renowned researchers and practitioners, which provide a radical yet realistic ecological manifesto. As a substitute for cement and concrete in small or medium sized buildings, raw earth has a lot of advantages: it requires little transport, it is low cost and makes for a very healthy home,
to provide all the materials necessary.” Dominque Gauzin-Müller, meanwhile, reminds us that the construction industry is responsible for 40 per cent of the world’s consumption of energy and natural resources, 40 per cent of its waste products and 40 per cent of its greenhouse emissions. “True environmental responsibility means using the right materials in the right quantities in the right place,” he writes. What would a raw earth house built to the current building regulations in Ireland be
made up of? How thick would the walls need to be and what additional insulation would be required? Answering these questions can be difficult, which is perhaps why in Ireland the ecological market has turned to hemp, as it boasts better thermal properties.
The Art of Earth Architecture: Past, Present, Future by Jean Dethier, Thames & Hudson, thameshudson.co.uk, hardback, 512 pages with 800 illustrations, full colour, 31 x 24cm, ISBN 9780500343579, £98
N E W S / W H AT ’ S N E W
Changes to PPS21 New planning policies in NI could make it easier, or more difficult, for self-builders to secure planning permission in the countryside, all depending on where you live, says planning expert Mervyn McNeill. CHANGES to Local Development Plans and Strategy documents (LDPS) are underway in Northern Ireland, and if they take effect each one of NI’s 11 local Councils will have a different policy in relation to granting planning permission to one-off houses in the countryside. If approved, the 11 LDPS would supersede the current Planning Policy Statement 21 (PPS21). The current PPS21 policy for
Northern Ireland is the exact same for the 11 Councils, laying out the rules to building the countryside. At the moment to get planning permission in NI you usually need to make a planning statement (known as a Concept Statement or Design Statement) to persuade the planners your proposal is compliant with PPS21. Many of the councils with published LDPS documents are now in the process of being examined by the Department of
Infrastructure (Dfi) to supersede PPS21. Some councils have scheduled the adoption of their new policies as early as July 2020 subject to Dfi approval. These changes would result in a similar system that is in operation in ROI, whereby the same notional applicant in one council may receive approval and in another, refusal.
In brief Planning appeal in NI A Lisburn family wanting to build a new one-and-a-half storey dwelling from the ruins of their ancestral home was rejected planning permission because the surviving structure didn’t have the “essential characteristics” of a home, the Belfast Telegraph reports. The family wants to build a home in the style of the original farmhouse, with stables incorporating the existing stone walls, but the Lisburn and Castlereagh authorities have denied the application despite the family being able to trace their connection to the farm back 200 years. The case is being appealed.
Serviced self-build sites could become available in ROI AT the time of going to print, government formation seemed to be taking shape between the two main political parties. If this were to come to fruition, Fine Gael’s plan to roll out a Rural Serviced Sites scheme could become reality. The plan aims to discourage one-off housing in the countryside, instead clustering houses in rural towns and villages to mimic the way our ancestors built clachan settlements in the past. The scheme would see local authorities selling serviced sites (with utility connections and ready road access) at cost price to people wishing to build their own home, very similar to what is in place in mainland UK. According to the Irish Independent, self-builders buying the sites will be asked to contract
a developer to build their home, with the sites large enough to accommodate between four and six new houses. At the moment it seems that are at least 1,400 sites in rural communities earmarked for around 8,000 new homes. The sites would be available to owner-occupiers only, (first-time buyers or downsizers), and the planning application process would have to be initiated by the self-builders themselves.
Cluster housing
The Rural Serviced Sites scheme is modelled on Tipperary County Council’s Design and Best Practice Guidelines for Cluster
Housing Schemes in Rural Villages planning document (extract above). The document presents design options for those who wish to build and design their own homes in existing rural communities, within town boundaries. The aim is to “strengthen our villages for generations to come.”
The document provides some very specific design guidance, including on wall finishes where it discourages the use of stone on all elevations, favouring light colours to the detriment of “engineered cladding effects”. Guidelines in relation to planting are also clear, specifying heights for hedgerows for example. Specific case studies are also given as best practice guides. What is unclear is whether this policy, if rolled out nationally, might replace the infamous locals-only rule whereby prospective self-builders have to prove a connection to the land before building. If that is the case, cluster housing zoning laws could spell the end of one-off housing in the open countryside. SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 15
W H AT ’ S N E W / N E W S
Local musician defies planners
In brief Time to build floating houses IMFS - floatingstructures.com
A well known Kerry musician has been asked to remove his temporary mobile timber home from his site, which he has refused to do despite threats of jail and hefty fines. Over the past 13 years Breanndán Begley has been applying to build his permanent home on family land and has been consistently refused planning permission. He expects that under his current application, the planners will allow him to keep the temporary dwelling, sitting on a 35x8 trailer, until he builds the 730sqft house he applied for. He told Selfbuild that sheds are cropping up all over the countryside and that plenty of holiday homes get planning permission, to be lived in by the crows. “It’s about more than houses, it’s about heritage, language, culture, music. The house I plan to build would be unobtrusive,” he said. “The laws that are in place need to be changed; there is a lack of accountability in the planning department and that’s the real problem.” 16 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
FLOOD prone areas need amphibious houses, not walls, argued Mark Keenan in the Irish Independent late March. After decades of building walls that have proved inefficient in the face of ever more frequent flood events, the planning authorities should specify building houses that can cope with water rises such as amphibious homes or houses on stilts, argued the pundit. Describing the work of architect Richard Coutts, Keenan explained amphibious homes are attached via sliders to four stout posts (called dolphins) that rise 13 feet above the ground. When the floods come, the water spills into the rectangular basin built around the house. When the water recedes, the house floats back down to its original position. Flexible piping and wiring mean the design has a capacity to deal with a 9ft or 2.7m rise in the water levels. The cost may be roughly 20 per cent more to build amphibious than a landlocked house, but in flood prone areas this is likely to be more cost effective than incurring structural damage due to high tides.
N E W S / W H AT ’ S N E W
Designer house for mass consumption Leather designer and furniture maker Garvan de Bruir has come up with a two-bedroom house design he plans to offer as an off-site building solution. AFTER having created a series of self-build structures that are the workshops for his design studio in Kildare, Gavin de Bruir is now working on a full-sized, two-bedroom dwelling which is all prefabricated in SMARTPLY OSB3. The unique design of each building is inspired by a monocoque: a structural system where heavy loads are able to be supported through an object’s external skin, similar to an egg shell. In Garvan’s design, the outer walls curve up and over to become the roof, as a single seamless arch. The word monocoque is derived from a
French term meaning ‘single’ and ‘shell’, and is traditionally used in the design of aircrafts. Their benefits of a monocoque is that it is very lightweight, but extremely rigid and able to bear heavy loads. These are important design criteria for modular buildings, sections of which would have to be transported from factory to site and craned into place. “The intention is to refine the design of these buildings into something suitable for large scale, offsite production. Each component is able to be reproduced, and the building put together like a simple jigsaw,” Garvan explains.
Using digital design and manufacturing methods, the objective was to design and build a modular building that could be replicated over and over again; a building that would offer warm, energy efficient living spaces, built from sustainably produced timber that is entirely locally sourced. According to Garvan: “With wood as the common material, it is easy to simply scale up techniques and construction methods from furniture and cabinet-making into building design.” “Some years ago, I built a small singlestory building to try out the technique. After that proved successful, I moved on to building a larger two-storey version and created the first prototype prefabricated building.” Garvan hopes to complete the house towards the spring of 2020.
Building in Dublin still too expensive for most ACCESS to mortgages and levies outside of construction costs make it difficult to selfbuild in the capital. A new 100sqm townhouse would cost, all in, €330,000 to build in Dublin, according to a report for Irish Institutional Property into what it would cost a developer to build housing in the capital. The IIP is a lobby group for institutional investors. The construction costs themselves are much more modest, however, at €158,000. The discrepancy is due to the cost of the site,
planning, finance and VAT, among others. For a city centre or complex build, the report indicates cost may be up to 20 to 40 per cent higher depending on site conditions, height, specification and the like. The report also states costs may vary from five to 10 per cent depending on whether the developer uses a third party builder or manages the construction directly. For a developer, a two bed apartment would cost even more, at €460,000 of which €225,000 represents
the construction costs, higher due to larger foundations, parking, lifts, etc. Meanwhile, the Irish Times reported in March that typical asking prices in the capital were more than nine times the average salary, and that a first-time buyer or a dual-income first-time buyer household availing of a 90 per cent loan-to-mortgage would typically need an income of €98,000 to qualify. Quoting a KBC Bank report, the paper said the price of new homes purchased by first-time buyers jumped from €200,000 to €380,000 since 2012, with a corresponding drop in purchases of new homes in Dublin by first-time buyers last year. During this period there has also been an acceleration in new home prices relative to existing home prices, the paper added, as purchases by households fell for the first time in seven years, driven by a 15 per cent drop in the purchases of new builds.
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The road to Alexa, tell my shower knowledge to turn on In response to an increased requirement for technical information on products and standards, Roadstone is now offering self-builders and professionals the opportunity to sign up to new online seminars. Roadstone LEARN is free to use and can be accessed from the Roadstone website or through cpd.roadstone.ie The seminars are video based and structured to allow participants gain in-depth knowledge on specific topics presented by Roadstone’s key technical managers. Following each course a certificate of completion is available for download. There is a wide selection of seminars available on the platform covering topics that pertain to Roadstone products including Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) and ROI Part L compliance, Sustainable Drainage Solutions (SuDS) and paving, masonry essentials and an intriguing and informative seminar on stone and associated standards. New seminars will be added to the platform regularly to ensure participants are kept up to date on relevant developments within the Irish construction environment and also on specific products offered by Roadstone. For more information visit cpd.roadstone.ie
It was only a matter of time before smart showers entered our lives, and thanks to the new Smart Quartz Collection from Aqualisa they’ve become reality. The voice control functionality is activated through Amazon’s Alexa so you can easily send commands to the shower. Not only that, every member of the family can activate their own personal shower requirement, created and saved on the app for the perfect, consistently repeated showering experience. The Aqualisa Smart Valve (ASV) is the brains of the new smart collection and can be located up to 10 metres away from the shower itself, providing flexibility in installation. Integrating it to your existing smart home eco-system is also a cinch, all done through wifi. The new smart range consists of Quartz Blue, the introduction to the smart showering revolution for the new
collection, Quartz Classic, an already proven best seller now with added smart technology and top of the range Quartz Touch, which offers the most personal showering experience yet and to which devotees of the smart home will aspire. aqualisa.co.uk
Get free heating for six months! Choosing what building method to go for can be daunting, between the more traditional options and the fact that some eco-friendly routes can be difficult to certify. This is why Clayblock Ireland is aiming to make the selection process easy for you by not only guaranteeing low heating bills, but by paying them for the first six months after you move in. The offer only applies to full builds (not extensions) detached domestic houses, which you commission Clayblock to build for you, and as long as you sign the
contract in 2020 you will automatically qualify. Clayblock’s certified building method uses Porotherm blocks, a lightweight, breathable and natural material, built as a monolithic (single leaf) wall. In other words there is no cavity wall which eliminates issues such as the possibility of thermal looping. Clay regulates humidity and acts as a thermal store, which means it retains heat and slowly releases it. The Porotherm blocks achieve an NZEB ready (current ROI building regulations) U-value of 0.18 W/sqmK with a 365mm wide insulated to block or with a 425mm uninsulated block, but there are many other combinations to choose from. Benefits of clay blocks, project calculator and web shop available on clayblock.ie Email your plans for a free quote to: office@clayblock.ie or ring ROI mobile 087 451 3278, NI 00353 87 451 3278, for more information
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Towards a hydrogen future Hydrogen is an eco-friendly alternative to oil or gas in that, when you burn it, the only by-product is water. There are two potential sources of hydrogen, the most eco-friendly being electrolysis of water which, if energised from a renewable source such as wind power is carbon-free at both the point of manufacture and use. Steam reformation of natural gas (methane) is the other option but it emits carbon and would therefore require some means of storing it such as Carbon Capture Use and Storage. Furthermore, even though the current gas network could theoretically switch to hydrogen overnight, gas boilers in people’s homes aren’t made to burn 100 per cent
hydrogen and would need to be replaced. An existing boiler installed post 1996 can substitute hydrogen for natural gas to a maximum of about 20 per cent. Another solution to this issue comes from Worcester Bosch which recently revealed its new and unique boiler prototype which can run on 100 per cent hydrogen or natural gas, making it a hydrogen-ready gas boiler. The hydrogen-ready Worcester Bosch model has a similar build to existing gas boilers so installers will have most of the skills necessary to fit and service the new product.
Seal of approval
worcester-bosch.co.uk
Keith McGrath receiving the BBA Certificate on behalf of Cemfloor.
Interior design trends tend to focus on living and sleeping quarters, but bathrooms have a lot of heavy lifting to do in terms of how your home will feel and function. Keeping up to date with the latest trends is Bathshack, the all Ireland bathroom company which recently fitted brand new displays in all of their other showrooms in Dublin, Cork, Belfast and Ballymena. A new showroom was also opened last year in Lisburn showcasing the company’s extensive range of showers, baths, toilets, basins, heating and more including hundreds of tiles and flooring options on display.
The British Board of Agrément (BBA) is recognised throughout the construction industry as a symbol of quality and reassurance through its certification process, and one of the latest products to make the cut is Cemfloor by McGraths. Padraic McGrath, Head of Research & Development said that the certification was “the result of a continuous commitment to ensure that Cemfloor is of the highest standard. The BBA issued this certificate after a rigorous testing period that showed the reliability and high quality of our product.” He added that Cemfloor is the first cement based liquid screed to be awarded BBA Certification in the UK and Ireland. Cemfloor is a high-performance cement based, free flowing, selfcompacting liquid screed that is only installed by fully approved and trained applicators, ensuring quality is never compromised. Its fast-drying properties ensure floor coverings such as tiles and vinyl can be applied sooner than some traditional screeds.
bathshack.com
mcgraths.ie, cemfloor.co.uk
Shaking things up
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NEW BUILD
Towering achievement
Elaine Donaghy McCrory’s self-build in Co Tyrone proves you can get planning permission for just about any design you can dream of – even a castle. Words: Debbie Orme Photography: Paul Lindsay
O
ur house has definitely been a labour of love,” says Elaine. “I reckon that it took about seven years from when we initially started researching house styles and planning to actually moving into the house in 2016. Both Kevin and I spent a lot of time on social media channels and online inspiration sites.” “Instagram was not as prevalent then as it is now but, since I travel a lot with my job, I’d also had lots of inspiration from different hotels I’d stayed in around the world. The tower aspect of our house, for example, was based on a house that I’d seen in Austria. It had been a dream of mine since I was very young, to live in my own fairy tale castle.” One of the great things about Elaine and Kevin’s self-build was the fact that, because they took so much time in the planning, building and self-project management the couple were able to leave themselves with a relatively low mortgage. “Kevin and I were very fortunate in that we both lived at home at the time of building,” says Elaine. “This was also prior to our wedding and so, by living at home, we were able to save money and pay for as many things as we could as we went along. Although the build took place over a fiveyear period, we now have a relatively low mortgage, which is obviously a great help.” “The design process stemmed from all those years gathering ideas, which we brought to an architectural designer who helped put them into floor plans. Ideas from hotels that I incorporated on a smaller scale include things like internal windows, the main staircase, and lighting.” “We had also originally looked at a split level design, an idea that came to me SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 21
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Q&A Would you do it again?
I always said that I would never build a second house but now I think I would do it again. I would love a second home or holiday home somewhere like Donegal, but I would do it in a different style, just to have it different to our home, with more glass and perhaps make it split level, with the kitchen upstairs.
What’s your favourite thing about the house?
The snug tower room off the open plan area. I love the fact that it’s pink and feminine, my fairy tale castle, but also that it’s tucked away enough to be a little area of its own yet still part of the kitchen.
What would you do differently?
I don’t think we would do anything differently because we put so much time into the planning that it really is the house of our dreams. The only thing that I think is missing is maybe a boot room, even though I don’t really need one!
following a stay in a holiday home that incorporated this style and layout and, since then, it has always been a vision and concept I liked.” “Since I spend so much time in the kitchen/living space, it would be nice to have it upstairs to take in the views from a higher perspective. But because this would have had the knock-on effect of adding a basement, (our ground did not particularly lend itself to that), we didn’t pursue it.”
Planning restrictions
“While I think our self-build went relatively smoothly, we did have a few problems to overcome, particularly in terms of restrictions that were imposed on us at the initial planning stages. Although we own several other sites close to where our house is located, planning dictated that we had to build in a
cluster and so we built in between my mum and dad’s house and my granny’s house.” “The planners also had an issue with features like having large windows at the front of the house. Because we wanted plenty of light we had included a large pane of glass in the front living room but to get planning permission we had to compromise and we put in two smaller windows, which has worked out fine even though this set up somewhat compromises the views.” “The tower was also subject to restrictions. Our original plans had it at the front of the house, but these had to be reworked and we moved it to the back. It was for the best as it is a nice ‘surprise’ feature that is tucked away.” “Landscaping was actually one of the first things that we did when we started building. We plotted out where the gardens would be and planted copper and green beech trees around the periphery, which the
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planners were glad to see on the plans.” “We originally wanted to be able to drive right around the house, but that would have eaten up part of the garden and so we decided against it and instead now use a second entrance out the back that was originally created to provide access to materials during the construction phase. It now serves as a good means to enter and exit our home easily without turning onto the street.” “As with the house, we didn’t want ‘squared off’ designs, and so we opted for different shapes. The garden actually comes right up to the patio area, and we also planted a patch of wildflowers at the other side of the house. We have quite a bit of land so we’re eventually going to sow that out and get a few llamas or donkeys.”
Project management
“Construction started in 2012 and the project was totally managed by myself and my husband Kevin, who works in the construction industry now with his own timber fame business which offers full build and timer frame kit only options.” “We were also very fortunate in that my dad who is a builder by trade, was always on hand for advice and for aspects such as checking the workmanship as we went along. He was very much involved in the process with us, which was a tremendous asset.” “The construction phase did present a few unexpected challenges. For instance one day when we were on site, we realised 24 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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Tips Show off your personality. We wanted to have the house furnished and totally decorated before we moved in and had very strong ideas about the style. We also knew that we wanted interiors that reflected us and our personalities. Some people tried to talk us out of panelling for example, or tried to put us off putting wallpaper in the bathroom, but we stuck with style ideas and items that we really loved. Wallpaper is a big favourite of ours, and so it features prominently throughout the house. We went for designs that make it a feature in itself.
access to our gallery space wasn’t going to be possible with a regular staircase.” “After extensive research we finally found a spiral staircase that complied with Building Control, and had it shipped from London. It needed quite a lot of attention to get it looking good, so it had to be completely stripped, then shot blasted and all repainted here. Looking at it now, though, it was worth the effort.” “I have to admit that the roof also caused us a few headaches. The design was extremely complex, with lots of different angles and it is finished with about 10,000 slates which are 5mm thick and 500x300mm in size, so it was very time-intensive – particularly in terms of the tower.” “Inside, the living, kitchen, dining and snug space are very open plan and, when you have a house that has so much space and such high ceilings – not to mention the amount of glass – insulation is a major issue and we paid close attention to the energy requirements early on.” “The shape of the tower also meant that we had to ensure that we weren’t losing heat by it escaping upwards, and so we introduced insulation in as many ways as possible without losing any aesthetic appeal, mostly by insulating between the floors.” “We have oil for our central heating and natural ventilation in the form of trickle vents in the windows, which we also open regularly. And although the house is relatively big, we are still happy with the size of our home and SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 25
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Tips Break up large spaces. Although the downstairs layout is very open plan, we still wanted to differentiate each area to give them their own identity but still be complementary and so we selected tones that work together. The pink area under the spiral staircase, for example, is, I think, a really attractive feature and is my girly corner. Have fun picking out finishes. Thankfully Kevin was involved in this process as much as I was and on a few occasions he changed some bits I originally picked, which worked out for the better. My mum was also great for helping when it came to picking décor as well, as she has a real love for home and decorating, so it was great having her input.
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given the fact that we spent so much money on the insulation, it’s a very comfortable and easy to heat with two oil fills (or about £2,000) a year.” “We have underfloor heating in the open plan space only and radiators throughout the house, both upstairs and down, with heating controls helping us regulate the temperatures in each of the rooms individually.” “We have aesthetically-pleasing cast-iron versions that I absolutely love, and ‘ordinary’ radiators, which are hidden behind bespoke wooden covers that we had made.” “I was worried about whether the cast iron radiators would actually retain their
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heat,” Elaine continues, “but they’ve been really terrific and there’s the added bonus that they’re really good for drying clothes too.” “We are also fortunate that we own a small forest behind our house and it is a source of firewood for our stove, which we use throughout the winter months. It’s a really cosy home and we couldn’t be happier with it.”
Elaine’s favourite part of the house.
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Home of the Year
Elaine loves interiors and through her blog has become an influencer on social media; through this means she was contacted by RTÉ to apply and participate in Home of Year 2020. The programme prominently showcased her walk-in wardrobe, to the viewers’ envy. “I’ve my very talented father to thank for it, he was responsible for the craftsmanship, including design, manufacturer and assembly,” she says. “Myself and Kevin spotted the idea of using old copper pipes as the supporting frames online and of course I tasked my daddy with the job; he is so talented he was the best person for it.” “I knew I wanted open railings as I thought it was a good way to see all your clothes and I can say 100 per cent that as a result I wear more of them. We carefully
‘Being on RTÉ’s Home of the Year was a mix of excitement, nerves, joy and everything in between...’
considered the types/lengths of clothes we would be hanging and where. We also factored in some space for bags and shoes and for these we opted for plank style shelves, still using the copper frame for the support to tie it all together.” “My dad made it all from scratch from copper piping and installed it with the help of Kevin. My contribution was to clean all the pipes with wire wool and then a final clean and they were ready for the clothes.” “The size of the dressing room is the size of a medium sized bedroom, 5m x 5m to accommodate the various elements. Kevin uses about a tenth of the wardrobe so I have plenty of room for all of my stuff.” As for the experience itself, Elaine says it was a mix of emotions. “Excitement, nerves, joy… and everything in between,” she laughs. “Thankfully we knew the outcome before we tuned in which made it slightly easier to enjoy, with family and friends around us for the viewing, but the nerves were still very real as we didn’t get to see the episode prior to it airing.” 28 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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Q&A
“I was so anxious about how our home would come across and more importantly what the judges would say, but I was actually overwhelmed by their feedback. ‘A fairy tale castle’ topping my list and Hugh Wallace wanting to move in!” “So whilst we didn’t make it through to the final, we nonetheless are so privileged and honoured, firstly to be considered for the show, let alone make the cut to be featured alongside these 20 other incredible homes across Ireland.” “It’s hard to put into words the experience of it all, it was just so surreal and exciting. From the initial contact asking us to participate and finding out we were selected to getting the house prepped and the filming days, it was really something special. The feedback after the show on social media has also been amazing, the support and kindness shown has been simply incredible and overwhelming.”
Apart from the build issues, what surprised you?
You have to make decision very quickly in order for things to progress and sometimes you do feel a bit pressured to make them. It’s funny because I was much better at making decisions during our self-build than I am now, as I find it so hard to pick even the simplest thing for the house these days.
What single piece of advice would you give a budding self-builder?
Do a lot of research. You need to physically go and see things. Magazines are all well and good but there’s nothing like actually seeing something in the flesh. By doing a lot of research you can pick elements of different styles. Make a note of everything. Choosing things that you truly love is, to me, what makes a house like this unique and individual to the people living in it. I would also say that you should go with what you want in terms of design and style and not necessary settle for what’s in vogue at a particular moment in time. Home décor styles change regularly and, while it’s nice to be trendy, for want of a better word, it’s more important for Kevin and I to live in a house that is unique to us and full of things that we love
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More photographs available at selfbuild.ie
Project information Find out more about Elaine’s new build project in Co Tyrone... SIZES, COST & SPECIFICATION
SUPPLIERS
House size: 400 sqm / Garage: 1,500 sqm / Plot size: 1 acre Turnkey finish: £300,000 / House value: £500,000
Architectural design Building Design Solutions, buildingdesignsolutions.org.uk
Insulation: 150mm cavity walls filled with EPS beads with 50mm PIR insulation on inside wall (insulated plasterboard), floor 100mm PIR board with 50mm liquid screed, roof 150mm spray foam insulation on rafters. Internal floors in tower 25mm phenolic board in the ceiling and 100mm rock wool in the slabs between the floors. Windows: triple glazed with 90mm insulated frames, argon filled, overall U-value 0.6 W/sqmK
Builder Slane Building Contracts Ltd, Omagh, Co Tyrone, mobile 07775 697567 Interiors Elaine’s Roves ‘n Troves, instagram.com/ elainesrovesntroves and faceook.com/ elainesrovesntroves Kitchen Hollywood Furnishings, hollywoodfurnishings.co.uk
SAP (EPC): 65 (D)
Windows Munster Joinery, munsterjoinery.ie Baskil, baskilwindowsystems.co.uk
GROUND FLOOR
Insulation Kingspan Insulation, kingspaninsulation.com
Kitchen
Photography Christopher Hill Photographic, scenicireland.com
Snug
ROI calling NI prefix with 0044 and drop the first zero
Patio
Bathroom Informal Dining
Hall
Utility
WC
Formal Dining Room
FIRST FLOOR Living Area Entrance Hall
Lounge Gallery
Bedroom 2 Bedroom 4 / Study
Dress Bedroom
En-suite En-suite Bedroom 3
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Landing
Master Bedroom
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NEW BUILD
A boyhood dream comes true With views spanning four counties, the site Brendan and Sarah Cullinane built on was special in more ways than one. Words: Heather Campbell Photography: Damien Kelly
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S
ince I was very young, I’ve wanted to build a house on our family farm, and luckily when Sarah and I moved back to Waterford from Australia, she and I were on the same page,” says Brendan. “We didn’t want to buy a house built to someone else’s design and try to make it work; we wanted to create a space that we designed tailored for the way we live.” “My mum and dad built their house two miles from the family farm in the 1980s before they had me and my brother John. I remember when I was about seven or eight, I told Dad that I wanted to build on an area that we used to winter cattle on that was nicely situated in the corner of our farm. Turns out, that’s the exact spot Sarah and I now live!” “On the farm map, we drew out a corner of land that wasn’t really used for anything, which is why we’ve ended up with an eight acre plot. It encompasses two big fields and a massive wooded area.” “The location is elevated, so we have fantastic views. From the house itself, you can see four counties: Waterford, Tipperary, Kilkenny and Wexford. It’s a very special location.” “This is the first house we’ve owned, and it’s the last house we want to own. It really is a forever home; we’ll never sell it. So that meant we needed to make sure it could grow with us.”
Scottish influence
“When we lived in Glasgow’s West End, we
fell in love with the architecture of the Hotel du Vin. We both have traditional tastes and we knew we wanted a Georgian-style home. The challenge was to recreate the visual feel without overdoing it and ending up with something tacky. It’s a fine line.” “I decided to be project manager for the build. I’m a dietitian by profession, not a builder, but part of my job involves contract management. So I have very good organising skills. I was also encouraged by the experience and knowledge gained by my dad when he built his house, and from the friends I have who work in the construction industry.” “We found an architect locally, who took me under his wing. He’s advanced in his years but sharper than any man in his prime. He has vast experience, and he advised me throughout the process.” “When we showed him our initial plans for the house, he told us it wasn’t going to work. Firstly, he said we wouldn’t get it through planning, and secondly, we couldn’t afford what we wanted. I was a bit taken aback at first, but it struck a chord with me. It was his honesty that made us choose him as our architect.” “Thanks to his guidance, we sailed through the planning process in 11 weeks, from submitting the application to getting permission. But we hit an unexpected bump with the Land Commission when my parents were signing over the plot to us.” “My parents’ farm includes rights of way to a laneway that serves a private house that was the original estate house on the land. Sarah and I needed rights of way to the laneway also. There were lots of toing and froing between the architect, solicitors and the Land Commission to ensure everything was rubber-tight. Precise maps had to be SU MRM ER SP IN G 2020 / SELFBUILD / 3 435
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Q&A What single piece of advice would you give a budding selfbuilder? Employ an architect with significant experience and local knowledge. Also, ensure they have experience with local contractors. They’ll know the cowboys from the honest ones. If you get this right, everything else will fall into place.
Would you do it all again?
Not planning on it. That was the whole idea by getting it right the first time. My brother is moving back home over from Australia this summer with his kids and his wife, and they’ll probably build at some stage in the coming years. I’m sure I’ll be roped in to giving them a hand.
What would you change?
At a push I’d replace the standard windows in the conservatory with the sliding sash. But at the time that wasn’t an option due to budget constraints.
drawn up showing where the boundaries were going to be. I didn’t anticipate this stage at all; it took six weeks but could have taken six months only for our architect’s focus to push it through.” “The house is on three storeys and although the third floor is currently unliveable space, we’ll eventually develop it into an open plan cinema/ playroom. “Sarah and I both wanted a big house, like our parents’ homes. Our main brief to the architect was that we wanted to have a large open plan living and kitchen reception room so we can entertain easily. Within that space, Sarah wanted a double-sided stove similar to one we saw during a stay at Cameron House Hotel in Scotland. But she was adamant that the stove was fitted as a standalone piece – not built into a wall that would effectively separate the kitchen and the living room.” “I wanted a walk-in wardrobe and dressing area along with an ensuite for our master bedroom. It has a hotel suite vibe, which I love. And a wrap-around staircase was also on my wish list.” “Another requirement was for a downstairs bedroom/ office. I work from home a fair bit, and looking towards the future, we have a bedroom for aging family members or if needed in the future.” “We also stipulated the need for a large main bathroom upstairs. Everything else just fell into place.”
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Heart of the home
The open plan living and kitchen area (which opens out into a conservatory) is at the heart of the home, partitioned by the double-sided stove that hangs from the ceiling. “We wanted to use this space throughout the day so when we were planning the house we made sure that it had light from morning to evening. The sun rises and shines into the two front sash windows in the living area. In the afternoon the sun travels round to the bay window on the right-hand side, and in the evening the conservatory at the back takes in all the evening sun.” “In fact before any of the plans were drawn up, we spent hours sitting on the tractor on the site, figuring out exactly where the sun was at different times of the day.” “We admittedly splurged on the kitchen,
‘We wanted to use this space throughout the day so when we were planning the house we made sure that it had light all day.’ but it was worth it because we spend so much of our day in there. We chose solid ash units. And at the centre is a large island topped with a quartz worktop, big enough for the whole family to sit around.” “Sitting on the bay windowsill is a Waterford Crystal trophy that was cut by my father, a master cutter. Not surprisingly, there are quite a few other pieces of Waterford Crystal throughout the house, including a chandelier that hangs in our bedroom – a gift from my parents. It’s lovely to be able to display such family heirlooms in our home.” “We painted the kitchen presses ivory cream and the island green. We kept the colour scheme fairly neutral in the living areas. In the conservatory, we’ve added two royal blue Georgian-style couches which adds a vibrant pop of colour.” “The stove is one of our favourite features of the house, but it wasn’t a 36 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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straightforward installation. Sarah and I didn’t want to have it inset in a wall as it would spoil the view from the kitchen. Everyone told us it couldn’t be done, but we just kept insisting.” “The square pieces of glass frontage are the only parts that were purchased instore; everything else was custom-built. The concrete hearth was made from concrete blocks and lintels which were covered with wire mesh for the plaster to adhere to.” “The stove sits on top of that. Our fitter custom-built a steel box to suspend it and he insulated the interior with rock wool insulation. If you touch any metal part of the stove, it’s cold.” “The insulated flue runs directly up through our bedroom and the third floor with vents at floor and ceiling heights so we can benefit from the heat from the stove.” “Once the stove was completed, we lit it and kept it going every day to help dry out the property before we moved in.” As for the rest of the finishes, the couple stayed in keeping with the hotel feel. “We wanted a sleek hotel-style bathroom and master ensuite – his and her sinks and a walk-in shower. Our bathroom supplier custom built the floating vanity units to our specification, which was really cost-effective. They look fantastic, and are simply made from covered MDF.” “When it came to the lighting, Sarah sourced most of the fittings online. The spots we left for the electrician to source.” SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 37
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Q&A What would you change?
At a push I’d replace the standard windows in the conservatory with the sliding sash. But at the time that wasn’t an option due to budget constraints.
What’s your favourite part of the house?
The open plan living kitchen area, because of the stove and the quality kitchen we installed.
Building phase
“Twelve months before we began the planning stage, I started the process of finding our tradesmen. I met with at least three from each trade and got prices, and lead times from each of them.” “Figuring that the build time would be roughly 12 to 18 months, I was gladly pleased when we got it completed in 10 and we moved in April 2019. Our architect said we’d probably be in the house within 12 months with about six months’ work left to do to finish it off.” “To schedule the build, I looked at the tradesmen’s time availability and mapped the junctions between them. With the help of my dad, I looked at the quality of their previous work, their price, and what they
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were offering for it; was it a finished price or a daily rate?” “I had that all worked out before we put in for planning permission, so we weren’t chasing our tail trying to find trades at the last minute. I think it worked out well for us.” “I used Notes on my smart phone to keep track of the budget, timelines and contractors, so I knew when each phase would be complete for the next mortgage drawdown.” “The building material is blockwork. I didn’t want the full fill because I didn’t want any risk of water transfer from the block touching up against the insulation. I know the membrane is supposed to stop that from happening, but I wanted to make absolutely sure it wouldn’t.” “We installed an air-to-water heat pump with underfloor heating and are absolutely delighted with it. We have underfloor heating on the ground floor with 200mm concrete slab on top. On the first floor the
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underfloor heating is covered with 75mm concrete.” “The temperature in each room is adjustable so those that aren’t used are kept at around 16degC and the bedrooms at 19degC. We planned on setting the living area to 21degC, but honestly, we never have it on thanks to the heat output of our stove.” “It’s been very economical. The only bills we pay are for electricity, TV, broadband and of course our mortgage repayment! Our electricity bills averaged over the year, come to €80 per month. That includes the usage of all the electrical appliances and the pump for our well.” “All the windows are double-glazed, sliding sash windows apart from the conservatory. They were very expensive, but we couldn’t have achieved the period-style look we wanted otherwise.”
Changes
“We didn’t make many major changes to the build. We just enlarged the main bathroom and one of the smaller bedrooms. But these weren’t structural walls, so they weren’t big jobs.” “What I didn’t foresee, however, was that we’d need to build a pump house for our well. I decided to make it a little bigger than necessary so I could include a workshop.” “We did have one calamity when one of the gables collapsed during a storm. We’d 40 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
‘I love the home we have created, and I honestly enjoyed every minute of the build.
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Tips Get a second phone dedicated to your self-build, because then you can actually switch off. If not you will have to deal with phone calls at all times of the day and night. It’s good to be able to switch off the phone and have a break from it all. Manage your expectations. You are playing a waiting game. With direct labour everything will take that little bit longer. Contractors will say they’ll be there on Tuesday and they won’t come until the following Wednesday. The reason that you’re hiring the tradesmen individually is because you’re saving money. The reason you’re saving money is because you’re taking that risk. But don’t worry, the risk will pay off.
finished building on both ends of the house around October time. The roofers were due to arrive the week after that, but they were delayed – which you need to get used to when doing a self-build. Not everything goes to plan! That’s when we were hit by a really bad wind and rain, which caused the collapse.” “On reflection, instead of asking the block layers to finish the gables, I should have left it half-height, completing it when the roofers came.” “Luckily, nothing structural was affected. All it cost me were 200 new blocks and the labour for a couple of days for the block layers, along with a bit of insulation.” “Sarah, me, my mum and dad spent the whole next day after the collapse picking up every block from the bedroom upstairs and throwing them out the window. That was the only real hiccup we had.” “I love the home we have created, and I honestly enjoyed every minute of the build. Yes, it was stressful and draining, but the first day you walk in and put your head down to sleep in your new house, that feeling is absolutely fantastic.” “I reckon we’ve saved around €90,000 by me project managing and the finish we’ve achieved is first class.”
Dedicate time to cleaning up, around two to three hours every weekend. If your trades come on to a clean site, the chance are they will leave it that way. If they come to a messy site, they will add to the mess and leave it like that. I made sure everything was put in a bin, and stuff wasn’t blowing about. Examine each trades price three to four times. Don’t just choose someone because he’s your neighbour or is your best friend. We made the decision we wouldn’t employ good friends. My reasoning was, you can fall out with a person you don’t know; it doesn’t really matter. Buy in bulk to save money. Try and buy as many things in one place, like bathroom fittings and flooring. Think interior finishes. It’s never too early to be picking up a few bits for the house. Little things like vases and photo frames. Sarah was amazing for doing that and thanks to her, we walked into a house that instantly had a homely feel.
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More photographs available at selfbuild.ie
Project information
Find out more about Brendan and Sarah’s new build project in Co Waterford... SIZES, COSTS & SPECIFICATION
SUPPLIERS
House size: 3,265sqft over two storeys, 4,040sqft over three Plot size: 2.75 acres for house, garden and driveway; total area planning permission was granted on, including the wooded area at front of the house and two paddocks for cattle: 8 acres
Architectural advisor John Santry
Build cost: €350,000 Garden and landscaping: €5,000 Furniture and finishes: €15,000 Total finished cost: €370,000 House value: €600,000
UP
Solicitor Morette Kinsella, tel. 051 878090, info@kinsellasolicitors.com Bathrooms furniture and fittings Bath Shack, bathshack.ie Tiles Best Tile, besttile.iek Insulation Xtratherm, xtratherm.ie WARDROBE
Walls: 150mm cavity masonry wall filled with 110mm PIR board on internal leaf with 40mm clear cavity, inner leaf of the external walls 62.5mm insulated plasterboard, 37.5mm insulated plasterboard on the inner side of the windows. Floors: raft foundation with insulated ground floor 150mm PIR, first floor 200mm concrete slab with 60mm PIR insulation, underfloor heating pipes then 75mm screed. Perimeter insulation 70mm PIR. Third storey built with wooden joists, 150mm glass fibre insulation laid between joists, 150mm insulation laid on top of ceiling joists with 62.5mm PIR insulated slabs on the underside of ceiling joists. Roof: 150mm glass fibre insulation laid between the collars, 150mm insulation laid on top of collars with 62.5mm PIR insulated plasterboard on the underside of the collars. Fibre cement slates.
Builder’s merchant and wooden floors Morris’s Builder’s Providers, morrisdiy.com Slates Tegral, Thrutone Rivendale in blue black colour, tegral.com Windows Double glazed sliding sash cream windows from Bonmahon Joinery, bonmahonjoinery.ie
GROUND FLOOR Sunroom
White goods & furniture White goods, TV and couches in the conservatory harveynorman.ie, kitchen high stools ezlivingfurniture.ie, sitting room couch dfs.ie Stove House Of Stoves, houseofstoves.com
Office/Study Playroom
Kitchen Enterprise Kitchens, enterprisekitchens.ie
WARDROBE
Utility
Kitchen
Hall
Plumbing and heating Daikin heat pump installed by Keltic Renewables, kelticrenewables.ie Grounds works Tom Bolster
UP
Dining Room
Sitting Room
Block layer Eddie Flavin
Entrance
SIDE ELEVATION - NORTH
Electrician Derek Farrel Carpenter (roof) Jimmy Caulfield
FIRST FLOOR
Carpenter (internal fittings) Simon O Hara
Bathroom
En-Suite
Plasterer Paddy Flemming
WARDROBE
Bedroom 4 Bedroom 3
NOTES FIGURED DIMENSIONS ONLY ARE TO BE TAKEN FROM THIS DRAWING.DO NOT SCALE ALL DIMENSIONS ARE TO BE CHECKED ON SITE BEFORE ANY WORK IS PUT IN HAND.
Photography ATTIC PLAN - HOUSE STORAGE ONLY Damien Kelly Photography, damienkellyphotography.com
ALL DIMENSIONS ARE IN MILLIMETRES UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED,
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DESCRIPTION
DATE
BY
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DESCRIPTION
Bedroom 1
DATE
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DESCRIPTION
DATE
BY
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DESCRIPTION
NI calling ROI prefix with 00353 and drop the first zero
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Bedroom 2
*
ATTIC SPACE
42 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020 BEDROOM 1
SIDE ELEVATION - NORTH
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PROJECT / CO ANTRIM
‘The cold and damp were pretty formidable but those two years were instrumental in allowing to see all aspects of the house and to consider what we might do.””
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CO ANTRIM / PROJECT
RENOVATION & EXTENSION
Perseverance Many people are put off by major renovation projects but Peter and Donna Hughes embraced the process, with tremendous results. Words: Debbie Orme Photography: Paul Lindsay
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hen Peter and Donna first spotted what is now their family home, they immediately saw the potential of the old semidetached house, which is located near worldfamous beaches. “We knew from the outset,” says Peter, “that we wanted to buy it essentially as a family home, but particularly as a project. We could see the terrific potential that it had.” “We had looked at this house a couple of years before we actually bought it, but at that time we couldn’t sell our own and so we reluctantly had to accept that it maybe wasn’t going to be the house for us.” Fortunately for the couple, their own house eventually sold and as luck would have it, their dream property came onto the market again.
Living with the house
“The major selling point is, of course, the fact that the back of the house overlooks the West Strand and the view is absolutely amazing, but we knew that there was also so much that we could do to make it our perfect family home,” says Donna. “The décor was quite dated, what we would call old-fashioned-chic,” she laughs, “and so, once we’d moved in, we basically just made the house habitable and decorated it to our style but kept the renovation on the long finger.” “We lived in the house for two winters before we started planning the project, and this gave us the time to really get to know it inside out. The cold and damp were pretty formidable but those two years were instrumental in allowing to see all aspects of the house and to consider what we might do.” SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 45
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“Obviously we looked at the practical aspects that needed addressed, such as the heating and the damp, but we knew that there was so much more that could be done in terms of maximising its potential.” “We were very fortunate,” says Donna, “in that our friends Ben and Michelle Wilson are not only friends, but excellent architects. We were familiar with other houses that they had designed for friends and so we knew that they would bring creative ideas.” Over time, and with the assistance of their friends, Peter and Donna had plans drawn up for their house. One of the first thing to be considered was obviously the view. “We knew that big windows were going to be a major consideration and would not only need replaced but reconsidered in terms of the amount of light that we wanted to bring into the house,” Peter continues. “We also wanted – and needed – more living area. Although the house had lots of rooms, they were all relatively small and, with four boys under twelve years of age at that time, we wanted to create space which would allow us all to be together as a family, but which would also give the boys their own rooms.” “Also, as a family of six, bathroom and shower space are at a premium, and Donna and I wanted to have our own ensuite bathroom.” Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the amount of work that both needed done and which the couple wanted done, the planning process took quite some time. 46 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
CO ANTRIM / PROJECT
Tips Make sure you keep lines of communication open. Be patient, be kind and listen to advice. It’s vitally important to have good communication with your main contractor. We were also fortunate that our friends were also excellent architects, and so we were given very good – and honest – advice from the outset.
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Tips Set aside a rainy day fund. Regardless of what you initially have as a budget, fully expect to spend your contingency funds as there are always unseen costs, especially when you’re renovating an old building. Don’t forget to budget for the landscaping of the grounds. There’s no point in having a superb-looking house when the overall appearance of the exterior is unattractive. It simply detracts from the overall appearance of the house. We put in tarmac which makes the exterior look finished, with the benefit of adding parking space.
“We spent a lot of time both discussing what we wanted in the house ourselves and also in discussion with Ben and Michelle,” says Peter. “They were invaluable in keeping us on the right track and in giving us honest opinions if our ideas were either not feasible or not practical.” “The planners knocked us back on several occasions about various features that we wanted. For a start, one of the windows that we had planned was overlooking our neighbour’s property and so, perhaps understandably, that option was rejected.” “We were also told that the planned twostorey extension at the back was overbearing and so we dropped it down so that it fitted underneath the existing soffit and fascia.” Over the next few months, the couple were involved in the toing and froing of the planning process before finally being given
planning approval in November 2016. Peter and Donna put the plans out to tender and eventually, in September 2017, work on the renovation project commenced.
The big reno
“We moved out in November 2017,” Peter continues, “and were out for about eight months in total. We actually moved next door into a holiday home that was available as a long-term rental. This meant that we were able to oversee the whole project from close proximity.” The work started with removing the back wall. The existing kitchen area was then extended to the rear and a high-spec, ultra-modern kitchen installed, complete with island. A large dining and seated area was also added with floor to ceiling windows overlooking the awe-inspiring beach and North Atlantic coast. “The upstairs of the new extension enabled us to both extend the existing bedroom and add a dressing room and ensuite bathroom complete with bath, as this 48 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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Q&A What would you change?
We would have finished the study room and replaced the fascia boards to complete the job at the time. Since the work was finished, the study has ended up as an extra storage room and both it and the fascia boards have become less of a priority and are not likely to be completed anytime soon.
What’s your favourite part of the house?
We absolutely love the kitchen/ dining/snug area because it’s the real hub of our house and brings the whole family together in one area. The fact that the views are so spectacular is an added bonus.
Would you do it again?
We certainly don’t plan to as this is now the forever home. But yes, we would do it again if we were in the same position. Once you’ve completed the whole project and have started to enjoy your home, you forget about all the bits that were tough going.
What advice would you give to budding renovators? Know your budget and be realistic about what you can achieve.
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was the only bathroom in which it would fit.” “Previously, the house had had four bedrooms, one with an ensuite, which had initially been a box room. We changed this old bathroom into a shower room for the boys, which, it turns out, has been a terrific idea.” “We then moved on to more practical aspects of the renovation in that all of the windows were replaced and the entire house was both re-plumbed and rewired. We upgraded the oil boiler that was there; ventilation is through trickle vents in the windows.” “The old garage was a wooden one that was not only detached, but was effectively falling down. The extension meant that we were also able to create an internal garage that is not only more spacious, but can be accessed directly from the private road to the rear of the property.”
Seaside considerations
“All of the family are very health conscious and sporty, so there’s plenty of time spent in outdoor pursuits, such as cycling, running and surfing at the beach. With four young boys coming straight in from the beach, you
CO ANTRIM / PROJECT
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can imagine the steady stream of sand and soggy clothing,” he laughs, “so we created a shower room at the back door between the garage and the house, which proved to be a godsend.” “Storage is vital for any family,” Donna adds, “and so we made sure that the utility room had plenty, in addition to providing the necessary utilities. The old pantry and utility room had previously been the rear exit from the house. We moved them into the house
‘...we created a shower room at the back door between the garage and the house, which proved to be a godsend.’ and will eventually be using it as a study, so that will be the next step in the overall renovation.” Naturally, with such a major renovation, there were bound to be problems, and Peter and Donna certainly encountered their fair share. “One of the major challenges we faced,” Peter continues, “was the cost of unexpected piling at approximately £18,000. When the foundations were being dug, we learned that the house was effectively built on a sand dune, and so we had to pile drive through nine metres of sand to find bedrock.” “Then, we lost a bay window off the sitting room. Initially, the window was to be replaced, but we ended up taking it off because it would have required more piling. The removal of the bay window has certainly made the room smaller, but we think it’s cosier than it was previously, so it hasn’t been a problem at all.” “We also had a few issues with woodworm in the roof space and asbestos in the boiler room. We took specialist advice and, as a result, had all the timbers in the house treated. We also engaged a specialist removal firm to take the asbestos ceiling down.” Today, Peter and Donna’s home – which truly has been a labour of love – bears little resemblance to the run-down house that they purchased four and a half years ago. But they – and their boys – wouldn’t have it any other way. 52 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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Project information
More photographs available at selfbuild.ie
Find out more about Peter and Donna’s extension & renovation project in Co Antrim... SPECIFICATION
SUPPLIERS
Existing walls
Existing 615mm stone walls internally battened (25x50mm) with dpc behind, 92.5mm insulated plasterboard, 3mm skim finish. U-value: 0.2W/sqmK
Extension
Walls Cavity walls, 3mm skim internal finish on 13mm sand & cement scratch coat on 140mm solid medium density blockwork on 150mm bonded graphite EPS beads full fill, on 100mm solid medium density blockwork on 20-25mm sand & cement smooth render finish with two coats of external grade paint finish. U-value: 0.2W/sqmK Floors Tiled floor finish on 50mm liquid floor screed on underfloor heating throughout all rooms on damp proof course on 125mm phenolic
foam insulation on precast hollowcore plank concrete subfloor, U-value 0.16W/sqmK Slate pitched roof Insulation follows pitch of roof for U-value of 0.18W/sqmK; ventilated pitched roof consisting of natural slate on roof battens on breather membrane on rafters on 50mm min air gap between breather membrane and insulation, 100mm pitched roof insulation board between rafters, 62.5mm insulated plasterboard below, skim finish. Flat roof Insulated low pitched non ventilated roof with U-value of 0.16W/sqmK, mechanically fastened single ply proprietary membrane on 125mm phenolic foam insulation, on vapour control layer on 18mm marine grade plywood on timber fillet pieces on rafters on 12.5mm wallboard, 3mm skim finish.
GROUND FLOOR AFTER
Architect Wilson McMullen, wilsonmcmullen.com Builder Garth Henry of Corrigan Henry, Coleraine, Co Derry Windows Wooden sash from RH joinery, rhjoinery.com and kitchen windows from HHI, hhi-ni.com Insulation Kingspan, K118 insulated plasterboard on existing walls, platinum ecobead in cavity walls, Kooltherm TF70 in floors. Roof: TP10 between rafters and K18 insulated plasterboard below, flat roof TR26. kingspaninsulation.com Flat roof system Alkorplan, laydex.com Bathrooms Watershed Bathrooms & Tiles, macblair.com/watershed
BEFORE Living
Tiles Tilesplus, tilesplus.net
Playroom
Wood burning stove Lamont Fireplaces & Stoves, lamontfireplaces.com
Kitchen
Living Hall
CLKS Utility Porch WC Kitchen
Playroom
External Store
Yard Oil
Terrace CLKS
Pantry Utility
WC
Store
Snug
Kitchen work surfaces Coleraine Fireplaces, colerainefireplacesltd.com
Radiators Bassets, bassettsonline.com Carpets Small Cost Carpets, smallcostcarpetsni.com
Garge
Kitchen pendant lights BTS Concept Store, btsconceptstore.com
FIRST FLOOR AFTER
BEFORE
Ensuite Bed 1
Bed 3 Landing
Landing
Bed 1
Bed 2
Garage
Electrical appliances Basil Knipe, basilknipe.com
Porch Shower room
Stove installation Tim Wilton of snughaus.com
Bed 2
Bed 3
WDB En-suite Half Landing
Study
Bed 4
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Half Landing Bed 4
Bathroom
Internal and external decoration DecorateNI Garden landscaping and external paving Stephen Gibson Paving, stephengibsonpaving.com Photography Christopher Hill Photographic, scenicireland.com
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PROJECT / CO LAOIS
RENOVATION & EXTENSION
Heart and mind Few people get to live next door to where they work and Denise Fitzpatrick was no exception, until she managed to buy the business she was working out of. Words: Astrid Madsen Photography: Damien Kelly
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enise used to rent the premises for her hair salon. “I was working in town and my husband Scott and I built our own home in the countryside. Scott works as a head foreman for his day job and he did most of the work on that house,” she says. Even though they loved the home they were in, it represented a commute for both Scott and Denise. “When we got the opportunity to buy the shop and the house attached to it, we figured it would make sense to reduce the amount of trips and sell our current home to finance the kids going to college,” she says. “That’s how we ended up with the house, which was derelict. Walking inside we’d imagine the potential and after a few months of driving up and down, every day, I began to think it would make more sense for us to
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Q&A What is your favourite design feature / room?
I love so many things… the kitchen is a firm favourite as it’s a fabulous space to be in. Five meters of a countertop is fabulous to have.
What would you change?
I would put in a centralised mechanical ventilation system instead of natural ventilation. At the time we didn’t look into the benefits of it but with holes in the walls for the vents we can hear traffic from the street facing rooms. Having a centralised system would also filter the air.
What surprised you?
That the most difficult thing would be to get prices from tradesmen. We went direct labour and we couldn’t get people to come back to us with a cost. I hadn’t expected to be chasing them to give them work. Apart from that there weren’t really that many surprises as we did a lot of advance planning.
What single piece of advice would you give someone who’s thinking of undertaking a similar renovation?
Know yourself! Having gone through a new build as well, the most important thing is to stick to your guns. We were told many of our choices were nonstandard or even out-there in the case of the 5m long worktop but you will be the one living there so the choices that are made need to be ones you are happy to live with for a long time.
Would you do it again?
I think we both would, but at the moment there is no better place for us to be. And we love living here. I also don’t think Scott’s ready for a new adventure just yet.
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renovate it so we could live next door.” “We felt it might be an opportunity to get rid of our mortgage debt, so we put our house on the market in the hope we would get enough for it to pay off the loan and renovate the property leaving us mortgagefree. This was in 2017 and we were lucky in that the house sold very quickly at a good price. It happened sooner than expected so we found a house to rent near the renovation project, and got a taste of town life.” Denise for instance says the high security bolting mechanism on her door quickly formed part of her wish list, being on a busy street. “We have a thumbprint key system which helps with the children coming home at different times; not needing physical keys also makes it easier to nip out to get a pint of milk.”
Practical and fun
With experience under their belt, and an intimate knowledge of family life, the couple went about redesigning the existing building and devising floor plans for the extension. “We spent hours in the house walking around to see what would work for us. The stairwell for example had a very low ceiling so we increased it to a double height with bespoke rooflights.” “We would use bits of wood, pretty much anything we could get our hands on, to map out furniture and walls. We also had the needs of our three children to contend with and they had an input into the finishes and which room they would be getting. We had discussions with them about where the beds would go amidst the rubble and reconfigured the downstairs bedroom to take into account their concerns.” “Once we had a clear idea of what we wanted, which probably only took about two or three months, we had the plans checked by a local architectural designer, who then put them into floor plans to submit to the planners. He also did a sun path analysis and 3D renders to give us a better idea of what it would be like.” “We basically doubled the floor plan with the extension, which replaced the outbuildings that were there. Most of the extension is single storey but there is an upper storey which we added for the master bedroom, with ensuite and walk-in
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Tips Shop around I really can’t repeat this enough, don’t just go to the one supplier and assume the price they quote you is the asking price. It may seem reasonable to you but always ask at least one other supplier. We saved hundreds on our electric stoves by shopping around; same brand, same model. Insulate right... In the extension we have 150mm wide cavity walls filled fully with PIR boards and we left the internal blockwork exposed to let them act as a storage heaters – the heat gets stored in the concrete blocks and is slowly released. The downside to that is we had to buy more expensive wall ties but then again, we didn’t invest in insulated plasterboard. …but think of overheating. Even though we have a generous overhang on the large sections of glass facing the garden, it still gets warm in there and we barely ever use the stove. We only light it for effect on a winter’s evening. The kitchen can actually get very hot, even in the depths of winter without any heat on. More thought to putting in an overhang to protect from high summer sun on that section of glazing might have helped, although the courtyard there is very narrow. If we could open the rooflights that might help, but they are all fixed.
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wardrobe.” From the word go the utility room was to take centre stage of the design. “The only regret I had with our new build in the countryside was not making the utility room big enough so I made sure we would be allocating plenty of space in this renovation project, giving it a minimum of 2.5mx5m.” “We have a dog so it was important to provide ready access to the outdoors from the utility, and to people coming in with muddy boots which is why we have an external door. I spent a lot of time thinking of the storage solutions for that room and the practicality of the clothes horse being out. There is also a
CO LAOIS / PROJECT
bathroom in case anyone needs a wash down before coming in. The garden is actually massive considering we are in the centre of town; we have about half an acre.” As with most projects, the kitchen was at the heart of the design. “We have it in a galley formation, acting as the leg in an L shape design with the living room at the end with views of the garden. This space is where we live most of the time.” “I chose to have built-in cupboards all along the back kitchen wall with different storage solutions, from baskets to pull outs. Our cabinet maker thought I’d gone overboard but I really wanted to have a clean visual run, as you go through the kitchen to access the living room. The five meter long island is home to the sink, hob and plenty of workspace. It’s the workhorse of the kitchen and I love it.” “The sink is copper and it took me ages to find copper taps to match; we were lucky
to get them from a supplier in Dublin who went out of their way to source them for us. We weren’t sure what to do with colour so had everything painted white in the first instance and I actually like how clean and bright it feels so didn’t change it.” “The worktop is quartz and couldn’t be supplied in a single section so there is a cut in the middle. The first time they installed it the glue they used made it look absolutely seamless but whatever that adhesive was, it ate away at the stone so the supplier replaced it. With the new adhesive, a visible line has appeared so we are still in contact with them as to how to get it looking better.” Despite having the budget to invest in the kitchen, Denise had to make compromises elsewhere. “The tiles I wanted were four times the price of the ones I ended up choosing; they are plain white and require a bit of upkeep but I think they work really well.” SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 61
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“Even though you could easily feed eight people at the island, with all the stools set up in a row on the far side, I also always had my heart set on the separate dining area with a large floor to ceiling pane of glass, sunken at the start of the extension. The round table was also always part of the design and I really love it. It’s very inviting and there’s ample space to move around it.” The sunken dining room allows for the master bedroom on the upper storey to be given maximum height. The way the master quarters were designed followed the same pattern as for the rest of the house; the process was one of exploration and of how the space would be used. “We have the walk-in wardrobe for easy access to the left and the bathroom is also conveniently located immediately to the right.
‘The sunken dining room allows for the master bedroom on the upper storey to be given maximum height.’ Up the steps we get into the bedroom with views of what looks like the countryside.” Daring to do things just the way they wanted, Scott insisted on installing a bath in their carpeted bedroom. “I thought he was crazy but now I use it more than he does! The luxury of coming out of the bath to walk on soft carpet is beyond words. Everyone should get to experience it,” she adds.
Hands-on
In August 2017 the couple lodged their planning application with the help of their architectural designer, which went through without any problems. “We chose to opt out of the building certification process and uploaded our plans on the building control management system assigning ourselves as the builder,” continues Denise. The couple moved in nine months later but it wasn’t all fun and games. For one, they did a lot of the work themselves, including laying 177sqm of cobbles in four days. But finding tradesmen also proved to be a challenge. “Rarely did the tradesmen give us advance notice as to when they would show up, they came when they could so we had to be at the ready,” says Denise. 62 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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“This was the case with the plasterers and I remember that evening before they were due to come, I wasn’t happy with the smell off some of the walls. There were layers of wallpaper that were really musty and I didn’t want them battened and covered up. So Scott and I went at it with the kango all night; a colleague of mine rang to say she thought someone was in the house and that there were sparks flying. Seemed quite normal to us at the time.” “We did spend countless hours getting ready for the next trade to show up. If there was a hole that had to be made or anything at all that needed to be prepared, Scott would grab the tools and do it. Scott would get home from work no earlier than 8pm, grab a bite to eat and head straight down until at least midnight. He’d be back up for 5am for work or sometimes he worked right through. My job was to manage the project so I was on the phone a lot, to get people to show up and getting quotes.” For the roof structure, Scott and Denise had to go for a flat roof in order to comply with ridge heights, to be line with adjoining buildings and prevent overlooking. “We had a very large expanse of roof to cover; being over 30sqm we had to go for a higher specification of fibreglass than you can get away with on smaller areas.” “But we still had some trouble with a few leaks, which seem to be due to the wind
‘...Scott would get home from work no earlier than 8pm, grab a bite to eat and head straight down until at least midnight.’
blowing rain up under the parapet. The company has come back to seal that up and hopefully there won’t be any further issues.” “The way the fibreglass roofs are constructed, they have no overhang. And because we chose a natural render, moss is starting to appear on the walls. The problem is we couldn’t find a suitable alternative to fibreglass for this project, simply because of the size of the roof. We thought the fibreglass would last and be strong enough to withstand the Irish weather considering it is 64 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
CO LAOIS / PROJECT
used on boats.” “Also the big problem with a flat roof is insurance; we are paying more than double what we used to, only because more than half of our roof is flat. There are only two companies I could find that would even give us a quote.” In terms of heating and hot water the couple chose an air to water heat pump with all of the equipment in the outbuilding they have in the courtyard, attached to the hair salon. “The heat pump was expensive as it’s a large unit, we paid about €30,000 for it with the underfloor heating throughout, upstairs and down to save on wall space.” “We put in a concrete upper floor and had to reinforce the upper storey with steel so that was an added cost as well. Well worth it though for the acoustics and to install the underfloor. In addition to that, the triple glazed windows and doors were roughly €60,000 so before we started any work we had a large chunk of the budget gone.” The least used room, and the smallest in the house is the street-facing sitting room. “Teenagers, whether that be friend or family,
don’t usually hang around us parents so that small room at the front is mostly used for video games. The children also often hang out in their rooms with their friends.” Of course the entire project stemmed from Denise and Scott’s desire to free themselves from the financial burden that is a mortgage, so as to send their children to the colleges of their choice. “This house represents so much on different levels, I love it,” says Denise. SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 65
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More photographs available at selfbuild.ie
Project information
Find out more about Denise and Scott’s extension & renovation project in Co Laois... SPECIFICATION
SUPPLIERS
House size before: 120 sqm House size after: 252 sqm Plot size: 1.75 acres
Architectural technician Adrian Hennessy, hennessyadrian@eircom.net, mobile 0876289924
spray foam insulation with 62.5mm insulated plasterboard on underside, skim finish.
Existing house: walls battened, plasterboard with skim coat; all floors rebuilt with dpc, 150mm PIR insulation and concrete; roof space 150mm
Extension: 150mm cavity walls, thermal blocks to avoid thermal bridge at floor level, full fill PIR insulation, skim finish. Warm roof construction, GRP roof (fibreglass).
GROUND FLOOR AFTER Dining
Kitchen Quentin Fanning, quentinfanning@gmail.com, mobile 087 137 0751 Insulation Xtratherm, xtratherm.ie
Bedroom
Plumbing and heating Anthony & Cathal Ryan Plumbing and Heating, Co Laois Heat pump 13kW IVT AirX, SCOP 5, supplied by energysuperstore.ie
WC Utility
Windows and front door Internorm, internorm.com
Study
Electrician Jimmy Tinkler, Co Offaly
Kitchen
Electric fires Quality Stoves and Fires, Monaghan, qualitystovesandfires.ie Photography Damien Kelly, damienkellyphotography.com
Lounge
NI calling ROI prefix with 00353 and drop the first 0
GROUND FLOOR BEFORE
Out Building
FIRST FLOOR AFTER
Kitchen
Lounge
Living
Bedroom
Wardrobe Bedroom
Bedroom En-suite
Bathroom
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Bedroom
FIRST FLOOR BEFORE
Bedroom Bedroom
S E L F B U I L D L I V E / B E L FA S T 2 0 2 0 R E V I E W
Information central
Selfbuild Live Belfast is the largest event for self-builders and the only one exclusively dedicated to building or renovating a home. Here’s what happened at the Titanic Exhibition Centre this past February.
T
o get your creative juices flowing and find out what you need to know to embark on your self-build project, there’s nothing like speaking with the companies that are at the coalface of turning dreams into reality. At Selfbuild Live Belfast you could tap into any of the following 20 supplier categories:
Architectural Designers
Paying for someone to design your house well, and to the current building standards will pay you back in spades. Save money on making sure the house works to its maximum capacity, from solar gains to efficient use of internal space.
Bathrooms
So much choice, from washlet toilets to Bluetooth speaker mirrors, discover everything that’s possible in the most visited room of the house.
Building Contractors
Hiring someone to do most of the physical work takes away a lot of the stress and removes the issue of making sure tradesmen show up on site!
Building Supplies
Your local builder’s merchant is an invaluable partner, supplying you with all you need and helping you source what they don’t stock. Specialist suppliers, from floor screeds to lintels, also need to be on speed dial.
Building Systems
Innovative building methods ranging from ICF to HBE are all the rage because they’re quick, cost effective and energy efficient. 68 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
Energy and Technology
There are many technologies out there to help self-builders play their part; for example, generating electricity from the sun has never been more efficient and is now within the financial reach of many.
Environmental Systems
Wastewater and drainage are vitally important to get right, not only because these are aspects that are more than likely to be scrutinised by the planners.
Finance
Self-build mortgages are designed to help you manage your cash flow and keep the build on track.
Garden and Outdoor Living Al fresco dining cries out for a
patio area and a nice garden to look out on. Not to mention the coveted hot tub.
Heating, Plumbing and Electrics
We all need heat, electricity and hot water to run a comfortable family home and the options are vast, between gas, heat pumps and stoves, to name a few.
Insulation
With so many types to choose from, this is an area that warrants careful research.
Internal Finishes
This is all about your daily use of the house: wall and floor coverings, lighting, internal joinery such as wardrobes and the list goes on. To help you wade though it all, why not enlist the help of an interior designer?
B E L FA S T 2 0 2 0 R E V I E W / S E L F B U I L D L I V E
Kitchens
At the heart of the home, the kitchen is like a mini building project, with decisions on just about everything from work surfaces and floor/ wall coverings to lighting, ventilation and appliances.
Lifts and Access
To make it easier to get around, whatever your age, lifts, attic stairs and staircase aids are there to help.
Project Planning
To make your project a success, it helps to hire the right people to
advise you, from insurance brokers and planning consultants to quantity surveyors and engineers.
Roofing
An aspect of the build that will have a huge impact on how the house will look, find out about the way they are built, insulated and covered.
Security & Home Automation
The smart home is well and truly upon us, and it’s less expensive to kit out than you might think.
Stone
Internal and external options, cladding and paving, there’s something in it for everyone.
Ventilation
Investing in ventilation is a lot like bestowing lungs onto your house; it's a key area to research when building an airtight home.
Windows and Doors
Known as the eyes of the house, choose from double or triple glazed, aluminium or uPVC and many more in between.
PRODUCT PROFILES
Meet the dream makers
Here are some examples of the products and services showcased at Selfbuild Live Belfast. COMPANY PROFILE Lagan Building Solutions www.LBSproducts.com 028 9264 8691 (NI) / 01 820 1551 (ROI) info@LBSproducts.com
LBS is a market leading specialist supplier of Natural Roofing and Stone Cladding products. The company has been in business since 2002 and has an extensive technical sales team that operates throughout all of Ireland and the UK. Natural slate: Choose from Welsh Slate, including the renowned Bangor Blue, American Vermont Green, Brazilian and a vast selection of Spanish slate. Clay tiles: LBS Large format Interlocking Clay Tiles have a permanent non-fading colour and come with a 60-year guarantee. Snowdon has a riven surface and dressed edges and Shetland has a smooth sharp finish great for contemporary styles. The LBS digitally printed tiles in Reclaimed Heather and Killaloe Green can readily blend in with local roofscapes, whilst vertical cladding tiles offer a wide variety of finishes such as copper, marble, wood and stone readily blending in with existing facades. Stone cladding: Z Stone is a pre-fabricated natural stone cladding system which is easy and cost effective to install. Stone Veneer consists of pre-cut natural stone pieces at just 30mm thick that when fitted will give a look very similar to traditional masonry.
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BUILDING METHOD Amvic Ireland www.amvicireland.com 01 899 1883 (ROI) info@amvicireland.com
Amvic Insulating Concrete Formwork (ICF) is a construction method for concrete walls which uses shuttering forms made of two high-density polystyrene panels 1200mm long, 400mm high, and 65/75mm wide, spaced apart by high strength polypropylene webs. The forms provide fully insulating, permanent shuttering into which concrete is poured; the width of the concrete core can be 150mm or 200mm. External finishes include brick, stone, timber cladding, and polymer renders. Benefits at a glance: • Passive house performance at traditional build costs • Inherently airtight with typical structure experiencing less than 1 air change per hour • Almost Zero Thermal Bridging • Easy and quick to install. • Lends itself to curves and unusual shapes • High levels of Sound insulation: Amvic walls reduce transmitted noise levels by up to 60dBA • Three-hour fire rating • A2/NZEB Ratings easily achievable • Made in Ireland
PATTERNED TILES Exquisite Tiles www.exquisite-tiles.com 028 2858 0360 (NI) info@exquisite-tiles.com
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Exquisite Tiles is the one-stop-shop for patterned tiles, offering everything from exotic overseas influences to designs that are love letters to times gone by. Whether you love the vintage style, a much cooler contemporary design, or perhaps even a drop of retro you’ll find they have a broad and brilliant spectrum of colours and shades. When it comes to decorating throughout your home, patterned wall tiles are bang ontrend right now, as these tiles are right at home as part of an intricate, eye-catching feature wall or floor. Easy to install and maintain, the patterned designs add a distinctly classic and modern twist. With each tile sized 200mmx200mm (25 pieces per square meter) you can let your imagination guide the final look. Resistant to frost, water absorption and stains, the 10mm thick tiles are suited to kitchens, bathrooms, bedrooms and living areas. Exquisite Tiles stocks a full range of the finest porcelain tiles, suited to every budget, from innovative and creative Italian and Spanish manufacturers. Choose from the popular wood or concrete effect tiles, all the way through to the classic polished porcelain. Visit the showroom in Downpatrick or order online, with immediate dispatch straight from the warehouse.
HOME HEAT Flogas www.flogasni.com / www.flogas.ie 028 9073 2611 (NI) / 041 983 1041 (ROI) info@flogasni.com / info@flogas.ie
Switch to Flogas home heating and get 1,200 litres of LPG free! Whether you’re building your own home or simply want to switch from oil to gas, Flogas home heating is quick and easy to install. No matter where you are, Flogas is your one source for efficient heat, hot water and tumble drying as well as instant and controllable gas cooking. You can even combine modern heating technology with an economical range of condensing Gas Boilers. And all systems come with remote monitoring so you can rest assured that you’ll never run out of gas. LPG is a cleaner, lower carbon energy source than oil, and can be installed anywhere. It also cannot be stolen; it’s a safe, clean burning and non-toxic form of energy. So join Rory Best and thousands of others who have made the smart move to Flogas. Discover what Flogas can do for you today. Wherever you are. Terms & Conditions apply. See www.flogas.ie/t&c
CUSTOM BATHROOMS KE Plumbing Supplies www.keplumbing.co.uk 028 8675 2388 (NI) keplumbing@live.co.uk
KE Plumbing Supplies are all about bespoke design solutions, from vanity units that meet any size or style requirements to made-to-order bathtubs that can be painted any colour. In fact the Clodagh Freestanding Bath range only uses top quality acrylic that gives off a cast iron appearance whilst holding the heat for that longer luxurious soak. The hand-painted exterior is finished in various shades which makes a statement piece, or can be combined with colour-matching products from KE Plumbing’s extensive range. If you’re unsure of which design, style or type of fixtures or fittings you want, the Co Tyrone based company can design the project in 3D so you can view all of the options you are considering and choose a design that’s tailor made for your lifestyle, from lifelike plans.
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INDEPENDENT ADVICE Reinco www.reinco.co.uk
Reinco is a Renewable Energy and Insulation Consultancy company formed in June 2007 by Eric Davidson to advise self-builders on all the elements which affect the heating and running cost of their future house. Reinco does not take a commission from suppliers, instead the client is charged a fee to eliminate conflicts of interest and guarantee independent, practical advice. The fee is typically less than 0.25% of the build cost. Specifically Eric helps self-builders decide on what insulation, airtightness, ventilation, heating and hot water systems to install in their new build or renovation. The consultation on a self build can take up to 3.5 hours. Eric then provides a report detailing the systems, specifications, budget prices, distributors, and suggested installers. Remote support is then provided by email, whatsapp and phone for two years. Consultations are now provided remotely by “Zoom�. This has proved a great success. For affordable eco-friendly solutions to achieve most comfortable and healthy home at the lowest possible running cost, ring +44 772 912 5002.
077 2912 5002 (NI) eric@reinco.co.uk
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our self-build mortgages help you build your dream home.
Find out how you can keep your build on plan with a Self-Build Specialist at
aibni.co.uk/selfbuild Only available in NI YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE AIB reserves the right to withdraw or amend products at any time. Lending criteria, terms and conditions apply. The AIB logo and AIB (NI) are trade marks used under licence by AIB Group (UK) p.l.c. incorporated in Northern Ireland. Registered Office 92 Ann Street, Belfast BT1 3HH. Registered Number NI018800. Authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.
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Q&A / ASK THE EXPERT
Ask the expert You’ve got questions, we’ve got answers. And if we don’t, we’ll find out by scouring our Facebook group, calling help lines and talking to the experts.
Q: What do I need to do to keep my patio looking fresh? A: For easy maintenance, little and often is the key. Can you imagine what your kitchen floor would look like if you didn’t clean it for five years? Even though rain does provide some amount of rinsing, paving is subject to a buildup of dirt, debris and grime that needs to be brushed off. The best piece of cleaning equipment is an ordinary garden sprayer which can be purchased at a DIY or garden centre; fill it up with a proprietary cleaner and brush the patio as often as you can. For areas that haven’t been regularly maintained, then a light power hose at medium pressure is generally all that is required to clean dirt and grime. Whatever you do, don’t use a high pressure power washer as this is too harsh on paving (it can damage the surface) and tends to dislodge the joints. Any damaged jointing material should be replaced once the area is dry. Weed seeds can also blow onto the surface of paving and start to grow in the joints. If you want to treat the problem, spray on a dry day with glyphosate but avoid residual weed killers which poison the soil. Do not scrape out the joints as this will create more opportunities for weeds to grow. Chemical free options to treat weeds may not necessarily be much better for the environment. These include using a gas flame weeding wand, which is very time consuming, or a very heavy dose of salt which may leach into neighbouring beds and contaminate the soil. After the winter, or in shady areas, you may come across green algae or moss. These can be treated with proprietary sprays that do not require brushing. It will take about a week before you will notice the difference but your patience will be rewarded! A particularly damp shady area may require more attention but in general for those that get plenty of light, once a year should be sufficient. Sodium hydrochloride will also do the job. Vanessa Drew, tobermore.co.uk
Q: I love the look of polished concrete but between the specialist pour and the polish, the costs are coming in higher than I expected. What are the alternatives to get the same effect? A: Ceramic concrete-effect tiles will provide a robust, easy to maintain floor surface. You can pick any shade, effect or size with different price points, from less than £20/sqm or €25/sqm to in excess of £75/sqm or €80/sqm (plus the labour cost of the tiler) but there will be a variation in quality also. A bonus is that there is probably at least one tile retail shop in every small town in Ireland. Unlike polished concrete, you can view a sample tile and have confidence that the tiles will match it as long as you allow for very minor batch variations. The downside is that obvious grid lines will give away it’s not a real concrete floor. Also if not treated, the grout can stain and the quality of installation will be paramount to avoid any debonding issues with the adhesive that sticks the tile down. Consider too that tiles tend to be heavy, so wall applications are usually trickier although there are tiles made specifically for walls. The other alternative is the one I specialise in, a highly customisable thin coat (2-3mm) of microcement. It is a product
Concrete tiles
Microcement
that is applied wet, costing from £40/sqm or about €45/sqm with similar rates for labour. Tint options come in the hundreds along with different techniques providing different finish effects. As with tiles it can be applied onto different substrates, e.g. concrete, timber, plaster. Compared to traditional concrete, it is highly adaptable to small and awkward areas. You can also use it as a covering for staircases, worktops, wetrooms and even fish tanks as the product once applied is sealed with proprietary products, to a matt or gloss effect. A professionally specified system should include all primers, tints and sealers from the same manufacturer. In terms of maintenance, as with a polished concrete floor microcement can be cleaned with a standard floor cleaner on a daily basis but you can also get wax based cleaners that can be used a few times a year to improve the long-term luster of the finish. In comparison, concrete polishing rates for labour only can be as much as £100/sqm or €110/sqm, particularly for small domestic jobs (20 to 30sqm) or even more for applications such as walls or bespoke furniture pieces such as worktops. Peter Dorman, enexis.org.uk SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 73
BUDGET / JOINERY
How much does joinery cost? The work involved in completing the internal joinery of a building includes works to internal doors, screens, window boards, skirtings, architraves, panelling, inbuilt units and the likes; in this article we take a look at what affects how much they’re going to cost you. Words: Keith Kelliher
Door setup and finishes
Internal doors in domestic properties come in very many materials, shapes, sizes, colours and textures. In the main the cost of a door will include the frame, the architrave and the ironmongery which fixes the parts together.
The Door and Floor Centre, thedoorandfloorcentre.ie 74 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
The Door and Floor Centre, thedoorandfloorcentre.ie
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or many, the internal joinery section of their build encompasses the true heart of their dream design. It is the furniture that every person who enters the property sees, it is the frame that completes each and every wall, it is the warmth of the window and door and it is very often the warmth and dimension to what would otherwise be straight lines of coloured planes.
It’s important to first understand that irrespective of the finish, the manner in which a door is supplied will impact on the labour cost of fitting. In general doors will come in one of two ways: pre-hung on a prefabricated frame ready to be directly installed into an opening, or more common on self-builds it will be supplied unassembled and the on site installation will include routing for hinges, locks and
cutting and forming the frame to the required size. The cost of a door can vary greatly depending on a number of factors but €150/£130 is a common starting point for doors assembled by a joiner on site, working up from that point depending on selections. Should a solid door be selected, this will most likely be made in a bespoke
JOINERY / BUDGET
Anthony Aguilar via unsplash.com
than a standard door of similar size but in many instances it is now possible to get primed white fire doors at entry level prices (see box on next page).
Standard door sizes
In ROI the standard height of a door is generally either 1981mm (78”) or 2032mm (80”). To increase above these heights will result in off standard doors, and costs will rise accordingly. For 1981mm doors, the standard offthe-shelf door widths that are available are 24” (610mm), 26” (660mm), 28” (711mm) and 30” (762mm). For 2032mm high doors standard widths are 32” (813mm) and 34” (864mm). In NI door sizes are slightly different at 78’’ by 33’’or 1981mm x 838mm and 78’’ by 27’’ or 1981mm x 686mm being the standard. Also the standard ROI thickness of door is 44mm and in NI, 40mm so doors may seem a bit cheaper in NI but if the door frame is for 44mm they won’t fit properly. Imperial sizes are specialist products both in NI and ROI.
Architraves, frames, liners and skirting boards The cost a door will include ironmongery, labour to fit it and any add-ons such as glass.
Dermot Byrne Photography
fashion by a joiner and the costs will rise to in excess of €650/£600 for a door and frame. Sliding doors will be about as expensive as unassembled doors due to the need to install guide rails and other specialist fixings. Then it’s pro rata for double and multiple doors. The finish of a door will generally be at its cheapest for a primed or standard white door and it will increase for prefinished oak, walnut or similar. As the majority of doors now available in the marketplace are engineered doors, the door finish is a veneer on a timber frame with a filled core. Ironmongery includes the hinges, handles, locks, door closers, door stops and similar items necessary to complete a door. Like many other aspects of finishes, it is a difficult task to choose among what is a wide range of options, from stainless steel to chrome to brass to black to different locking mechanisms. The cost of ironmongery can vary from less than €50/£40 per door to well in excess of €100/£90 per door depending on the brand and finish. A fire door will generally cost more
The most traditional method of frame and architrave selection used to be to select a standard pine material (red deal
being stronger than white deal) which was subsequently painted in white or similar colour. This was the standard approach as it was able to complement any finish, but nowadays pine is less used because of the work and cost associated to sealing knots (to prevent knots showing through the paint) and the extra coats of paint required. Primed MDF is now the preferred option as it avoids these issues. It is now also just as common to have frames and architraves matching the material selection of the door itself. An oak door is commonly dressed with an oak frame and architrave and in many instances this will also match the skirtings and staircases. The cost of pine skirting boards can run at less than €1/90p per m whereas oak or similar will cost in excess of €6/£5 per m depending on moulding, size and shape, with MDF costing somewhere in between. Similar to architraves and frames, liners can be either painted or made of a material to match the door. A liner is required to complete a wall where the frame does not fully fit the width of the wall. Frames are generally available in widths from 115mm to 150mm. It is therefore necessary to install a liner to complete a frame that is installed into a wall that is wider than these sizes. An
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BUDGET / JOINERY
internal structural wall for example, made up of 215mm blockwork will generally be finished with a liner at each door opening. This is an item that can often be missed in budgeting for a project. Skirting boards are the most common finish at the junction between a wall and a floor. Similar but generally wider than architraves, they come in a variety of materials and finishes. The moulding design on the skirting will also impact on the cost as this will indicate the level of routing and production on the timber. As outlined for frames and architraves above, it’s not uncommon to have pine or MDF skirting boards painted in white or other colour. It’s also not uncommon to have skirting boards that match the door, frame and architrave. These products are most likely veneered finishes but it is also possible to purchase solid material like oak, ash and mahogany. Similar to architraves, skirtings can run from less than €1 or 90p per m for pine or MDF to over €10 or £9 per m for solid timber skirtings.
Panelling
Often the go-to feature for many interior designers, wall panelling is one type of joinery that brings a wall to life. The most common method of panelling is going a third high, generally about 900mm up from the floor. It often consists of MDF panelling with routed designs and inlay panels. Full moulded MDF panelling can run to in excess of €200/£180 per m depending on design and detail.
FIRE DOORS
Where to use them Why, you might ask, given I’m not building an apartment block or a hospital, would I give even a moment’s thought to fire doors?
Matthew Hamilton via unsplash.com
The answer is that you’ll have to if you have a garage that’s an integral part of your home, or if your home is three stories or more, including a loft conversion. And you may want to have them for other reasons. I for one think they are much nicer to use than standard doors. A fire door is one that is constructed so as to restrict the spread of fire from one area of your home to another. A fire door set is a complete unit consisting of the door leaf, its frame and the associated hardware needed. It also includes intumescent strips (that expand when hot), cold smoke seals, and possibly even glazed windows. Fire doors are designed to resist fire and smoke up to certain lengths of time. This buys time for anyone trapped while waiting for professional rescuers. Fire doors are usually made of timber, steel, vermiculite board, or aluminium and may have gypsum as an endothermic fill. The idea of a fire door isn’t that it will never burn but that it’ll provide time and a smoke-free space on the non-fire side. The usual domestic fire-rated door set is designed to create this protection for at least 30 minutes (an FD30 rating). Most fire doors are designed to be kept closed at all times, so be sure yours are never propped open. If your home has three or more stories (including a loft conversion), all doors off the stairwell must be fire-rated and should, ideally, be kept closed at all times. When leaving the house, always close fire doors. Close them all at night. Thus far, it’s pretty obvious why you’d want (or be bound by law) to install fire doors. But some people, myself included, like to use them in place of standard internal doors. Not only do they provide additional safety but they’re thick (which is good for soundproofing), heavy (which makes them pleasant to use as they shut nicely with a 'thud' rather than a 'click') and can give that extra sense of quality to your new build. With good furniture, i.e. fixings, hinges, etc., fire doors are not heavy to open and close but they are unforgiving to trap little fingers in. This said, I have many doors in my home and no one has (yet) ever lost a finger. If this is a real worry for a parent, then best not to go this route. There are two things to bear in mind in the case of renovations. First, if the fire doors are to be for fire resistance they must be installed as a complete door set by a qualified carpenter or specialist company who’ll get all the details right, including sealing round where the frame joins the wall. A fire door is only as effective as the weakest part of its installation, as seen at the Grenfell Tower tragedy in June 2017. But if you just want fire doors for cosmetic or ‘nice-to-have’ reasons, and don’t actually require fire proofing, you can use your existing frames if they're large enough. Be aware that fire doors are thick (usually 44mm) and may not fit your existing (35mm or 40mm) frames. It’s worth taking advice before investing in expensive fire doors. Despite the benefits, fire door sets are sophisticated installations that need looking after. Inspect yours at least once a year to be certain that automatic closure mechanisms are still functioning, intumescent and smoke-seal strips are all in good condition, and latches are working effectively. Andrew Stanway
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BUDGET / JOINERY
To reduce this cost, you can use the wall as your base to decrease the quantity of timberwork required. Instead of being formed from MDF sheets, this method uses beading installed directly onto the wall. Then the mouldings, and skirting board are all painted in the same colour to give the effect that the whole wall is panelled. Plant on panelling runs closer to €100/£90 per m. Picture framing panelling where walls are broken up into sections replicating picture frames, also use plant on beading. The cost of this type of panelling will very much depend on the amount you get done but will run at up to €20/£18 per m of bead depending again on the bead type, size and mould. Other options of panelling include full wall cladding with solid timbers,
have wardrobes costs averaging at around €1,000/£900 per m of wardrobe. TV units will often be manufactured from MDF and will regularly include glazed shelving and cabinets. In addition, these units will contain elements of lighting and cable management systems. Costs for this work, being bespoke, will depend on the above variables in addition to its size and finish. You can expect to pay into the thousands for these units completed.
Screens and other joinery hardwoods (cedars, irokos etc), V sheeting, shiplap and others. All of these are generally expensive with costs running in excess of €50/£40 per sqm and well into the hundreds for some materials.
Inbuilt units
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Additional information The Door and Floor Centre, thedooranfloorcentre.ie
Andrew Neel via unsplash.com
Wardrobes, TV Units, side boards, dressers, understair storage units and the likes, are some of the many types of inbuilt units regularly forming part of the joinery package for a project. The costs of these will vary depending on material, finish, amount of or existence of glazing and the functionality of the unit itself. Often made from similar carcases to kitchen units it’s common to see them made from chipboard, MDF and solid timber. Costs will increase as you move up this scale. On items like wardrobes, the selection of door types (solid or glass), the addition of drawers, the inclusion of mirrors, and the variety of accessories from shoe holders to tie racks and the likes will all work to detail the end cost of the unit. In budgeting terms it is not unusual to
Similar to doors, screens can come in a variety of materials, sizes and finishes. Screens are generally designed in domestic settings to allow light to flow into rooms and they will generally take the place of what otherwise would be a wall. It is not uncommon to have a screen attached to the side of or above a hallway door for
example. Increasingly, large screen type windows are replacing walls to allow light to flow through a building whilst maintaining room separation. Screens can be hardwood or softwood, and they come with a range of fire rated and non rated glazing. The cost of a screen will very much depend on its function and finish but will likely cost in excess of €550-600/£550 per sqm. Window boards, window framing (similar to liners and architraves), window shutters, radiator cabinets and other smaller items are all joinery elements that may find their way into your build. Like all of the joinery items outlined above, the costs are very much down to material selection and finish and these items should be properly budgeted from the outset.
R E PA I R O R R E P L A C E / P L O T
Repair or Replace? As many self-builders fail to find the magic greenfield plot they seek, some turn instead to buying an existing house with a view to making considerable alterations, or even replacing it to build new. Words: Andrew Stanway
A
substantial minority of self-builders – up to 40 per cent according to some studies* – buy an existing house rather than search even longer to try to find that perfect plot. For one, there will be services which removes one more uncertainty from your early concerns although make sure to check the situation with wastewater
treatment as this could prove to be a stumbling block, i.e. it may be expensive to upgrade the existing system in the case of an onsite treatment system, and the planners may have issues with you putting in a system on that particular site and may refuse permission on those grounds. This route may also be the only way you can live in the rural setting of your choice, as the planners are more likely to grant permission if there’s a home already there. Pearse O’Halloran
You may even be allowed to build a larger place than what you’ve removed. Another plus is that there should be less risk in relation to digging the foundations for an extension or larger replacement dwelling as there is already a house there, i.e. the soil conditions should be ok although on some sites these can change within a few meters so nothing is certain on that front. There are also those who already own a home, like its location, have nice neighbours and friends but have fallen out of love with the house itself. This leads them to consider very substantial alterations or taking it down and creating something from scratch. Whichever of the two scenarios, the choices are then plain. Either upgrade the existing property or knock it down and replace it.
The case for repairing and/or extending
l Buying an existing house may be the only way you can live in the rural setting of your choice, subject to local planning regulations. l Houses that need fixing (‘do-er uppers’) are cheaper than high quality, updated, homes. This gives a margin for spending and ending up with what you want yet not exceeding the local house price ceiling value. l Older houses have character that can be hard or impossible to create in a new build. l Older homes were built to last and the structure is usually solid. l Some older homes are worth saving for their historical or cultural value. Such structures should not be demolished. l Even homes that have no historical value should be retained if you want to reduce your environmental footprint as the waste generated by demolition and construction, as well as the embodied energy of buying new, are difficult to SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 79
P L O T / R E PA I R O R R E P L A C E
Paul Lindsay at Christopher Hill Photographic
Older houses have character that can be hard or impossible to replace.
The case for building new (replacement dwelling)
l It is usually cheaper to build from scratch than renovate or extend. You also won’t have to pay VAT on your work (NI only) so taking this into account, the larger your project the more sense it makes to build new rather than substantially refurb. l The certainty of starting from a clean sheet of paper can give real peace of mind. This includes removing the risk associated with uncovering issues in an existing house that will lead to costly repairs. You then cut your coat according to your cloth from the start and sleep easily. l Your new home will likely be more valuable than a similar-sized existing one in your area because it will have all the latest materials and kit. Also your bills will be lower as the latest materials and kit make it cheaper to run. 80 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
l You’ll have the fun and creativity of making a place that suits you and your family. l You won’t need to worry about ageing materials, and the costly need to replace them later down the line, or worry about toxic materials if present (lead-based paints or asbestos for example).
How it adds up Because self-build projects are zerorated for VAT in NI, and because all work on an existing house will be charged at 20 per cent tax, a £200,000 self-build new home will cost you the same as a £167,000 renovation project. In ROI there is no refund of VAT on self-building: you pay at 13.5 per cent on everything supplied and fitted and at 23 per cent on supply-only. Building costs in the south tend to be slightly higher too. If you reckon that a self-builder can build for about 1,300 per sqm (euros or pounds for the sake of argument), s/he can build a 140sqm new home for the same price as a 75sqm extension. As for demolition costs, they are not as high as you might think. Strangely, this is a taboo subject for many selfbuilders. Some actually turn down a perfectly good new home idea because they fear it’ll cost a fortune to take down the existing. But in most situations, demolition isn’t punitively expensive. Obviously, large houses cost more to get rid of than small ones, and how the materials can be disposed of or even recycled on site makes a difference. But unless you have something nasty such as asbestos, taking down most homes costs only between five and fifteen thousand. In the context of a total new build budget, this is tiny. Nazar Hrabovyi
offset. l For many people, remodelling is the only way they can slowly (as they can afford to) create the home they need or want, perhaps over several years. l If you do the work thoughtfully it’s possible to add value. For example, a building regulations compliant loft extension might cost forty thousand but add a hundred thousand to the value of your home in a good area.
COSTS
R E PA I R O R R E P L A C E / P L O T
Weighing up the options
With the pros and cons in mind, here are the questions to ask yourself when house hunting or when evaluating what to do with your current home.
1
What’s worth saving and what will need to be replaced when you move in? Heating, plumbing and electrics may need renewing unless they are fairly recent. Of course, it’s possible to live comfortably in a home full of outdated systems but starting from scratch enables you to have the best, safest, most comfortable, cost-effective, greenest, and money-saving kit from the start. Sometimes you won’t be able to replace like for like; due to changes in regulations the replacement could be costlier than originally anticipated, e.g. rewiring the entire house may be a requirement. Remember that in ROI if you are doing a major renovation it’s likely you will have to upgrade the energy efficiency of your entire house to a B2 building energy rating, which will also have cost implications. What is the extent of the design changes you would like to, or have to, make? If you need more space, do some simple scale drawings to scope out how extensive these extensions and alterations would be, to end up with the place you want. Then work with an architectural designer to create your ideal plan for such a project and cost it out in detail. You will find that building work on renovations and extensions tends to cost more than on new builds. And it can be very hard to budget accurately anyway as you never quite know what you’ll be up against until you start. Most people’s extensions and serious renovations involve the most expensive zones of their home…. kitchen, bathrooms, and better finishes. This makes extension costs much higher than overall house-building costs as the cost of the cheaper rooms (such as the hallways, storage areas, living rooms, etc.) isn’t factored in.
But to expect your new build to become a profit centre can be unrealistic and dangerous. You are not a developer. How about restricting the size of your new build and putting the rest of the money away for something else? It’s easy to get carried away and build too much or too expensively for your area. But remember too that a well-designed new build may well mean your new place doesn’t have to be much larger than your old one. Many people say they don’t care about
this…they just want what they want! Remember too that the three D’s of life – Death, Divorce and Debt – can hit any of us at any time and having overspent in an area where it’s impossible to recoup your money can make matters much much worse when Life takes a turn for the worse. * That figure from a study by Potton; this statistic is likely to vary hugely depending on location. In rural areas most new self-builds go onto family lands which are greenfield sites, but the total factors in cities and suburbs.
Milivoj Kuhar via unsplash.com
2
‘Sometimes you won’t be able to replace like for like; due to changes in regulations the replacement could be costlier than originally anticipated...’
3
What will the house be worth at the end? Given that the cost of actually building a house is pretty similar throughout NI and ROI, in high value areas it’s possible to recover the additional costs of building new because the embedded land values are high. In low value areas, though, a poor quality house and a high quality one cost much the same, so it usually makes sense to renovate rather than rebuild. SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 81
C E R T I F I C AT I O N / C H E C K L I S T
BASICS
Checks and balances To sell, insure or finance your house, you will need certificates of compliance. Words: Les O Donnell
M
ore important than building on time or within budget is to make sure your house was built according to the parameters set out in law, and to have the paperwork to prove it. Proof of compliance with the building regulations is the obvious requirement, but you will also need proof that planning permission has been secured and its conditions have been fulfilled, that boundaries and other features which relate to the development of your site are correct and that all works described in the 82 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
specifications and drawings have been properly completed. You will need these documents to sell on the house (conveyancing), and oftentimes to get it insured or financed. Note that certificates of compliance usually do not carry a warranty. Warranties or building guarantees are usually 10 years in duration, i.e. 10 years after the house has been built if there are any structural defects due to design or construction, the warranty will pay to have it rectified. To set up a warranty policy you will have to agree to inspections by the warranty provider at key stages of the build. According to consultant
Certifier role Remember that the professional consultant’s inspection and certification service is distinct from any other role. A professional consultant can be an architect or an engineer for example, and they may only certify the work, which comes at a cost. Certification services do not include supervision, project management or contract administration, unless you have specifically asked for these.
representative bodies such as the Royal Institute of British Architects:�These certificates do not have (and are not intended to have) the equivalent standing as NHBC cover or a Zurich guarantee.� Generally speaking, certificates of compliance only mean that a qualified professional has inspected the works periodically during construction and has found nothing that departs significantly from the approved plans and drawings.
Certification from Building Control
In NI local authority Building Control inspectors independently
C H E C K L I S T / C E R T I F I C AT I O N
check that the house is being built to the stated standard. The authorities first approve the proposed drawings and then also supply a Completion Certificate at the end, after they have inspected the site at key times. Building Control NI inspects every single project that requires certification, including small renovation projects that require structural or hazardous (e.g. on appliances) work. The Building Control Completion Certificate is only issued after Building Control is satisfied that the dwelling is ready for habitation. Snag lists are usually issued by Building Control for you to resolve any issues before they carry out their final inspection. The snagging process identifies parts of the work that have been practically completed but may require remedial action prior to official sign-off. Know that the Building Control Completion Certificate can be issued before all works have been completed, if those incomplete works were not deemed necessary for the use of the building under the building regulations. Building Control only verifies compliance with building regulations. In ROI even though local authorities do have Building Control inspectors, they seldom inspect self-builds. They also have no role in issuing certification documents. The Building Control certification process in ROI can only be done by either opting in or opting out of appointing an Assigned Certifier. An Assigned Certifier is a private consultant who is either a registered architect, chartered engineer or chartered building surveyor.
Certificates issued by consultants
Due to administrative costs, in ROI most self-builders choose to opt out of appointing an Assigned Certifier which means the selfbuilder takes on the responsibility for ensuring the build is compliant with the building regulations. Even where the self-builder opts in, s/he as the client is the ultimate person responsible for building the house to current standards. In an opt out scenario, selfbuilders have to keep on top of all
the paperwork and make sure they get a final certificate of compliance when the build is complete. Note that some mortgage providers in ROI insist that selfbuilders appoint an Assigned Certifier to their project. In that case both the Assigned Certifier and the builder must sign the Certificate of Compliance on Completion, supported by Ancillary Certificates from other members of the design team and from specialist subcontractors. Full guidance for ROI is available in the Building Control Regulations’ Code of Practice for Inspecting and Certifying Buildings and Works. In both NI and ROI if you take out a mortgage you will need a professional to sign off on the build stating that it is being built in accordance with the current regulations and approvals, in order to get the money released in stage payments. This process follows guidelines issued by the Council of Mortgage Lenders. The professional you appoint, whether that be an architect, architectural technologist, engineer or surveyor, will supply certification during the building works and at the end of the project. This individual must be experienced in the checking and monitoring of construction projects and possess valid professional indemnity insurance. This person may or may not be the person who designed your house. Lenders will accept a thirdparty certifier provided that they meet the minimum standards of qualifications and experience. The certifier will provide you with a detailed checklist of what they will be looking for at each scheduled inspection and will issue interim certificates after each phase as well as a final certificate on completion, known in NI as the Professional Consultant’s Final Certificate. This will include not just compliance with building regulations but also planning permission and other related aspects. Be aware that a final certificate from your certifier confirms that work has been legitimately completed, so it can mean that it might prove difficult to get the contractor back on site if the job is not properly finished. The final certificate should only be issued
Building control websites Full information for NI available on buildingcontrol-ni.com In ROI check the Building Control Management System website localgov.ie/en/bcms which includes the Code of Practice for inspecting works and more information about the opt-in versus opt-out systems.
at the end of the defects liability period and has the effect of releasing all remaining money due to the contractor, including any remaining retention. Check the contract you have in place with your builder.
What documents do you need to keep?
If you engage a contractor to manage all of the works, then they should provide all of the documentation at the completion stage. If you purchase materials yourself, you need to obtain the relevant paperwork; or if you engage subcontractors (direct labour) to complete the various stages, then you are effectively the principal contractor and will be responsible for record-keeping. At the end of your project, you should have a project file (hard or soft copy) that contains all of the documentation needed to allow the final certificate to be provided. Satisfactory evidence that products and materials are suitable for their intended use will need to be provided to the certifier and also to Building Control NI. For instance, if your working drawings specify that “all gutters and downpipes shall be zinc, to BS EN 612” or that “single skin profiled plastic roofing sheets shall be to I.S. EN 1013:2012” then you should be able to provide evidence that the products used in your building comply with those standards. A supplier’s receipt with an accurate description of the materials may well suffice for basic products, but more complex and especially, safety-critical items will require certificates from the manufacturers or a suitable UKASapproved third-party organisation
Building Control NI is an umbrella group that represents the 11 local councils’ building control departments.
SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 83
C E R T I F I C AT I O N / C H E C K L I S T
(e.g. BBA, BRE, BSI, etc.) for NI projects, NSAI or CE marked with Declaration of Performance for ROI projects. A product might have the correct markings and be supplied with certification that it complies with the required standard, but you need to make sure that the compliance covers the intended use of the product. For example, a box of wall ties should carry marks of approval, but are the ties being used across a 200mm cavity, where their design restricts their use to a maximum 150mm wide cavity? Or are you using CE or Kite-marked pipes as sewer pipes when the certification is only for use as ductwork? Commissioning reports for your ventilation as well as heat and hot water systems should also be retained. Note that ROI’s latest version of the building regulations makes ventilation commissioning reports mandatory. Where relevant, keep a record of any conservation and environmental protection measures as well as health and safety compliance measures, including a record of any actions taken, for instance if a hazardous substance has been discovered. Photographic evidence can be useful in many instances. Then there are the agreements with public bodies and service suppliers; these records can be dug up but it’s better to have them to hand to avoid delays. For example if you need to route pipes or cables to your site from across the road, you will need to get the roads authorities to allow you to cut and repair the public road. A bonded agreement is often put in place for this, whereby you put money in a bond to be cashed if you don’t put the road back in the state you found it. You also need an agreement to make or alter any access adjacent to a public road. You should also have agreements in place for the energy supply, telecommunication connections, water supply, etc. In NI if the wastewater is being discharged to a stream or subsurface irrigation system, you need to supply proof that you have consent to discharge domestic effluent from NIEA. If you are 84 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
connected to the wastewater mains or a group water scheme you will also need an agreement and proof of connection to same. You will also need a separate agreement if you intend to discharge surface water to a waterway. In ROI the wastewater provisions are usually dealt with as part of the planning process. Where buying an old property with an onsite wastewater system that isn’t compliant to current regulations, check what can be done to remediate the situation prior to buying the house as this may be a stumbling block to obtaining planning permission. In NI, it is often the case that older properties (pre-1973) have no consent to discharge, so your solicitor should have checked this for you and if necessary, arranged for the consent to be granted before completion of the sale. If you’ve drawn up a contract, (which you really should have if you appointed a main contractor), keep a record of it, as well as a record of all of the solicitor’s documents. Also obtain as-built SAP calculations (NI) / DEAP calculations (ROI) and the results of any air permeability tests along with the energy rating report and results. Remember that you are technically not allowed to move into your newly built home until you’ve obtained an energy rating for the as-built house: Building Energy Rating in ROI, Energy Performance Certificate in NI.
This article is for information purposes only; always seek legal advice for certification and conveyancing as well as for setting up a contract with your builder.
money. For instance, while routine checks will answer some of the questions, such as whether the visibility splays are in place, or what type of septic tank was approved for the site, more detailed inspections will also be necessary and some may be intrusive. Foundations might need to be exposed or holes might need to be drilled to look inside inaccessible spaces using an endoscopic camera. If the quality of any material cannot be verified, e.g. site-mixed concrete, uncertified timber, etc., then tests may be necessary to check its properties. In some cases, a structural engineer’s survey and report will be necessary. It is also not unknown to find that a house has been built differently to what is shown on the approved drawings; and this may require an application for retention with the local authority. A thermal imaging survey or an acoustic survey may also be necessary.
Retroactive certification
With second hand homes what often happens is that there are no certificates of compliance in place. Sometimes this is also the case with new builds whereby a self-builder might have had sufficient funds to get started but might need a cash top-up to complete the job. Or maybe the homeowner realises that he or she is not actually covered by their house insurance if the job has never been certified, or perhaps the house is being sold and the buyer’s bank or building society and the solicitors are asking for the completion certificate. In all of these cases, the house will need to be certified retroactively. Experience has shown that even though it is nearly always possible get a certificate, a fair amount of investigative work is usually required costing quite a bit of time and
Electrical work, in both NI and ROI, needs to be certified by a registered electrician. In ROI see safeelectric.ie, in NI eca.co.uk, niceic.com, napit.org.uk.
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O P I N I O N / E N E R G Y R AT I N G M I S H A P
When the time comes to sell… My energy assessor refused to upgrade the energy rating of my house despite the fact that I had invested in making it warm and cheap to run. Words: Gordon Le Moignan
I
f you carry out any kind of insulation work on your house, especially if you do it yourself, take photographs of every single stage, and plenty of
them. Also get a friendly builder or qualified person to document that he witnessed the installation of the insulation, and the space and water heating systems, to the recommended standard. Similarly if a contractor carries out such work, ask for confirmation on their headed paper. Those are the main lessons learned from my experience renovating our property. Also do not take anyone’s pitch as gospel that their product is the correct one for you. Carry out your own research and if in doubt, don’t! Or ask a reliable and independent source.
My story
My aim, and quite likely the experience of most renovators, was to attain an end product that would be a warm, energy efficient home, fit for purpose, using products that would contribute to that aim in a practical, cost effective manner. I did an enormous amount of research into what to do with the old walls, roof and floors of the pre-famine era house I bought in 2010, and spent in the region of €8,000 on insulating products I installed myself. In the distant past the main cottage was
'Do not take anyone's pitch as gospel that their product is the correct one for you.' 86 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
joined to an adjacent building of equal size with extended stone walls, which allowed the renovation to be carried out in two stages. I am experienced in building renovation and repairs, and this was the third and largest renovation of my own. The result is now an open plan cottage with the first floor occupying two thirds of the total space with a waist high glass balustrade that allows a view of the remaining area that accommodates the original full height and width stone chimney breast, a terrific feature complemented with a multifuel stove. I also added an exterior wall-hung oil burner linked in with the stove via a heat exchanger. When I started the renovation, the cottage floor was half flagstones, half concrete. The upstairs had begun a journey to join the downstairs floor and the roof was two thirds intact and just about remained in place because the woodworm were holding hands! The walls were lime plastered but crumbling. Unfortunately two years ago my health took a serious dive. Despite numerous
DID YOU KNOW? If you are building a new house, you are required to get an as-built energy rating commissioned (starting price usually around NI £50 or ROI €100) prior to moving in, which many selfbuilders seem to only get done when the time comes to sell.
E N E R G Y R AT I N G M I S H A P / O P I N I O N
What Does An Energy Rating Measure?
interventions the problem persists and I may be fighting a losing battle. The time came to (pardon the pun) put my house in order. As you are all aware, to sell a property you are legally obliged to have an energy rating: a Building Energy Rating (BER) in ROI, Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) in NI. In any case, along came my assessor. I detailed room by room what work had been carried out. Then came the bombshell.
The bombshell
As I had installed the underfloor and wall insulation myself it was inadmissible for the rating. It cannot be seen so he could not take my word as the truth. The only other option would have been if a builder had installed it and confirmed this with a letter on headed paper. Ouch! In short, the only items the assessor could confirm were the windows and doors and the oil and wood burners. Everything else would revert to default data figures for that material, i.e. the floors would be assessed as bare concrete and the walls as bare stone, and ceilings as plasterboard only, with no insulation present. With hindsight, (a wonderful thing, I wish I could sell it), photographic evidence at installation might have been acceptable but I didn’t have any showing the insulation except for the foil. But all the foil insulation was totally discounted anyway because, even though there are internationally recognised default figures and data for foil insulation, it is a niche product in the insulation market here and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland has no default value for it to include in the energy rating calculation. Not to be totally beaten I took an electrical socket off the wall and removed
the backbox and photographed the insulation behind. Similarly I cut a square out of a hidden corner and recorded that. The SEAI accepted the evidence but exclusively for the main cottage walls. It seems some energy assessors in NI are willing to input 100mm of glass wool where 19mm certified foil insulation is proven to have been used. I had no such luck with my assessor who stated several times that there was no discretion or leeway, and could not accept any claims for materials that did not have default ratings, or that he could not see, or those without proof of installation, as he could be audited and found to have submitted an unsubstantiated assessment. I had to accept this but it did nothing to alleviate my disappointment and frustration. At least I knew the money I spent was not wasted as all the products do exactly what they claim. The house is warm, easy and cheap to heat. The BER of my property, D2, does not in any way accurately reflect the annual energy costs of about €600 a year, about €400 for electricity and €200 for oil, but
The rating measures how efficient a user of energy your house is, not how much it consumes. Similar to the energy rating on your washing machine its A rating won’t guarantee low electricity bills if you do five washes a day. The rating also largely relies on asbuilt drawings so if workmanship and quality control measures weren’t in place during construction you may, in practice, move into a home that doesn’t perform as well as the energy rating might lead you to believe. the wood burner has carried the bulk of the heating load and its fuel comes at zero cost to me.
The insulation upgrade
Long story short, I stripped back the house to its bare floor and walls. For the annexe floor where we had space I chose phenolic
SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 87
O P I N I O N / E N E R G Y R AT I N G M I S H A P
board which is the best performing insulation on the market I could find. The cottage floor needed a slimline solution, and foil insulation was the only one I found to fit in the available space. Even though foil is expensive, at €500 a roll, aerogel is even dearer but it would have been an alternative. So, off to the local builder’s merchant, I got the manufacturer’s instructions on how to lay the foil and put it in. I installed the heating pipework, flexible electrical conduits and steel mesh. A builder then laid the concrete and floated it off by hand. A good start giving me a level hard surface to work on. I decided against insulation in the roof structure as I had no need to heat the roof void, which meant I chose the so-called cold roof method of insulating at ceiling level instead. The sloping and flat upper ceiling areas are insulated with foil insulation fixed in place with battens on the roof timbers, then insulated plasterboard applied to the battens. The walls were tackled next, the first job being replacing wooden lintels over the window openings. Firstly I had a damp course injected, which I feel was successful. On the internal side of the wall I rendered the walls with a sand and cement plaster with waterproofer in the mix. This took up to three coats in places to accomplish something approaching a flat surface. Then after a period to ensure drying out I applied 52mm insulated plasterboard to the walls with the appropriate adhesive. The surface was skimmed and brush finished to mimic a rough lime plaster. On the first floor the lower walls were formed with stud works with foil insulation behind and rock wool in the wall cavity. This insulated the walls and it is well ventilated behind by the roof space. The rough exterior annexe walls were a bit of a poser but I came up with an unconventional solution by building a new structural interior wall using aerated blocks for their lightness and their insulating properties.
88 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
I should explain here that the original walls in both buildings taper. The exterior is plumb and the interior gets thinner towards the top by about 100mm. How these old time builders accomplished this baffles me. I left a cavity between the walls with a minimum of 60mm at the bottom. The gable had some protruding stones so the minimum was 70mm there. I wanted insulation between the two walls but as the stones were so irregular I needed something to mould around them. I had the option of spray foam or EPS beads, both of which were expensive. I then remembered how, many years ago, people were insulating their lofts with vermiculite, a product now known for insulating and filling in around flue liners in chimney spaces. The problem with using vermiculite in the roof space was that in well ventilated lofts it would blow around and leave ‘drifts’ on one side and uninsulated ceiling at the other. But I remembered how warm it was if you pushed your fingers into the material. The problem in a cavity wall is that the vermiculite, which consists of small particles that have a concertina like layered profile, would be unable to prevent dampness from breaching the cavity. I did some research and found a guy who seemed to live and breathe to tell anyone willing to listen the benefits of vermiculite! He told me how to mix vermiculite ‘concrete’ which would get around this problem by mixing it 5:1 by volume with cement. Then water is added and it is gently mixed until all the particles are coated but are still separate. As the aerated blocks I was using to build the cavity wall were very light I could only do a limited amount of blocks at any one time. I could pour in the vermiculite quite soon after I finished so I was always ready
to continue the following day; it was a certain way to ensure the entire cavity was filled. 26 huge bags went into the cavities, 2,600 litres in total! At the top of the gable wall it was 170mm thick. It was easy to pour in behind newly laid blocks without disturbing them; with spray foam for instance I would have had to wait for the blocking to dry out thoroughly to make sure the foam did not push the wall over. To finish the walls internally I applied 12mm plasterboard using a proprietary adhesive then it was skimmed to a usual smooth finish.
SUPPLIERS Insulation Phenolic foam insulation by Kingspan Thermofloor, kingspaninsulation.ie Alutherm foil insulation is imported and distributed by Tradecraft Building Products, tradecraft.ie DIY block laying tool A simple tool that enables even a total novice to build an accurate professional wall, bricky.com
DIY / PROJECT FOR FUN
DIY therapy Life is becoming more demanding, frantic and busy by the day. To slow things down I took on an easy carpentry project, which, with a little patience and time is well within the abilities of any DIYer. Words: Ciaran Hegarty
M
artin Seligman, a world renown psychologist, believes that for people to flourish in life, one of the things they should do is to engage in something they are passionate about. For some this may be gardening, painting, playing an instrument, running or creative writing. For me, woodwork would be that engagement. It has the ability to put me in a state of ‘flow’ which Csikszentmihalyi describes as being totally immersed in an activity where time flies and you’re using your skills to the utmost. Having recently went back to further study, it soon became apparent how important this engagement was. Between college assignments, work and family, trying to get the balance right for my wellbeing was a challenge. A state of play quite similar to the one many self-builders find themselves in. Although not practical to spend hours each evening in the shed tinkering with projects, it was important to include a few hours a week to do something for my own wellbeing. And that is what lead me to this project, one I could make for my three children. After much research, I decided on a carved rocking horse which may look complicated but is actually quite easy to make. It also requires minimum tools (yet plenty of patience!), which is true of most leisure DIY projects, from building a bookcase to picture frames.
The project
The entire horse is constructed from two sheets of birch plywood and is made by laminating or gluing several layers together. Each layer is cut out to a specific shape and size with specific holes drilled in them to help align all the parts together with the use of dowels. It really is a terrific design and leaves little room for error. I used an MDF sheet to create the templates (for future projects) which I 90 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
then placed on the ply for optimal space utilisation. The layers are glued together to build up half the body, held in place with clamps. The two halves are then glued together to form the horse. The lot is then sanded and sealed. Birch ply was my choice because of its superior quality; it has less voids between the veneers, has a beautiful pale exterior and can be finished to a high standard. It has recently gained popularity in cabinet making circles such as kitchen manufacturing where the edges are left exposed to show a beautiful linear pattern. I bought the plans for this horse from a local shop. There were three sizes to choose from and I went for the largest one, which in hindsight was misjudged as the project is quite big and unless you have the space inside your home it can be quite imposing. But it can accommodate children and adults alike.
The stand
The stand consists of two long rails
separated by two columns and two cross members. The columns can be turned on the lathe or remain square in section depending on your preference, and they can equally be purchased ready-made. Traditionally, rocking horses consisted of curved rockers upon which the horse would sit. These rockers were either laminated or steam bent to produce the required curve. This horse however has a simple mechanism that allows a smooth
PROJECT FOR FUN / DIY
rocking motion. It consists of a swing iron at the front and back that are attached to the foot rails at the bottom of the horse. These swing irons sit upon the top rail and are held in place with swing iron brackets. This mechanism is useful for projects such as baby cradles and other children’s toys.
assembling; also use as many clamps as you can get your hands on. When all the parts of each side are glued, it is time to glue the two halves together. You can use the cavity to store a memento such as the day’s newspaper.
Cutting
The most useful tool for cutting out the parts is a jigsaw but you don’t have to be overly accurate cutting the parts out as they will be blended into shape afterwards. Use a bradawl or sharp point to mark the positions of the alignment holes. Proceed to cut the parts from the plywood sheet as with the MDF and drill the holes for the dowels. Drill the last layer with a blind hole (drilled halfway through so it won’t be visible from the outside). To aid in cutting tight curves such as around the neck, I found it easier to drill a hole first. Having a selection of drill bits of various sizes is a help for the various radii used in the horse.
• Two sheets of 12mm MDF at €20-€24/£22 per sheet • Two sheets of birch ply at €65-€75/£70 per sheet • 1m length of 6mm dowel at €3/£2 • 1 litre high quality glue €15/£12 or 3.8l for €50/£45 • Sandpaper • Lengths of timber for the stand can vary depending on type of timber, the equivalent in oak would be approx. €100-€120/£110; swing irons €35/£32 and swing iron brackets €25/£22 with screws for the stand • Sealant: I used hard wax oil but alternatives include varnish and lacquer
The tools
Gluing
Some of the parts are hollow to reduce the weight of the horse when fully assembled. Use a good quality glue when Shapes outlined on the MDF sheet; be careful to drill the alignment holes accurately and label the parts as you work.
The materials
Sanding and sealing
1. The simplest and quickest way to sand down the horse (blend one layer into the next) is to use an angle grinder fitted with a blade made for this task. The same result can be accomplished using a traditional carving gouge and mallet but it will take longer. 2. This method is aggressive however so proper protection is required including face shield and gloves. 3. When the rough grinding or carving is complete, using rasps, electric sanders, files and plenty of hand sanding. Focusing on a section such as a back leg will reap better rewards than tackling the whole horse each evening. It will very quickly start to look smoother and more refined. 4. To protect the timber I used a hard wax oil for a tough finish that’s easily repairable; it brushes on well and wipes off after a few minutes. For the finishing touches, accessories can be purchased including saddles, bridles, reins, tails and even glass eyes.
SUPPLIERS The plans are available from The Carpentry Store in Naas, Co Kildare or online rockinghorse.co.uk Quality glue: Titebond 2 Angle grinder blade: Arbortech Turbo Plane Blade
• Jigsaw although you could equally use a bandsaw, scroll saw or even a coping saw • Drill with drill bits of varying sizes • Bradawl or sharp point • Clamps: I recently purchased a box of 10 G-clamps from an online store for a reasonable price and these were essential in getting a good join between the different parts. You could manage with less clamps but the more the merrier in this project • 5” (125mm) angle grinder to be used with protective gear; the blade I attached to the angle grinder can be pricy at €135/£120 but worth it if you want to remove a lot of timber quickly and efficiently
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Welcome to Holywood Tiffany Brien’s major renovation project was inspired by her day job as an estate agent.
H
ow did you find the house?
It took time and patience. I was looking for a threebed semi that wouldn’t take too much work, in Holywood at a certain price point. To help me decide I brought my dad on second viewings. As most people know there are only three things to look for in a property: location, location, location. And this house is 100m from the beach, within walking distance to shops, social clubs and close to work and my parents’ house. It ticked all the boxes apart from the amount of work it needed.
How did the redesign come about?
The original plan was to renovate on a modest scale but when the builder started stripping back the walls and ceilings, when we were halfway into it he advised we go the full hog. If you’re going to do it you might as well do it right, so we stripped the structure back to a shell, including knocking down internal walls and replacing all the roof joists. We reconfigured the entire space. I brought on board Des, an architect who is an old friend of the family who usually works on very large new builds. I also knew our main contractor Martin through work, and Sara my interior designer was my babysitter when I was a kid and we have become friends over the years.
How was the project managed?
Because I’m so busy with work, in terms of the day to day I had a project manager for the early structural stages and another for the finishes. I was living at home at the time so
would come every evening after work with my mum or dad to keep an eye on progress. Our quantity surveyor kept tabs on the purse which ensured we stayed within budget, and Martin was in constant contact with me through a messaging app. Because I trusted him and the team I followed their advice as to how to proceed, for things like choosing where the doorway would go in one of the rooms. Having that kind of entourage is hard to beat but it is what makes a project succeed. The renovation only took six months which is incredible considering the extent of the work we undertook. Our builder was amazing, the house was neat and tidy every evening.
Where did you get your inspiration from?
I work in my dad’s practice as an estate agent and I would take notes of things I liked in SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 93
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houses I was showing, from storage solutions to finishes. The in-built booth seating is an example, it’s a fabulous space saver if you don’t have much room in your dining area. Then there are knick-knacky things like hiding your sockets; the electric toothbrush is hidden in a drawer for example. Same with the kitchen, I have the appliances and sockets hidden from view as workspaces can get cluttered very quickly with electronics. I eat, sleep, breathe my job so anywhere I go I get ideas. For example the hidden door feature was inspired by a bar in Belfast. I tried to incorporate as many of these clever ideas into the final design. I also went online to make mood boards and inspo pages and worked closely with my interior designer. I would pick out an item or a colour and Sara would take it from there. A lot of thought went into every aspect, from fabrics to furniture placement and choosing the colour of the front door and render.
What energy upgrades did you do?
We pumped the walls with EPS beads and insulated the house to the hilt. We have a gas boiler with underfloor heating downstairs, radiators upstairs. The house is roasting, and if you leave the gas stove on for an hour you’re in a sauna.
What are the key design features?
We reconfigured the floor plan, putting the kitchen at the front of the house – there used to be a massive kitchen at the back but for the way I live, there was no point in dedicating that much space to cooking. I spend most of my time in the living room; the low ceiling and cosy sofa is all I ask for. That and lighting the gas fire, at the touch of a button, to kick back and relax after a long day’s work. The panelling is very embracing and the secret door a treat to use. I also really like the London townhouse feel having the kitchen at the bay windows gives; it feels a bit like Notting Hill. The mirror backsplash works really well and in general the house is really easy to maintain. There are no pets or children around so a quick tidy is enough to keep it spotless. I can be obsessive about tidiness so that was an important aspect. I have someone come every fortnight to do a deep clean and that’s more than enough.
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Did it end up costing as much as a new build?
Definitely, plus the VAT because it’s not a new build! But the character of the property we have and its location are hard to beat. Everything in the house is brand new, even the staircase is a replica of the Georgian original that was there. The advice I would give anyone renovating a property like this is to consider investing in the end product. Consider what is cost effective versus the best. I knew this project wasn’t going to be the cheapest, but doing it at the right time with the right components is money well spent. I think otherwise later down the line you can trip up and fall with finishes wearing badly for example.
What other tips would you give a budding renovator?
Communication is absolutely everything – I’d consult with both Sara and Martin on almost every aspect and at every stage of the build. Do your research to find people who can advise you. From day one I had a brilliant team behind me. In my dad whose experience is second to none and my mum who’s been through her fair share of renovating older properties. They also built their own home not too long ago. Also, as soon as you start thinking about taking on a project, set up an online inspo page, consult social media for projects, and take notes of what you like. The sooner you SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 95
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SUPPLIERS Architect Des Ewing Architects, desewing.com Builder Martin Brannigan, alskeacontracts.com Insulation Xtratherm for walls and floor, xtratherm.ie Interior designer Thompson Clarke Interiors, thompsonclarke.com Kitchen Laura Dallat Interiors, lauradallatinteriors.com Sofa The Sofa Maker, drumbristonthesofamaker.com Tiles David Scott Tiles, davidscotttiles.com Joinery Precision Joinery Works, precisionjoineryworks.com Bathroom KE Plumbing Supplies, keplumbing.co.uk Gas burner Kildress Plumbing, kildressplumbing.com Photography Christopher Hill Photographic, scenicireland.com ROI calling NI prefix with 048
start the better. The more detail you have the more you will have to put into the house. All of the small design features you like will add up to a home that you love and one that should be easy to use and maintain. And use local suppliers – I went on the builder’s recommendation for many of them and it was really worth it.
Did the project require any regulatory approvals?
We didn’t have to apply for planning permission because we worked entirely within the existing shell. But we did have to apply to Building Control, mostly for knocking down the wall between the front two rooms, and to make sure the insulation was installed to the specification. It went very smoothly.
What surprised you?
That I was at the centre of the decision making – I had to pinch myself that this was my house and my own project. I’m used to building projects being underway, I lived through my parents’ self-build for instance but at the periphery. Making the decisions was actually really fun. I trusted the people behind me to give me the right advice and that took a lot of the stress out of the process. 96 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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PROJECT / CO DOWN
Would you do it again?
I love this house, it’s super cool and I am going to enjoy it for as long as I can, but now that I’m turning 30 this year I realise that it is only big enough to maybe have one child here, you would grow out of it after that. I would love to do another project and build a house from scratch but the hardest part is finding land to do this in the right location. I would be hard pushed to find a better location than where I am that is within my budget, but I’ll try make it happen.
GROUND FLOOR AFTER WG-04
WC
GROUND FLOOR BEFORE
Utility
FIRST FLOOR AFTER
FIRST FLOOR BEFORE +
+
SECOND FLOOR AFTER
Utility Bathroom +
Living Bathroom
Bedroom
Kitchen
3
3
Dining
Dining
Bedroom
Bedroom
SECOND FLOOR BEFORE
Hall Kitchen
3
Living
Lounge
Bedroom
Bedroom
Bedroom
SPECIFICATION House size before: 1,980 sqft Walls: 12.5mm plasterboard dry lined on vapour control layer on 50mm PIR board insulation on 25mm MF batten system as cavity on existing masonry wall. Existing walls made good and finished with one coat primer and two coats of paint. Minimum U-value of 0.30 W/sqmK Floors: 75mm screed on polythene vapour control layer on 125mm PIR on 150mm C/25N concrete slab on 1200 gauge polythene damp proof membrane/radon
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barrier on 50mm blinding on 300mm well compacted hardcore, maximum 150mm layers. Floor dpm to be overlapped and bonded to perimeter wall dpc. Minimum U-value 0.25 W/sqmK Roof: Minimum 300mm mineral wool insulation to provide minimum U-value of 0.20 W/sqmK New windows: uPVC wood grain effect, double glazed
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PROJECT / CO WICKLOW
Nerves of steel Securing planning permission in Co Wicklow took longer than actually building architect Luis Reis’ family home – in large part because it sits on an infill site, sandwiched between two overlooking properties.
RM I NMGE2R022002 0 14040/ /SSEELLFFBBUUI L I LDD/ /SSPU
CO WICKLOW / PROJECT
How did the project come about?
We needed a house with more space to accommodate our family. With five people, three of them young children living in a small two-bedroom house, we had to come up with solutions. The first thing we did was to apply for planning permission to extend our previous home, however, during the running of this process, my wife Gråinne’s parents (Michael and Deirdre) proposed to give us a part of their land/ side garden to build our own house, subject to getting planning permission which we eventually received. Really, without Michael and Deirdre, this project would not have been possible. It was obviously a fabulous opportunity for me as an architect to design and build a home for my family and once confronted with the option to extend or build new, we opted for the latter since it provided us with
a better longer term financial investment for us as a family.
What was the design process like and how did you keep a lid on the budget?
The design process took roughly 18 months since I was working on it in my spare time, and our intention was to design a contemporary four-bedroom home with an open plan living space, which would respect the orientation, building lines and character of the surrounding buildings while at the same time create a contemporary re-interpretation of the local architecture through the use of a palette of carefully selected natural and sustainable materials, which we hoped would revitalise the architecture in the area. We opted to maximise the natural light in the living areas, via large panes of glass (triple glazed) which not only provide views and direct access to the garden, but almost bring the outside space into the house. We knew we would love to incorporate a decently sized utility and larder space, approximately five square meters each, while having the hob in the island allows the kitchen to become a very social space. We also did have quite a strict budget that we needed to adhere to, therefore certain design options and finishes had to be disregarded due to financial cost such as our choice of concrete tiles as opposed to polished concrete floors. Another means of cutting costs was to finish our main bathroom after we had moved in, and to be thrifty with our choice of sanitaryware in general. We selected midrange, white fittings and matching wall and floor tiles with a matt and textured finish, with individual colours for each space. This gave us the wriggle room, financially, to add a wet room which we used in the master bedroom ensuite. ďƒ˜ S USMPM RG2 0 20 LF UU I LI D R IEN 20 2 0/ /S E SE LB FB L D/ /1 0 4 15
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How did the planning process influence the design? Unfortunately, the planning process was not that straightforward, considering the nature and location of the site as well as the character of existing surrounding structures. The local authority asked us to redesign the building three times to address some concerns regarding roof design, overshadowing and overlooking of adjoining properties. For these reasons and to maximise solar gain/ natural light, the majority of the glazed areas have been orientated in the southern, western and northern directions, while the front/east facing elevation is mainly opaque to address any issues of privacy raised by the neighbouring properties. Ultimately, we had to limit the number of openings to the east facing elevation of the house which may seem strange from a design aspect but was necessary to achieve planning.
How long did it take to get planning permission and to build the house?
The application was validated in April 2016 and was granted in November of that year. We broke ground in June 2017 and the construction took roughly six months so we got in just before Christmas. 102 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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What building method did you choose?
Once we finally secured planning permission we had to choose the building method and we quickly gravitated towards a prefabricated Structural Insulated Panel (SIP) timber frame system. As an architect I had recently attended a two-week course in Germany in multistorey timber frame buildings and SIP construction, so I was familiar with the system and its advantages in terms of timeframe, sustainability and delivery time. Ultimately the decision to go with the timber frame option came down to money and time. The SIPs company we chose committed to a time frame of six months from start to finish, which was critical for us since we had to move in with Gráinne’s parents (an extra five people in the house…), at a total cost that was within our budget so there really was no doubt when it came to choosing them as our main contractor. Also, both myself and Gráinne liked the company owner from our first meetings with him. We worked very closely with them to project manage the build. We really feel it is particularly important to be as hands on as possible and to be on site as much as you can to be aware of what is happening. Sourcing some of the internal finishes ourselves definitively saved us both time and money.
Did you opt in or out of appointing an assigned certifier?
We decided to opt out since this is standard practice for a project of this size; it simplifies the process of completing the project. We also felt that we had enough experience to coordinate all aspects of the design and construction stages. This decision contributed to savings in the overall project cost. I asked a friend of mine Stephen, who is also an architect to supervise the key stages and sign off on them.
How did the building phase go?
Produced in factory conditions and assembled on site by a crane in two days, the process was very efficient. The SIP system offers a shorter and more controlled build environment, reducing construction and energy waste. After the structure was in place, we had to get all of the services and finishes put in. Most of this was done by our builder and SIP supplier, apart from the bathrooms and utility. We chose the kitchen but the installation was supervised by the builder. Most of the building process went smoothly with the exception of a hurricane which forced all scaffolding to be taken down! The windows went in when we were away on holidays, supervised by the builder and Stephen, and it was amazing to come SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 103
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SUPPLIERS Architect Luis Reis MRIAI, BBA architecture, Delgany, Co Wicklow, tel. 01 2876949, bba.ie Builder/SIPs Ambihouse, Co Wicklow, tel. 01 539 4242, ambihouse.ie Project Certification Stephen Moore MRIAI of Moore Architecture, email sdmoore2010@hotmail.com Windows Rationel Aura Plus external windows and doors, rationel.ie Coated steel roof Greencoat PLX, ssab.com Heating and ventilation Heat Doc Ltd, heatdoc.ie supplied Aereco DCV, aereco.ie, and Mitsubishi heat pump, mitsubishi.ie Electrics Robert Power Electrical, robertpower.ie Lighting designer/supplier Blueprint Lighting Ltd, blueprintlighting.ie Kitchen Timbercraft Kitchens, timbercraft.ie Sanitaryware and tiling Tile Style, tilestyle.ie Window dressing Mounttown Blinds, mounttownblinds.com Landscaping Classic Touch Landscapes, Co Wicklow, mobile 086 816 2461 Cedar cladding Machined Timber Specialists – Wood Components, woodcomponents.ie ROI calling NI prefix with 048
back to a weather sealed house. The only glitch during the construction phase was that the hob was broken during installation however the kitchen suppliers were great and replaced it promptly.
What were the most frustrating aspects of the build?
Given the urban location of the site it came as a surprise that the services were so difficult and costly to connect to. The water and wastewater connections were prohibitive and probably the most complex aspect of the build to get right. Prior to the commencement of the design process, we carefully looked into available services and had an idea of the 104 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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fee attached to water connection. We were however hoping that the sewer connection could be done through Gráinne’s parents’ garden, however, existing garden levels, Irish Water and Wicklow County Council would not allow this so our only option was to pump and build a new manhole at the top of the road which is over 50m away, requiring road opening licences, which is why the cost was so high at approximately €40,000. The water connection was in excess of €7,000. As for the broadband connection, it was an ongoing nightmare which was only resolved more than a year after we moved into the house. In comparison the electricity connection was quick and relatively cheap at €2,000. Although I would be well used to the planning process, this particular one was quite long and there was a lot of patience and redesigns required. Unfortunately, as a self-builder you have little control over some parts of the process (i.e. objections) and it is essentially a nervous waiting game.
What are the main tips you would give someone thinking of embarking on a project similar to yours?
I would advise any potential self-builder, to ensure they do their research on the proposed site, including an accurate survey of boundaries and available services. Crucial concerns are zoning (check the local development plans) and other planning constraints (check previous planning permissions applied for). Also research current market construction costs, alternative construction methods and renewable/ sustainable energy solutions to ensure that your building performs thermally and will be affordable to run in the future.
What would you change?
The location of two light switches and, although all internal walls are insulated with rockwool, we probably need to consider mitigating measures to reduce the noise from washing machines/ tumble dryers which
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propagates due to the lack of sound proofing materials. We do however love the separate laundry room.
WC
How did you tackle the landscaping?
We technically have two gardens, one south facing and another north facing, and we opted to finish the south facing garden which is the smaller of the two spaces with artificial grass. It’s fabulous as there is no maintenance. This material can however get quite hot during summer months. As for the cedar cladding it was left untreated to turn silver. We are a little nervous about this but I think it looks well, at least for now.
Storage
Entrance Storage
Laundry
Sitting Kitchen/Dining
Playroom
Utility
What’s the verdict?
We love it. It is amazing and perfect for our family and it is great to have the in laws next door for support. From an interior perspective, we still have a lot to do in terms of furniture and decoration, so it’s still a work in progress. We opted to paint all internal walls white, to provide a minimalist look, reflect natural light and create visual contrast with the use of grey coloured tiles at ground floor level and timber floors at first floor level. The stairs are finished in white oak treads. Overall, the house is very easy to maintain. The polished concrete effect tiles work great with the underfloor heating, are very easy to clean and more importantly with three kids they do not highlight dirt. Unlike the white walls… As for the energy efficiency, the building regulations for a new build essentially require that you build a house that’s going to be cheap to run. In our case we specified an air to water heat pump, which ticked the box for our renewables requirement under Part L, together with high performance triple glazing, airtightness construction, demand control ventilation for fresh air, and 100 per cent LED low energy lighting. We have radiators at first floor level and underfloor heating on the ground floor. And although more than twice the size of our previous home, our energy bills are smaller. The only bill we have is electricity and it typically comes in between €120 to €190 every two months. Considering the energy used for lighting, heating, and running of dishwasher and washing machines for a family of five with three small children we do not feel this is too bad.
Bathroom
En-suite
Corridor HP
Bedroom Bedroom
Master Bedroom
Bedroom
SIZES, COSTS & SPECIFICATION House size before: 179sqm Plot Size: 283sqm Costs: SIPs supplier cost approx. €350k
which includes the €15k kitchen. Plus sanitary fittings/tiling with labour organised independently at approx. €20k. Plus connection to services of approx. €50k, local council contributions of €12k, and planning and professional fees.
DO NOT SCALE OFF THIS DRAWING. ONLY STATED DIMENSIONS ARE TO BE USED. ALL DIMENSIONS TO BE VERIFIED ON SITE BY MAIN CONTRACTOR BEFORE THE COMMENCEMENT OF WORKS.
REVISION :
REPORT ALL DISCREPANCIES TO ARCHITECT IMMEDIATELY. THIS DRAWING IS TO BE READ WITH ALL RELATED ARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS DRAWINGS AND OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION
CLS graded timber fixed at 600 mm centre, 140 mm rockwool stud wall insulation, 60 mm PIR board, airtight membrane, 50 x 38 mm service batten,12.5 mm plaster board skimmed to a smooth finish. Full airtight system to include taping of all joint at floor and ceiling and around all windows and doors. U-value 0.14W/sqmK. DRAWING TITLE:
PROPOSED SITE DRAINAGE LAYOUT
DRAWING No:
CONSTRUCTION SHOULD ONLY PROCEED FROM DRAWINGS ISSUED UNDER WORKING DRAWINGS (FOR CONSTRUCTION) STATUS, UNLESS PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT IS GIVEN. SHOULD ANY SITE PERSONNEL, OR THOSE EMPLOYED TO CARRY OUT WORKS ON THEIR BEHALF, CHOOSE ALTERNATIVE MATERIALS OR COMPONENTS TO THOSE SPECIFIED BY bbaarchitecture WITHOUT REFERENCE AND AGREEMENT WITH bbaarchitecture, THEN THEY DO SO ENTIRELY AT THEIR OWN RISK.
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House value: €600k
Ground floor: 120 mm PIR insulation, 50 mm PIR insulation turned up at floor edge, A142 steel reinforcing mesh, 150 mm of 25 N20 concrete power floated to a smooth finish. U-value 0.17W/sqmK. Timber frame external walls: Acrylic render finish and vertical cedar cladding on external breather membrane, 9mm OSB for structural resistance, external timber frame 140 x 38 mm
REVISION:
DRAWN BY:
CHECKED BY:
Tel.: 2876949 / 28
SCALE:
DATE:
Internal walls: 89 x 50 mm CLS graded soft TENDER ISSUE wood timber, internal dividing walls filled with 90mm acoustic roll, steel structure included as per engineer’s specification. LTP
REV
DESCRIPTION
BY
MB
DATE
Roof: Coated steel standing seam zinc effect finish to mono pitch roof including insulation at ceiling level. Master bedroom area 150mm PIR between the rafters and 50mm PIR below, insulation at ceiling level. Rest of dwelling 200mm insulation between the joists with 150mm above. U-value 0.12W/sqmK. BER: A3 Airtightness: 1.962m3/hr.sqm
bb
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ENERGY / PV
Plug and play roof How to turn your roof into a mini-power plant. Words: Debbie Orme
E
lectricity prices both in ROI and NI rose by around fourteen per cent in the last year, with the cost of the components required to create electricity cited as major factors. Little wonder then that solar power is the fastest growing form of renewable energy in ROI and NI. For years now, we’ve become accustomed to seeing solar panels mounted on roofs, but now there is a new range of building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) products that can provide solar energy in what could be classed by some as a more aesthetically pleasing manner.
BIPV are building materials with electricity-generating semi-conductor materials embedded within them, such as solar tiles, solar cladding and solar windows. Unfortunately this market remains a niche in that there are very few suppliers, the product is expensive and pretty much first generation. More widely available are PV in-roof systems which replace some of the slates with a panel or modules that sit lower 110 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
down in the roofline.
Sizing
Many people think that the climate in ROI and NI is insufficient to generate electricity, but in actual fact solar PV systems will generate electricity on overcast days. Even in a bad year, ROI and NI still get 70 per cent of the sun Madrid gets, so PV works perfectly well. On the most overcast of days, systems may not be able to produce power at their maximum rated capacity but will still be able to generate electricity. Summer is the peak time for solar power production, winter the low point, so contrary to popular belief heat pumps and solar PV aren’t as complementary as you might think. As there is no feed-in tariff in ROI and a modest export payment in place in NI, in general a 2kW system will be adequate for an average sized home as this will allow a bit of overspill to be used for heating hot water. You will however need to calculate how much energy your home will consume and work back from there to size the system (a single panel is usually 300W). Larger systems, e.g. 4kW, tend to make the most sense if you have an electric car. You can divert energy to a battery but remember that the excess you create will
GRANTS In NI, despite the Green Deal and feedin tariff scheme coming to an end, you can still receive payments for exporting electricity to the grid, to Power NI, but the amount paid per kWh isn’t high. Grants are available for the capital cost of installing the panels in ROI but this is only for existing homes built before 2011. Grant amounts range from €1,800 to €2,400 depending on the size of the system and whether or not that includes a battery, see seai.ie for more details.
roofit.solar
'Many people think that the climate in ROI and NI is insufficient to generate electricity, but in actual fact solar PV systems will generate electricity on overcast days...'
Bolt-on PV systems are the most commonly available on the market today.
roofit.solar
PV / ENERGY
SUPPLIERS
The roof on the left entirely consists of a 1.8kW PV array.
be at the time of year you need electricity the least. A 2.5kW battery may cost in the region of £2k/€2.5k but this won’t be enough to mop up the excess of a 4kWp PV system. Battery costs can go up to as much as 20k (euros or pounds) depending on how much power you want to store. An average PV panel installation tends to cost in the region of £4k/€4.5k but that is dictated by the number of modules used, quality of fixings, cabling and electrics, the inverter, labour and other associated costs. Another driver to the uptake of PV is that the building regulations in ROI require a portion of a new home’s energy to be supplied by renewable sources and, in many cases, solar PV is a cost-effective way to deliver this although installing a heat pump is a means of ticking that regulatory box as well.
Appearance
Notes about in-roof systems
In-roof systems are straightforward to install; solar specialists simply fix the panels onto battens above the felt before the roofing contractors install the roof covering around them. While PV panels can last thirty years or more, over the course of those years most roof coverings such as tiles or slates will require maintenance. With standard “sit on top of the roof” solar panels, the solar system has to be removed to gain access to
the roof covering; with in-roof systems or with BIPV the panels are the roof covering. However, in-roof PV systems might only have a 15 year manufacturer’s guarantee whereas a concrete tile will last at least 50 years so consider the scenario where a panel breaks. Will the roof leak and will you be able to find a same sized panel that will be able to replace the broken one? Also if the panel from the future has a higher output you might end up having to replace all the panels as the slowest horse leads the pack. Additional information PV Green Energy Savings, pvgreenenergysavings.ie
Vivint Solar
The appearance of the PV module is determined by the type of technology used. Crystalline solar cells are derived from growing silicon crystals or ingots and then slicing them into semi-conductor wafers, which are usually square plates measuring 150mm x 150mm. The surface, which is metallic blue or black, is subdivided by silver-coloured contact grids, which collect the current. The other technology features thin film modules, which consist of a semiconductor a few micrometres thick, which is typically installed by means of vapour deposition with a metal backed structure. The resulting coating is then sub-divided into individual, thin, linear cells, which are broken up by metallic or transparent lines. At only 2.2kg per square metre, thin film modules are much lighter than traditional silicon panels, which weigh around 18kg per square metre, meaning that they can be installed on houses which were previously unable to take the weight
of traditional solar panels. The high-spec modules currently on offer in Ireland work solely on the fact that the light goes into the panel and solar energy is produced. When it gets too warm, however, the efficiency is reduced. The latest tiles have a trigger switch, which kicks in and cuts out. Air can then pass underneath the tiles, producing a cooling effect which maintains efficiency.
When it comes to choosing a reputable company in NI check that the product carries a CE Kite Mark and is MCS approved, in ROI check for NSAI certification. Always shop around and compare like with like, as you can make significant savings this way. In the context of grant applications in existing homes, the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland has warned that many consumers are only getting one quote and thereby not necessarily getting the best price for the same product.
SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 111
PROJECT / PV
Down the rabbit hole As an engineer and one of the first to be on the building energy rating assessors’ database, Rodger O’Connor was on a mission to install renewables in his Co Cork new build. The questions was, which ones. How did you go about doing the energy calculations?
My wife Louise and I wanted a spacious modern house which was a challenge from an energy point of view but we still managed to design it with the usual bells and whistles to make it nearly zero energy: we have a fairly compact footprint, the house is angled so as to make the most of the sun’s free heat, and it is well insulated and airtight. I mostly relied on the Passive House Planning Package (PHPP) and referenced the Dwellings Energy Assessment Procedure (DEAP) which is the software you have to use to prove compliance to the ROI building regulations. PHPP delves into much more detail than DEAP so it’s more useful as a modelling tool.
I had data from our previous home, two years’ worth, thanks to a device I had on the electricity meter that recorded our usage. The challenge of course was to adapt this data from an older property with an oilfired boiler to our new notional home. Our energy use is also increasing as the children grow so I did my best to match the kind of demand we would have with the kinds of renewables we might install to meet it. I also considered reducing energy use at source and even pondered not having a dryer (I lost that battle as we have two small girls) and having the machines set to night time mode. Despite efforts such as these, I knew that realistically we would be mostly needing power in the evenings.
How did you choose between systems? My initial dream was to live completely off grid, without having to draw on any external energy source to run the house. That turned 112 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
out to be beyond the scope of our budget but it is still a long-term aim. The way I saw it, I had three options. Hydro, which harnesses the energy from a running water source such as a stream, wind or photovoltaics (PV). Ideally I’d have all three, wind is great in the winter, PV best in summer (although the hotter the panels get, the worse they perform) and hydro provides a nice constant steady base load. They each have difference profiles; day versus night and summer versus winter. Wind is good in winter but not so much in summer for example so the challenge of how to store excess electricity when you don’t need it was always going to rear its head. The cost of installing all three systems would have been prohibitive so I had to balance cost and practicality. I gave priority to the system that had to be installed at the time of building, and that
PV / PROJECT
airtightness intact. The heat pump therefore supplies hot water and heating year-round with any excess from the PV panels diverted into the hot water tank – thermal energy storage as opposed to a battery (chemical storage).
How did the cost comparisons stack up?
was PV. I had worked on projects in the past where solar thermal panels were installed and in my experience, some contractors doing it retroactively blindly screw the fixings down. Quality control is much easier with a new build in that regard. I set up the system so that the house will be able to take in power from hydro and wind in the future, and all that was required was an electricity connection in the shed. We also have it set up so we can add a battery when funds allow. I think it’s a good idea to envision what your dream system is as a whole, and then add to it as you can afford to. So that was the electricity side of our energy requirements, but I also had to think about generating hot water and to a lesser extent, heat. The house is designed so that we only really need the heat turned on in the depths of winter, for about two to three months of the year. On average if you look at the calculations, through solar gain the house produces as much energy as we need to run it. The problem is that the analysis shows overheating in the summer and an energy deficit in the winter. Because I also needed hot water we chose a heat pump, although we did consider a wood pellet or wood burning stove, with electric radiators in the bathrooms and hallway. The practical implications of stoking the stove or keeping pellets humidity-free did put us off as well. It also means more detailing to keep the
Compared to oil or gas, a heat pump is more expensive in a new build, even if you give it a life expectancy of 15 years. The capital cost is quite high and because the house is low energy, the boiler can run the house more cheaply over that period of time. To be honest I think 10 years is a more realistic figure for the lifetime of an air to water heat pump in Ireland because all or part of the unit is outside, open to the elements. Regardless of where you are in Ireland, it’s a coastal climate and that takes a toll on the materials. That’s why I chose a split system whereby part of the unit is indoors. I did look into Bio LPG boilers (off-grid gas) but at the time it was only available for commercial applications; oil was a no-no from my point of view, not just on environmental grounds but also due to the risk of spillage.
Do the PV panels supply enough energy to power the heat pump?
I think they will but we haven’t completed that energy analysis yet, which will include information about how well the heat dump or thermal energy storage actually works. I was adamant I wasn’t going to allow my excess electricity to spill onto the grid for free, and to make sure that wouldn’t happen you need a device that communicates when to divert the energy to the hot water tank. We now have the heat pump linked to the PV panels with an interface so they can talk to one another.
IN BRIEF Moved in: September 2019 House profile: 240sqm A2 energy rating built to passive house standard (NZEB) PV panels: 3 kWp at cost of €5,000 Heat pump: 8 kW at cost of €9,000 Associated electrical costs (e.g. pulse meter and wiring): €400 Yearly hot water and heating bill (estimate) with excess energy of PV panels fed to hot water tank: €300
an ecosystem; if you pick from a brand try to stick to their interfaces and products. Generally speaking, the suppliers I contacted were very reticent to share any data. I found it impossible to find out how much electricity their PV panels actually produced. It’s all well and good to have a figure of two, three or four kilowatts peak, what that measures is the nominal power as measured in a lab. Actual statistics of how much power you can expect a panel to produce was actually really hard to find. The only data source I managed to come across was an 18MW array that Butler’s Chocolates installed at their factory; I used that information and, based on what I expected we would be using as a family, specified a 3kW array. During the month of March, the panels were hopping. One day we made five times more energy in a day than I had assumed in my original calculations. I’m delighted!
What issues cropped up with suppliers? That interface, which tells the PV panels when to divert excess energy to the hot water tank, was part of the original specification but when it came to installing the system, our supplier said they couldn’t. We managed to get it done in the end, simply because I insisted and installed it a few months after moving in. This is why it can be helpful to buy into
SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 113
O P I N I O N / B AT T E R Y S T O R A G E
So near yet so far Advances in electric vehicles and battery storage are encouraging but we’re a good deal away from a widescale roll out. Words: Patrick Waterfield
O
ver the past couple of years, advances in battery storage technology have focused on vehicle to grid technology, known as V2G, whereby power stored in Electric Vehicle (EV) batteries is sold back to the grid. The idea being that if you can charge your EV at off-peak times and are prepared to sell power back to the grid when it’s under strain, then you could potentially charge your EV for free. Utility firms see not only a huge potential new market, but an opportunity to help them balance the power supply grids, which in some areas are reaching saturation point. The idea of using domestic battery storage as virtual power stations is not new – the problem has been lack of uptake of the domestic batteries. The potential to integrate EV batteries with domestic supply (and thus the grid) as well as renewable energy systems where installed, could have a triple whammy effect of increasing the utilisation of the renewables, making EVs more cost-effective and also helping to balance the grid. A typical car is on the road for less than 10 per cent of the day – the rest of the time an EV battery could be used to balance out swings in supply and demand, especially as more large-scale generation comes from intermittent solar and wind power. Furthermore, as the number of EVs increases, the likelihood increases of people arriving home from work and plugging their EVs in just at the time of day when electricity demand is starting to peak. One issue with V2G is that constantly charging and discharging shortens the lifespan of the battery, which can account for a third of the cost of an EV. However, proponents of V2G maintain that the technology could reduce the overall cost of EV ownership by 25 per cent, without harming the battery, by effectively offsetting running costs, though the 114 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
‘At the moment we are still probably more likely to opt for an EV out of environmental concern than for economic reasons...’ economics would be more favourable in countries with a larger share of intermittent renewable energy. Another issue is standardisation of charging connectors – remember VHS and Betamax? – or, more recently, the unsuccessful attempt to standardise mobile phone leads in Europe? There is no one
standard for V2G. So, how would the cost/benefit stack up in UK and Ireland? A typical liquidfuelled family car costs just under £20,000, with an EV equivalent just over £25,000. So there’s no getting away from the fact that EVs are more expensive to buy. However fuel costs of EVs are lower
B AT T E R Y S T O R A G E / O P I N I O N
GRANTS
Government incentives
than the petrol/diesel equivalent – about 3.7p per mile compared to about 14.2p. With an annual mileage of 12,000, the fuel cost per year is about £444 (ca €500) for the EV. Vehicle tax is usually lower (zero for EVs in NI, €120/year in ROI) though insurance tends to be higher. When it comes to factoring in ‘free’ electricity for the EV, the cost benefit is influenced by the fact that fuel costs for the EV may be only around 5.5 per cent of overall running costs, whereas for the petrol car they could be about 19 per cent. With depreciation and servicing and tyres currently having similar costs in each case, the overall running cost of the EV still works out cheaper, though not hugely so. So would V2G make a difference to the uptake of EVs? Possibly, but more would need to be done to increase the number of EVs in the first place – V2G seems unlikely to do that on its own at the present. Currently there do not appear to be any electricity suppliers in NI or ROI offering V2G options even though there is a supplier in the UK. We are therefore still probably more likely to opt for an EV out of environmental concern than for economic reasons. As for integrating EVs with domestic battery storage, despite the progress made in the field of EVs, including longer charge times and a significant buy-in in some countries (e.g. Norway) and V2G, a widescale roll-out is still some way away.
It seems we are lagging behind some other parts of Europe in encouraging the uptake of EVs. In Norway the adoption of electric vehicles, particularly zero emission vehicles, has been driven by government policy since 1990; EVs and hybrids now represent nearly two thirds of new Norwegian vehicles. In the UK EVs and hybrids represent 10 per cent of new car sales, in ROI close to 20 per cent. In the Republic, SEAI is offering grants based on the purchase price of the car. Cars costing between €14,000-€15,000 can receive €2,000 while those costing over €20,000 can receive €5,000, with a sliding scale in between. EVs costing less than €14,000 do not attract a grant. In addition, up to €600 can be claimed towards an EV charger for owners of eligible new or second hand EVs (replacing the previous ESB Ecars scheme which provided free home chargers). An additional incentive is reduced charges on toll roads. Up until November 2018, grants of £4,500 and £2,500 were available in NI for electric and hybrid cars respectively. However, in a move which astounded the motor industry, the grant has now been reduced to £3,500 for EVs and scrapped altogether for hybrids. Meanwhile, the UK government was reportedly baffled by the poor uptake of grant funding from the Department for Transport’s OnStreet Residential Chargepoint Scheme. More than a year after its launch, only five councils in the entire UK had received funding from the scheme.
SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 115
OPINION / GARDEN
Gasping for it Water is by far the gardener’s most precious resource; here’s how to use it. Words: Fiann Ó Nualláin
W
ater is life. A seed cannot germinate without the presence of water, the emerging seedling cannot stand up straight without water creating a fluid spine (turgor pressure), its roots cannot draw in minerals and nutrients from the soil without moisture facilitating absorption, and without transpiration opening up plant pores in the leaves and allowing gaseous exchange, then a plant cannot efficiently photosynthesise and grow. In other words a poorly watered plant is not just a stressed plant. Its life is under threat and it is in your hands! Melodrama aside, here are my caretaker tips to a hydrated paradise.
How to water
A rookie mistake is to water the surface area of the plant (the leaves) and not the ground it grows in. For success you have to get to the root zone; you can spritz the foliage but in the main aim for the soil. Think in two stages: an initial pass with the hose or watering can to moisten and open up the barrier layer to the root zone, then a dedicated application where the water is not streaking away over an impermeable hardness but sinking in, expanding out, filling up the pockets of air and saturating the root zone. Efficiently getting the water to where it needs to be is the best conservation of all. Also know that plants love a good soaking; they will wait for it. Don’t mess around with a wave of the watering can or hose every day, there’s nothing in that for them. No. Take your time and make it worth it. A good soak once a week is better than a daily sprinkle. That said in high summer be vigilant. Any plants in need will be grateful for any source of water – they won’t mind if it is from the tap, the water butt or the basin you’ve just soaked your feet in.
When to water
I’m not talking about when the leaves to go all limp – no, I mean time of day. 116 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
Watering early in the morning, before the sun becomes intense is the preferred choice. The cooler morning will slow evaporation and your plants can absorb more of the water that gets on to their leaves without any potential scorch damage but even more importantly the water at the soil level has more time to soak down too. The next best option is evening; again when it is a bit cooler and the sun’s intensity is not quickly evaporating everything. That’s between 5-8pm in the summer so providing your plants with several hours to soak up water into their
'A rookie mistake is to water the surface area of the plant and not the ground it grows in...'
GARDEN / OPINION
system before nightfall and potential chills or other complications. Damp foliage left over night is a potential hazard for picking up some fungal problems, including sparking mildew and blight spores. That said if you use a drip hose and only get the roots then you could potential night water, even at midnight.
Turn off the tap
Harvested water is so much better for our gardens than tap. In the treatment process, chemicals including chlorine and fluoride are added and yes there are arguments as to whether they are beneficial or not to human health but certainly they can inhibit how plants absorb minerals and thus not only grow but become chlorotic or inefficient at photosynthesis, yellowing in the process. Yellow, by the way, is a honing beacon to many sap sucking pest species. Depending on your location, your tap water may also be hard (mineral dense) or soft (mineral deprived) and be of a pH not conducive to healthy plants. If you love how handy it is to use the tap, at least allow the water to stand overnight for both pH and additives to diminish in intensity and bonding.
Free water
Unfortunately climate change doesn’t mean warmer weather for us. It just means
It's better not to use tap water but if you are, let the water sit overnight before watering your plants
more rain in all the wrong parts of the year – we have already been witnessing an increase in droughty summers and soggy winters over the past decade. One way to counteract this is to collect free water when you actually need it. A pond in itself is a great water catchment reservoir but it will evaporate in the heat and unless you plan to cover it with a tarp you might not get as far with it as adding a few rain barrels on to your
guttering. It is estimated that more than 24,000 litres can be collected from the average household roof over a year. That’s before you add a little guttering and downpipe to your shed or boundary wall to siphon into a barrel. Whatever way or however much you choose to harvest water, it all contributes to less draining of tap supply reservoirs and so less water treatment and a lower carbon footprint. When it comes to filtration systems there are several hose attachment types that won’t break the bank, based upon enclosed elements that de-chlorinate and balance pH. There are some that also soften water and boost its capacity to soak into the roots quicker which means more bang per watering can.
Grey water
A pond is a natural water source
On the bigger eco-front there is the possibility of a grey water filtration system where dirty water from your washing machine, dishwasher and shower are collected and filtered for later use to wash the car, flush the loo or water the garden. There are several systems including closed loop but the most popular ones do feature a (large) filtration pond filled with plants that thrive off the wastewater nutrients and skim off the excess chemistry and particles, delivering a cleaned supply, downstream as it were. How effective that is at removing all fabric softener, glass sheening agents and shampoo ingredients from making its way into the water table of your garden is open to debate but a switch to eco detergents will great improve the system. The ponds can all be done aesthetically, and who wouldn’t love a water feature? SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 117
DESIGN / TINY HOMES
Big ideas
More photographs available at selfbuild.ie
What it takes to build a tiny home on wheels, by a self-builder in Co Down who’s been through the process. Words: Michael Rauch
M
y partner Alex and I dream of buying our own land to build an eco home, and the choice to live in a tiny house was a step in that direction. The cost – in our case between £15,000 and £20,000 depending on how much off-grid technology we incorporate – gave us the opportunity to save. And being on wheels, we’d be able to move the house around as needs be. In 2019 the first step was to buy a second hand 6.2mx2.4m trailer frame which had a low deck height, so that we would have enough room for a mezzanine loft inside but without making the whole structure too tall for towing. To transport the house with a large 4x4 we had to factor in size and overall weight of 3.5 tonnes.
Design phase
Neither of us had any building experience before starting the project so I researched the topic like crazy, watching endless videos of how others built theirs online which helped me understand the steps involved and the reasoning behind each decision. I then set about modelling my design up on 3D software. The great part about building it ourselves is that we have been able to custom make it for us. The kitchen area is large and the bathroom smaller as we really love to cook and bake. Building an overhang to extend the loft means we can easily fit in a king size bed. Currently the sleeping loft is located above the kitchen, giving the living room area a full height ceiling; with hindsight I would swap it around and put the living area below the loft. The extra height would be more useful in the kitchen for storage, and you tend to stand in a kitchen and sit in a living area. In general I chose techniques and materials which made the most sense to me and which were manageable for a novice builder. For example even though 118 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
TINY HOMES / DESIGN
you can build with light weight structural materials such as steel frames, timber was a lot easier to work with and easier to make changes with down the line. Because we couldn’t really afford all new windows we started collecting secondhand ones and designed the wall construction around them. They actually weren’t too bad to install, even though I was convinced I was going to break one! Some of the higher windows and the roof window were a challenge because we had no stairs at the time of installation so it involved a lot of lifting and holding while standing on a ladder. The double French doors were also a bit tricky to adjust, to get them to close correctly. Just because I had never done it before, it took a bit of guesswork.
permission for anything that you will live in full time (even a caravan). I have no idea what their reaction would be to something like this. They may grant temporary permission for it, it depends how they see it I guess. In the future, if/when we build a more permanent house, we will be able to get temporary permission to live in it on site for the duration of the build easily enough (like a lot of people do in mobile homes). In the US homes are built on trailers to get around planning laws, but
this makes no difference over here. We are just doing it for flexibility and because we have no land to build on and wanted to start straight away.
The envelope
We got the trailer reconditioned, then built the timber framing onto it. The buildup for the floor consisted of a twin-walled polypropylene plastic sheeting on the bottom to protect from water/ debris, a waterproof breathable membrane for extra protection, 70mmx45mm timber
Project management
We didn’t have anyone advising us, which can be a bit daunting and a lot of pressure to be honest, but it forced us to really learn everything for ourselves and from our own mistakes. I had a quick read through the build code but decided that there wasn’t any point in trying to follow it. The structure is more of a boat than a house so going out of my way to try and meet it didn’t make sense to me although I took a few things from it like alternative escape routes and fire safety. In terms planning permission, I haven’t approached the council. I’m no expert but from what I have read you need planning SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 119
DESIGN / TINY HOMES
TOP 5 TIPS
House on wheels
1 2
Get stuck in. My design (and pretty much everyone else's I have talked to who has done one) is quite different from the initial model I created. Things just change as the build progresses, so don't get caught up on spending a lifetime designing every detail. Be open to adjustments throughout the build. Don’t fret. If you are doing a DIY self-build, don't be overwhelmed or worried that you don't know all the skills which go into building a home. I had never built anything before this, and each job was the first time I had done it. The internet is an amazing resource for learning; if you have a specific question ask on dedicated Facebook groups or reach out to people who have documented their builds on social media. I got a lot of great knowledge and ideas this way. Expect some things to go wrong and for there to be some headaches, because there will be!
3
Invest in the tools you will need. I would invest in more tools at the start of the process; things like a table saw, planer/thicknesser, more wood working tools etc. would have sped the build up a lot and made certain parts much easier. It would also have allowed me to repurpose salvaged materials more, which would have compensated for the cost of the tools and maybe given the interior some more character with older materials.
4
Buy a new trailer. We used a second hand trailer for our base and got it refurbished to try and save a little money as the trailer is usually the biggest cost of a tiny house on wheels. However by the end of it, the refurbishment cost brought it up to the cost of a new purpose built trailer which is about £4k+. So if I were to do it again I would just start with a new trailer as there are a few suppliers of purpose built tiny house trailers in the UK. Or if I was on a very tight budget I would get a used trailer and do all the work to it myself. If I had the budget I would also have bought new windows specific to my design instead of working around second hand ones I picked up. Although I'm pretty happy with how the windows turned out.
5
Know the road towing restrictions. If you follow a design from the US, it is likely to be too heavy. New Zealand has very similar towing restrictions for size and weight as the UK, which is a maximum of 7m long and 3.5t weight, and since the tiny house movement is quite large over there, it's a good place to look for design inspiration. There isn’t really a maximum height, just suggestions, but no more than 4m is recommended. Also in the UK the trailer needs to be 'type approved' if it's custom made. Since we bought a used one it already was. Some people have said you are probably meant to get it type approved again once you build on it, but I don't think we will bother as it will only be moved a few times.
120 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
framing laid over trailer joists, 70mm PIR rigid foam insulation, 18mm OSB on top as subfloor. At this stage I realised the insulation boards were difficult to cut to exact sizes so chose the more malleable option of insulation that comes in rolls for the walls and roof. The timber framed walls sit on top of this (each one was built and raised up individually) and are bolted down through to the bottom of the trailer. The wall framing is 70mmx45mm rough sawn timber, screwed as opposed to nailed to give a better hold when subject to vibrations in transit with diagonal metal strapping bands. When we ordered the timber we didn’t get treated stuff, we bought a few tins of low VOC (volatile organic compound) wood preserver and applied it to the frames when we built them. The internal walls are lined with tongue and groove plywood, glued to the wall framing to give the whole structure more strength when moving. For the insulation we preferred to use something natural as air quality was a concern in such a small space and basic wall construction. Our choice was between hemp and sheep’s wool insulation; we chose the former which was a bit cheaper. The roof has 100mm quilt insulation made from recycled plastic bottles – it’s cheap and light weight to keep the centre of gravity low. The roof rafters are tied down to the walls with brackets so there is an unbroken connect from the trailer to the roof. The external cladding is corrugated steel – this was mainly a practical choice
TINY HOMES / DESIGN
PROJECT DETAILS TO DATE 3D free design software: SketchUp, sketchup.com Trailer: Secondhand trailer from Facebook group approx. £2k. Repurporposing by DF Engineering in Saintfield, Co Down, includes wax and lights plus labour, approx. £2.2k Openings: windows bought on gumtree.com and other secondhand sources; total including trims approx. £1k Structure: Correx sheeting, cordek.com from NI Plastics niplastics.com, Xtratherm floor insulation, xtratherm.ie; wall insulation Thermafleece Natrahemp; roof insulation Thermafleece Supasoft, thermafleece.com from Celtic Renewables, celticrenewables.com; all timber from S G Jones & Son, Lisburn, sgjonesandson.business.site; steel cladding from Befab, befab.com; total cost for structure approx.£4k Electrics: Victron Easysolar inverter, victronenergy. com, solar panels, four 225Ah 6V batteriesplus cabling and switches; total electrics approx. £3k Interiors and plumbing: secondhand kitchen, paint, bathroom; total approx. £2k Stove: Custom-made by The Fireweaver, thefireweaver.com (£380) Flue: full system including Dektite flexible flashing, deks.co.uk, from glowing-embers.co.uk at cost of £390 Tools and supplies: Ray Graham’s, B&Q, Screwfix and others, approx. £1.2k
'The great part about building it ourselves is that we have been able to custom make it for us...'
due to its light weight, low cost and ease of installation. However we really like the look of it now that it’s on.
Heating and hot water
The tiny house is very easy to heat with the wood burning stove and we both love the homely feeling a fire gives. In the depths of winter having it on for a few hours
provides enough heat for the day; having it on all the time would make the space too hot. We usually light the fire for a few hours in the morning and sometimes a few hours in the evening. Probably on average we only used about six to eight logs a day (the standard sized ones you see in the nets at garages) at the height of winter. Most
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DESIGN / TINY HOMES
of the time it’s warmer here than at our parents’ houses! I thought it would get very cold at night in wet and windy weather and had expected it to heat up and cool down quickly and easily, but it’s actually easy to keep warm and toasty. We chose a twin wall flue for the stove (better draw as it keeps the flue gases hotter) but even though it is an insulated flue it still gets quite hot so the hole in the roof is quite a bit bigger than the flue to allow for the required clearances. The flue is sealed to the roof with flexible flashing which was pretty easy to install by following the manufacturer’s instructions. For ease of transport I made sure the last join in the flue was at about roof level so when we are moving it I can just climb up and disconnect the top part and then nothing really sticks up to get hit by low trees etc. To get us moved in we bought ourselves a little gas camping cooker but we actually do a lot of cooking on top of the stove, which I didn’t expect. We light the stove in the morning anyway so we just make our porridge on top to save gas. For hot water we boil it in kettles on the stove (and gas cooker sometimes), but we shower in the main house. We haven’t kitted out the
122 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
bathroom yet so even if we had running hot water we’d have to use the one in the house. Eventually our hot water will come from a tankless instant gas boiler so we are only heating the water we need. We will install the gas bottle(s) outside and a gas regulator will be mounted directly to the side of the house. So when we move we just have to disconnect the bottles and move them to the new location. The gas line will run straight into the water heater nearby, and also under the house and up into the kitchen for the cooker. Running water is contained in the house currently so there are no exposed pipes but I am a little concerned about the gas boiler which will be mounted inside the ‘utility box’ at the front of the house. That said, it is insulated so there should be no issue with frost damage. There is a system which I have seen another couple use for a tiny house which is a home biogas generator. Your food scraps and toilet waste go into it and it digests them and produces cooking gas and liquid fertiliser. It’s a pretty small system and I really like the idea of it. It has a minimum operating temperature though and the climate here is a bit cold so you would have to build a little greenhouse
round it and maybe a heat source...it could be more hassle than it’s worth!
Electricity
Power is provided by a 1.2kW solar panel array which consists of four 300W panels, each roughly 1mx1.5m in size. We have 225Ah of battery storage at 24V but as the whole house is wired to 240V like a regular house, all the power from the batteries runs through a 1600W inverter. We specifically chose a small inverter to avoid drawing loads of power, since it will be on most of the time. The batteries are in an insulated box to prevent damage. There is enough space on the roof for the panels but having them on the ground gives us more flexibility for positioning them and makes cleaning easier. Once the house is moved into a more permanent location I will probably build a better mount for the panels, hopefully on its own trailer, which can be tilted to adjust to the sun’s location in different seasons. Unfortunately this setup was not quite enough for the long dark weeks we had in winter, from about November to January, when we were connecting to the mains once or twice a week. The only things running on solar are a small fridge, a few fans, LED lights, and charging devices as well as running the odd appliance and eventually the pump for rainwater. That said by the time February rolled around, despite the snow, the longer days meant more sun and that is proving enough to supply us with electricity. We will definitely have far more energy than we can use in summer!
TINY HOMES / DESIGN
Next winter we will have to decide how to handle the dark weeks: either increase the solar setup, have a backup generator hooked up, or try to reduce our demand more. The fridge is by far the biggest draw, and ours is a pretty old one, so we could maybe buy a new efficient one.
Water
We plan to have the house set up for an off-grid situation by collecting rainwater and storing it in a large tank, then pumping it through a series of filters before entering the house. If we end up parking it somewhere near a water outlet we will probably just connect into that instead. At the moment the system is set up for hooking up to the mains but we don’t have it connected as the horses in the yard we are in would step on the hose line. So we just have a big container we manually fill with water and a large countertop water filter for drinking. It’s a bit basic but it will seem like luxury when we get running water! Rationing makes you appreciate how much you use. Grey water will flow into a small soak away style bed where it will be naturally cleaned and allowed to percolate. At the moment the only grey water coming from the house is from the kitchen sink; it just drains into a container under the house and we empty it into the compost pile from the horse stables. We are careful to use eco friendly and natural cleaning products that will not harm the environment. We will also most likely install a composting toilet which will save us water and also eliminate the need to deal with wastewater. We are currently using the toilet in the main house.
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GARDEN / SWIMMING PONDS
Back to Nature Want to avoid the chemicals, costs, maintenance and appearance of a swimming pool? How about creating your own magical aquatic haven? Words: Andrew Stanway
|O
ur Continental cousins have long been into their natural swimming ponds, perhaps because many European countries have longer, hotter and, most of all, predictable summers when they want to cool off. But even in northern European and Scandinavian countries where the weather isn’t that great, swimming in freshwater ponds and lakes has been popular for centuries. The Austrians and Germans started making these ponds popular in the 1980s. The UK and Ireland haven’t yet embraced the natural swimming pond in large numbers but these leisure features are becoming more popular as people think about being more ‘green’ and combining a love of nature with the joys of swimming outside. After all, the average swimming pool is hardly known for its green credentials. The embodied energy involved with excavation, structural concrete and steel, chemicals, water usage, heating and maintenance is considerable. A ‘natural lake filled with rain water’ seems much more appealing.
Of course, a modern swimming pond is much much more than a hole in the ground with rainwater …. That would be a pond you might see in the countryside; teeming with wildlife, full of silt, covered in a blanket of weed in the summer and full of chemicals that have run off neighbouring cultivated land. There are many different approaches to building a swimming pond but generally speaking you need to start by digging the desired-size hole, preferably about 2m deep and as large as you can reasonably make it – at least 120sqm. This deep part is where you’ll swim. You then need to create a smoothbottomed structure (lined base) that can can easily be sucked clean from 124 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
Estonian Saunas via unsplash.com
Build up
SWIMMING PONDS / GARDEN
Keeping the pond clean
The real work in keeping a swimming pond clean is done by the regeneration zone where aquatic plants and their roots act as a giant filter bed to purify the water. Most commercial companies fill a new swimming pond with domestic mains water, because they need to get the job done. But this water is rich in phosphates. Though harmless to drink, these encourage the growth of pond life you won’t want. A commercial set-up will usually have filters to remove these phosphates, especially if you’re planning on topping your pond up with more tap water over
dry summers. However this is rarely necessary because in Ireland rainfall exceeds evaporation by a factor of about two. Dry spells can lead to a 20cm drop, which rain will replenish. The best source of water is, of course, rain. But in reality, you’ll need some patience if nature is to fill your pond. It may also become soiled long before it reaches the level of the regeneration zone where the natural filtering and treatment provided by your plants can do their job. If you have a well, this could be the best source of water, though unless yours is very productive this, too, could take some time to fill up your swimming pond. Once your swimming pond is full, you can top it up with rainwater collected from your roof. Rainwater harvesting tanks are readily available but this water source may be contaminated (bird droppings and
USING YOUR POND Even without heating, most people find that they can swim comfortably from June well into September. Natural swimming pond temperatures usually stay between 19degC and 25degC once the summer season starts. Always shower before using the pond, as cosmetics can adversely affect the natural water balance. Of course, weeing in the pond is a no-no as urine nitrogen will promote unwanted plant growth! Do a thorough clean-up each spring when algal growth shows – usually as floating mats – with a hand net as wind will blow these to the edge. Water plants rarely need attention.
www.organicpools.co.uk
time to time. Some designs include a silt pump outlet in the base. Skimmers can automatically work their magic on surface debris and there are now robots that crawl around the bottom cleaning up as they go. Then you need to create a similar-sized area around the deep hole that’s very much shallower, typically 10cm deep. This is where you’ll grow all your plants that’ll act as the main treatment/regeneration zone to keep the whole thing clean and fresh. This integrated vegetated wetland area can be planted with a wide range of water-loving species such as reeds, lilies, sedges, rushes, helophyte (aquaticemergent) marsh adapted plants. Convection will allow the water to circulate naturally enhancing the quality of the main swimming area; direct solar radiation of the open water determines water temperature, usually to a depth of 1m. You can install solar panels similar to what you would have in a normal swimming pool for heat; in that case insulate the bottom and sides of your swimming area. Water will naturally circulate through the regeneration zone; if there is a separate area a circulation pump may be used. A swimming pond’s water is kept in place by a suitable liner; butyl is usually guaranteed for 25 years. A high density polyethylene membrane will last longer, and geotextile lining services can provide such advice and installation. If the soil type is clay rich, it may be sufficient if ‘worked’ but will need to have a sand overlay in the shallower sections to avoid clouding the water. As with any deep-water feature in your garden, it’s vital to have the whole area fenced off to keep children safe. Thinking of children: it’s a good idea to design your swimming pond with a pebble or gravel beach so little children can easily and safely get in and out, under adult supervision.
'The UK and Ireland haven’t yet embraced the natural swimming pond in large numbers but these leisure features are becoming more popular as people think about being more ‘green’ and combining a love of nature with the joys of swimming outside...'
SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 125
www.organicpools.co.uk
GARDEN / SWIMMING PONDS
wind-borne debris) so direct rainfall and patience is the best approach. An overflow will be required to allow water to drain whilst keeping the regeneration zone covered. After a few months the natural ecosystem of such a pond then maintains itself thanks to micro-organisms and invertebrates, most invisible to the naked eye such as daphnia. It’s the need to preserve and encourage these vital organisms that means no chlorine or other disinfectants are ever used in a natural swimming pond. Remember that it is vital to make a swimming pond deep enough so that any sediment that does occur – and it will – can’t easily be stirred up, making swimming unpleasant and in some poorly designed/maintained circumstances even dangerous.
Things to avoid
Trees might look attractive and natural around a swimming pond, but if they are too close the leaves could cause problems when they fall and rot in the water. The planted area will also need sunlight to thrive, so trees that cast shade won’t help with this either. Tree roots can also be a 126 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
hazard for your concrete structure and pond’s lining. Garden fertilisers should not be used anywhere near the pond, and it’s also sensible to ensure that however your land lies you keep any rainwater run-off away from your pond. The secret of a lovely, clear swimming pond is to keep the level of nutrients in the water as low as possible. Fish are to be kept away, unless additional filtering is provided. Wildlife will however become naturally established and may include newts, frogs and small fish such as sticklebacks (introduced by visiting birds), plus a diversity of invertebrates including water beetles and dragonflies. Coping with high water tables can be a challenge which will require professional help. If you already have a natural pond in the proposed location, it is best to deepen the swimming area and create an optimal helophyte area. In such situations it is best to avoid an artificial liner as groundwater pressure, especially in winter, can push up the liner, causing serious damage.
Pumps and filters
Wind, water-convection currents and swimming itself all help to circulate the water. A top-end professionally-made pond
may have circulation pumps (with filters), as in a normal swimming pool. And this is where you’ll want to start your thinking and consultations. Do you want as natural a swimming pond as possible, complete with some evidence of nature, or do you want the thing to be as close as possible to a conventional swimming pool? Depending on your answer you’ll need to take professional advice about how sparkling clean you want the thing to be. If you are looking for near-swimming-pool conditions you’ll end up with quite sophisticated (and expensive) filtration systems. A really high-quality, large, swimming pond can cost as much, or even more, than a normal swimming pool, up to a hundred thousand, but you can also go the DIY route, ideally with some experienced advice. Some companies will help you convert your existing swimming pool into a natural swimming pond. Additional information VESI Environmental Ltd, vesienviro.com Expert and enthusiast David Pagen Butler (organicpools.co.uk) has excellent teaching materials that can help you build your own DIY swimming pond.
SWIMMING POND / DIY
The rainwater pool Jan Alexander explains how she designed and built a cheap and cheerful rainwater harvesting system in Co Leitrim that doubles up as a swimming pool. What inspired you to build the pond?
I grew up in rural Australia where the only water available for our house came from large metal water tanks standing on raw-log stands. The gutter from the roof fed into a hole in the tank cover. There was a tap at the bottom of the tank which connected to water pipes into the house. It was gravity fed. A beautifully simple system. Living in a wet climate like we have in Ireland, when the house was being built in 2005, I insisted on having rainwater collection into the house. What I had in mind was something similar to the system I’d grown up with. When the house was being constructed, a rainwater harvesting company took on the project and installed a quite complicated and very expensive rainwater harvesting system, at around €8,000 including ozone filter system and pumps. Two huge plastic tanks were sunk underground; an immersion pump drove the water to a pump-house; it was then filtered using plastic sand/charcoal filters and an ozone system (for all the water, even to flush toilets) and then pumped to the house. There’s a mains connection too, to a group water scheme, as backup. This system was a failure from the start. The filters were frequently blocking and we would then have no water. This went on from 2005 until the big freeze of 2009 when the underground tanks split and that was the end of that system for good. I must have walked past the sunken place where the tanks lay a thousand times on my way to the fields, feeling the disappointment each time. Eventually the idea for a multi-purpose rainwater collection/plunge pond came into being. Both my partner and I swim in the nearby lake year-round and liked the idea of having our own small version of it. We found some beautiful books on natural swimming ponds such as Michael Littlewood’s A Guide to Building Natural
‘Living in a wet climate like we have in Ireland, when the house was being built in 2005, I insisted on having rainwater collection into the house...’
Swimming Pools (Schiffer, 2016) and I came across videos online. One of these showed a very basic system, a hole was dug in the ground and lined with a rubber membrane. It was a small plunge pond that was filled by a hose and wasn’t for rainwater harvesting, but the gaps seemed to all fill in, and eventually ours was built in July 2016. We SUMMER 2020 / SELFBUILD / 127
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put it near the house, just six feet away. We don’t have a fence around as there are no small children to worry about. As for the underwater tanks, I got them dug up, we filled the hole and use that space as a compost heap. The bright blue tanks are in a ditch at the moment but I plan to reuse them as a shelter to get out of the rain. We also have bright orange windows on the house and I think adding colour is just fun.
How did you build the pond?
A neighbour who drives a digger came for one day. He dug out the pond and used the soil to build up the bank behind it and to level around the edges. Two builders worked for five days. They did the blockwork around the deep section and stretched out the butyl rubber over the whole area. They thought out the whole project with me and we carefully studied the YouTube film together beforehand. We simply re-directed the pipes and electric cable from the original underground tank system, into the pond. We have a submersible pump that diverts the water to the pump-house, which is also home to our wood pellet boiler. From there the water goes into the showers, appliances and wc. We got rid of the charcoal filter and ozone system which took up a lot of space. The house has a very large slanting roof which collects an immense amount of rainwater. The pond filled in only a day or two from the water collected by the gutters. I don’t think this system would work anywhere else but Ireland where the rain is so plentiful! 128 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
Closed valve lever to local water scheme.
How do you filter the water?
It behaves very much like a lake whereby the plants do most of the filtering. There is life in the pond but it’s clean. The submersible pump has a fine mesh that prevents large items to go in, and because we don’t use it for drinking (we have a well) we don’t need to clean it any more than that. We’d originally put a sack around the immersible pump’s metal mesh but quickly realised it was unnecessary. The first year the water was a bit off colour and this year it’s like tap water – you can see the colour by looking in the toilet bowl as the porcelain is white. I’ve been adding plants little by little and they seem to be doing a really good job cleaning the water.
What kind of plants did you use and how did you ‘plant’ them in water? There are a lot of water plants you can use; around the pond I have a shallow section with some soil in which I’ve
Co-joined water tanks; the tank on the left is for the local water scheme
planted flag iris instead of reed and it’s taken very well. In the deeper parts I used a heavy paper bag with soil, and I shuffled rocks in it. Plants to avoid include bulrushes as their roots go through the rubber.
Does it overflow?
All the time. But as the pond is built near a field, which is full of gravel, the water gets soaked up by the ground without causing any trouble.
‘I’ve been adding plants little by little and they seem to be doing a really good job cleaning the water.’
SWIMMING POND / DIY
BUDGET
BENEFITS Using the pond Rainwater harvesting: For flushing toilets, shower, washing machine, other household water except drinking water, and greenhouse/ polytunnel. This feature does not function during a long spell of dry weather. The plants in the shallow area of the pond must be kept wet, so we keep an eye on the water level and if it is getting too low, we turn off the pond at the pump-house and turn on the local water supply. It is very simple – just two valves. Landscape feature and biodiversity: It looks gorgeous and is a lovely place to hang out. I’m slowly establishing the plants as I add clay/soil to the shallow area. Within no time of the pond filling we had beetles, frogs, and other creepy crawlies moving in. Birds drink and wash there in summer. It’s full of life. Plunge pond: Not everyone will go for this but I plunge into it after a hot shower in the mornings in winter. It gives me more energy and a great feeling of wellbeing throughout the day. And after working in the garden or on the land I often plunge in at the end of the day in summer. An instant refresher and always enlivening. Because it is only 10 metres from the back door, it only takes a few minutes. Access: We have recently added a stainless steel bridge and ladder for getting out after a swim and for maintenance of plants.
Pump taking water from co-joined tanks directly to the house.
At one stage, about a year after we built it, the pond began to leak. All of the shallow area dried out within a matter of days. I had to take up all the plants and put them in buckets. It would have been impossible to find the obviously tiny leak, even though we knew it was only in the shallow area. It was heart breaking and after a year or more of enjoying fresh rain-water showers, the project looked doomed. It sat like that for about a year. We had some professional landscape pondbuilders look at it and they had some ideas of how to remedy the situation, but their imagination didn’t stretch as far as rainwater harvesting. The pond would simply be a beautiful landscape feature. We left it. Then during one extremely heavy period of rain it fixed itself. That was about two years ago and it’s been full ever since. When drains block, they rarely unblock themselves and hopefully it will stay that way. We have absolutely no idea what caused the leak.
Overview of the cost elements
€
Plumbing: €180 Electrician: €120 Labour (five days): €560 Butyl Rubber: €1,200 Fleece Lining: €360 Blocks, mix and sand: €650
‘It behaves very much like a lake whereby the plants do most of the filtering. There is life in the pond but it’s clean...’
Does the pond ever freeze?
The past couple of winters haven’t been all that cold; all I did is put a couple of balls in the water to keep it moving and that’s been working. I do plan to put in a bubbler which will prevent it to freeze over if we get a Baltic winter.
Additional information Advisor: Feidhlim Harty at FH Wetland Systems, Ennis, Co Clare reeds@wetlandsystems.ie Deep water plants: Irish Water Plants, Strokestown, Co Roscommon, tel. 071 9633428
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SCRAPBOOK / OUTDOOR LIGHTING
Scrapbook: Moon & Me
Outdoor chandelier Young & Battaglia’s Ice Queen is a showerproof, low voltage, crystal chandelier for outdoor use completely coated in clear frosted rubber. mineheart.com
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These inviting IP43 portico wall lights by Davey Lighting are made of weathered brass.
Studio Slide, nedgis.com 130 / SELFBUILD / SUMMER 2020
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Luminous furniture
Making an entrance
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