House Design Online welcome the proposals from the European Parliament that all houses be ‘zero energy’ by 2019.
How practical is it and will full implementation ultimately cause any significant reduction in C02 emissions.
Leonardo Energy, the premier web site delivering a range of virtual libraries relating to electrical energy raises a few questions about the proposal. (more…)
All new buildings to be zero energy from 2019 say MEPs
All buildings built after 31 December 2018 will have to produce as much energy as they consume on-site, says the European Parliament, amending the 2002 Energy Performance of Buildings Directive. MEPs also call for more public investments in energy-efficient buildings. The legislative report was adopted by 549 votes in favour, 51 votes against and 26 abstentions.
By 31 December 2018 at the latest EU Member States must ensure that all newly-constructed buildings produce as much energy as they consume on-site – e.g. via solar panels or heat pumps, says a report drawn up by Silvia-Adriana Ticu (PES, RO). The Commission proposal did not include any specific target dates for zero-energy buildings. (more…)
Passive solar homes are designed to take advantage of local climates by maximizing the energy from the sun to heat and cool the home. In the northern hemisphere, the sun’s path passes through the southern sky on its daily trip west so a passive solar home has the highest percentage of windows is on the south side. The sun warms the home in the winter, and shading devices, such as overhangs, are designed to block the sun in the summer months to reduce the amount of cooling necessary. Passive solar design creates an energy efficient, comfortable home that reduces energy consumption that save money as well as valuable resources.Passive solar design can easily be incorporated into any architectural style given you have the proper site. Such design strategies have been used effectively for hundreds of years. There is a small increase in the cost of construction, but the home has lower annual energy and maintenance costs overall.There are many benefits to passive solar design for the homeowner and the environment. By reducing energy consumption, the homeowner can save money on utility bills and help prevent air pollution from electricity generating plants that burn fossil fuels. Passive solar design elements make a home comfortable year round while bringing in natural light from the increased glass on the southern side. Natural light reduces energy consumption and provides a visual connection to the outdoors.This book provides the fundamentals and components of passive solar design. A collection of floor plans that work in a variety of sites in North Carolina are also included in this book. The passive solar house plans in this book are affordable homes that are less than 1300 square feet and focus on energy efficiency.
An important starting point in designing and building your own home is a visit to self-build exhibitions which are happening in most towns.
The Self-Build -Entend & Renovate show is happening at the Galway Racecourse, Ballybrit.
There will alsobe a full programme of seminars delivered by professionals from the construction industry covering topics such as Building Energy Rating, Planning Permission and Passive Housing.
If you are thinking of building or renovating, the Seld Build shows which are held at different venues throughout Ireland over the year. You get the chance to talk to a number of suppliers in the one place. It’s also a good place to haggle.
If you have a sketch or a plan bring a few copies along.
For more information click … SELF BUILD – RENOVATE & EXTEND 2009
So what exactly is a “Passive House” or “Passivhaus”. How do we achieve “passive House Standard”. The concept is relatively new but, what was just a concept a few short years ago is quickly becoming a standard.
Passive house construction should be the only option for new houses being built in any region where houses require heating. Passive House is not however limited to construction in colder climates. (more…)
This business to business event is a must for anyone with a professional interest in or responsibility for energy use.
Registration for the Exhibition has now closed. You can register on the day. Entrance is free to the Exhibition on production of trade ID.
Now firmly established as the showcase event for Ireland’s energy sector, this year’s event follows the highly successful format of previous years. A cutting edge technology and trade exhibition with leading Irish and European product and service suppliers will showcase the very latest in energy innovation offering visitors a unique experience in seeking low energy solutions for buildings and the opportunity to engage those experts leading the energy sector both here and abroad. (more…)
House Design Online has launched a new service “Outside the Box TV”. As the page title suggests, we want to suggest ways to think outside the box when it comes to “design” and “architecture”. Many of the homes that we live in are no more than boxes, whose primary function is to contain us, supply us with bedding, water, food processing and sanitation. Of course there are many who lack even these essential elements but our homes, no matter how basic have many other roles which have been neglected in modern architecture.
Out of the Box TV features video clips of innovative green architecture and sustainable building design. The clips are from around the world.
Oustide the Box features Ireland’s first EcoVillage which is under development at Cloughjordan, Co Tipperary as well as some of the work of architects Peter Cowman, Joachim Mitchell and others who are challenging the preceptions of modern architecture.
for more click here OUTSIDE THE BOX
The crisis in the property business has deflected attention away from, what is the real crisis in housing. That is, that our homes are damaging the environment.
The introduction of building regulations that help to reduce the level of emissions from modern homes will reduce the mpact of our future housing stock.
There is however the issue of, what to do with our existing homes. Take the case of Ireland for example. It is estimated that 930,000 houses were built before the first ever building regulations in 1991, with approximately 1,000,0000 built before the 1996 building regulations. To put that in context: 350,000 houses have no wall insulation, 200,000 houses have no roof insulation and 350,000 houses have just single-glazed windows. (Source DoEHLG, 2002).
It is time, therefore to start thinking ‘retro’ and bring our existing housing stock up to an acceptable standard that achieves higher levels of comfort in our homes and less impact on the environment.
At the “See the Light 2009 conference” in Galway, Ireland, Professor Owen Lewis, CEO of SEI, launched new guidelines for upgrading existing dwellings in Ireland to the PassivHaus Standard.
The new guidelines provide practical advice on the utilisation of construction products, materials and techniques that minimize waste, improve air quality, increase energy efficiency and protect the environment. They also include two Irish case studies in retro-fitting existing houses to the PassivHaus Standard. The document entitles “Retrofitted Passive Houses can be downloaded HERE
House Design Online is delighted to welcome another new addition to the online community for green architecture.
The Green Palette provides an “Architectural Information Centre” where green architects can post details of their “Green Projects”.
The Site will ultimately act as a networking site for green architects.
Presently the site offers a portfolio of some excellent green architecture projects and a facility for green architects to upload details of their projects to the green projects gallery.
These very innovation green projects are mainly based in the United States of America at present but there is a facility for green architects anywhere in the world to upload.
For more information CLICK HERE
Venue: The Organic Centre in Rossinver, Co Leitrim
Course Date: 17 May 2009
Instructor: Phil Wheal
Course Fee: €90.00
When it comes to designing our gardens, many of us settle for creating spaces that rigidly define areas into vegetable, flowers, fruit etc. and then select landscaping plants from a limited range of uninteresting species used in conventional landscape design that do little either aesthetically or productively.
Blending elements of permaculture, organic and conventional garden design this course aims to help you plan and create a garden that integrates the practical and aesthetic, using a wide range of plants and materials. Whatever your budget or size of garden, from a smallholding to an urban backyard you can create a productive, low maintenance space that can fulfil the gardener and artist in you.
For More Information THE ORGANIC CENTRE
Venue: The Organic Centre in Rossinver, Co Leitrim
Course Date: 24 May 2009
Instructor: Peter Cowman
Course Fee: €90.00
Peter will explain various techniques including economics, planning, passive solar design, alternative energy systems, the use of timber and other natural materials as well as self build.
Peter is the originator of the “living architecture” concept and believes that “our homes engage us on a physical as well as an emotional level”.
Special attention will be paid to ‘mortgage-free housing options’
For More Information. Click THE ORGANIC CENTRE
Sustainable Design with a special focus on the creation of affordable, mortgage-free dwellings
Course Date:
16 May 2009
Instructor:
Peter Cowman
The workshop will allow students to understand the process involved in creating a sustainable house design. Peter will explain the inspiration behind the development of the Econospace, his design for a low-cost, self-buildable sustainable shelter. Then he will focus on the practical aspects of its construction.
Price: €90.00
For More Information CLICK HERE
How to build a Low-Cost, Planning-free, Sustainable Space In Your Back Garden
The Ecoshop, Meridian Point, Church Road, Greystones, Co. Wicklow, Ireland
(Beside SuperValu car park, 2 minutes from DART station & buses)
Course Will be presented by Architect/Teacher/Writer
Peter Cowman B Arch. Director of The Living Architecture Centre and originator of the ‘Living Architecture’ concept
For More Information Click Here
Converting your Home for Sustainable Living on a shoestring.
The Ecoshop, Meridian Point, Church Road, Greystones, Co. Wicklow, Ireland
(Beside SuperValu car park, 2 minutes from DART station & buses)
Course Will be presented by Architect/Teacher/Writer
Peter Cowman B Arch. Director of The Living Architecture Centre and originator of the ‘Living Architecture’ concept
FOR MORE INFORMATION CLICK HERE
Date: Monday 27th April, 2009
Location: Tipperary Institute, Thurles, North Tipperary
Price: Free but booking essential by Friday 17th of April
Booking: Tel. 01 674 5773
More Information CLICK HERE
Organised by Cultivate, Tipperary Institute, The Village, Irish Rural Link and Carnegie Trust
Supported by COMHAR, the National Sustainable Development Council, Dublin City Council, Department of Environment Heritage and Local Government, Sustainable Energy Ireland and the Carnegie Trust
Over the last couple of decades policy makers have tended to regard Irish rural communities as dependent on urban centers rather than as drivers for change. This conference brings together stakeholders from a wide variety of sectors to explore how we can work together to build resilience in a future of energy, climate and economic uncertainty.
What are the actions and positive changes we will need to make to enhance the quality of life of our communities? How will we provide livelihoods and strong rural economies? How will communities of the future provide for their food needs? What are the opportunities for sustainable transport and how will we heat and power our communities?
What do we do to engage people to address the ever more complex problems facing us today? All of this will require for us to work purposefully together to build resilience in these challenging times.
10.00 Registration
10.30 Opening
Representative from North Tipperary County Council
Conversation Starters
10.35 Towards Sustainable Rural Communities
Ciaran Lynch – Tipperary Institute
10.45 From Vulnerability to Resilience
Prof. Peader Kirby
10.55 Regional Food
Helen Lawrenson – Falkland Centre for
Stewardship, Scotland
11.05 Rural Transport
Seamus Boland – Irish Rural Link
11.15 Break
11.30 World Café (view YouTube clip about World Café)
“Given where we are at, what are you already doing to build resilience in your communities?”
12.00 World Café plenary
13.00 Lunch (not provided)
Conversation Starters
14.00 Entreprise, Livelihoods ands Jobs
Ben Whelan – Cultivate and the Village
14.10 The Power of One Community
Seamus Hoyne – Tipperary Energy Agency, Paul Allen, Centre for Alternative Technology and Zero Carbon Britain
14.30 Planning For Rural Sustainability
Bridget Kirwan and Catherine Corcoran,
Tipperary Institute
14.50 Education and Training for Local Resilience
Davie Philip, Cultivate and the Village, Michael Kenny NUIM
15.10 Break
15.20 World Café (view YouTube clip about World Café)
“How do we work together now to build resilience in our communities”
Beyond The Talking Shop
16.20 Making the Transition
Chris Chapman, Change Exploratory and Nick Wilding, Carnegie Trust
Good news from Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI) that minister Eamon Ryan has announced a scheme to promote micro-generation. These scheme will enable farm and home owners to sell electricity that they generate back to the grid. Among the measures is a guaranteed price of 19 cent per kilowatt hour of electricity produced. This competitive feed-in tariff will apply to the first 4,000 micro-generation installations countrywide over the next three years. Eligible installations include:
The scheme is a major initiative in reducing our dependence on imported fossil fuels.
Any who is designing their house at the moment should make provision for the installation of a micro-generator early on in the process.
It is possible with the proper design to build a house which uses less energy than it produces.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE SCHEME CLICK HERE
To see a news item on the scheme click below
Given the recent downturn in the building business, much more consideration is being focused on renovationg old houses. In the past few years the idea of renovating an older house was deemed troublesome as builders opted for the “Quick Build” and the “Easy Buck”.
In Ireland we have a rich tradition of renovating older houses as most people had basic construction skills. Many of our thatched cottages date back to the 19th century and evolved over time from one-roomed windowless hovels to the postcard-pretty cottages that dotted the countryside until the last few decades.
Renovating and conserving old houses is not just about the preservation of old houses but also of the preservation of old skills.
With the proper skills and training, old houses can be renovated to the maximum standards of energy-efficiency.
A public lecture will be held on the subject on Thursday March 17th in the Cultivate Centre, Essex Street West, Temple Bar, Dublin starting at 7pm, Cost: €25.00
To find out more CLICK HERE
The idea of volunteering to travel abroad to help to build houses for those who are less well off is an excellent way to learn basic building skills and appreciate the most basic need of a home.
There are a number of organisations who offer opportunities to travel abroad (or even at home) and help to build houses.
One such organisation is “Habitat for Humanity” who, since its founding in 1976 have built over 300,000 houses, providing shelter for more than 1 million people in nearly 90 countries around the world. A new Habitat house is completed somewhere in the world every 21 minutes.
The good news is that no construction experience is required! Habitat for Humanity just need energetic enthusiastic folks who are willing to learn and ready to pick up a hammer.
For more information, ring 01-6299660/3 or check out their website
If you want to discover a bit more about Passive Houses, it might be worth visiting the Ecobuild & Futurebuild Conference whis is taking place in Earl’s Court, London from Tuesday 3rd to Thursday 5th of March 2009.
For more information, please click here
On the first day of Ecobuild (Tuesday 3 March) BRE will be holding a free PassivHaus seminar in the Thames Lounge.
MORNING SESSION: Creating a PassivHaus culture
Chair Gavin Hodgson, PassivHaus UK, Managed by BRE
10:30 Making a case for PassivHaus: lessons for a crisis – Chris Herring, Director, Green Building Store/Chair, AECB
11:00 PassivHaus in the UK – where are we now? – Oliver Child, Senior Consultant, BRE
11:30 Case study: new materials in PassivHaus design – Howard Liddell, Principal, Gaia Architects
12:00 PassivHaus construction and the skills gap – Malcolm Bell, Professor of Surveying & Sustainable Housing, Leeds Metropolitan University
12:30 Close
AFTERNOON SESSION: There’s no haus like PassivHaus
Chair Justin Bere, Bere:Architects
12:45 Case study: the UK’s first completed PassivHaus – Justin Bere, Bere:Architects
13:15 Case study: PassivHaus is for everyone! – Andrew Bissell, Chair, Blue Property
13:45 PassivHaus retrofit – Mark Siddall, Senior Architect, Dewjo’c Architects Ltd
14:15 Learning from the Swedish experience – Henrietta Lynch, Associate, The Good Homes Alliance
The seminar is free to attend and as there is no pre-booking available for the seminar, attendance is on a first-come-first-served basis. The seminar will be held in the Thames Lounge.
For information on the Passive House Seminar click here
The reality at the moment is that the building of new houses has temporarily in any case ground to a halt. This has of course, implications for the economy but on the other hand offers us with new opportunities.
There has been no better time to focus on bringing our existing housing stock up to a proper standard.
Newer houses are now being built to higher standards of insulation and energy efficiency but if you built or bought prior to 2002, it is likely that your house is less energy efficient and therfore more expensive to run.
On February 8th last Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources Eamon Ryan and Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government John Gormley today launched the national insulation programme for economic recovery. The three-strand insulation programme will cut heating bills for householders, reduce carbon emissions and create thousands of jobs both directly and indirectly over the course of 2009.
TO VIEW PRESS RELEASE, CLICK HERE
The scheme is being administered by Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI) and to register your interest you must simple call 1850 927 000 or email hes@sei.ie.
Measure covered by the scheme include roof insulation, cavity wall insulation, Internal Wall Dry-lining, External Wall Insulation, High Efficiency Gas or Oil fired Boiler with Heating Controls Upgrade, Heating Controls Upgrade and a Before works and an After works assessment.
FOR FURTHER DETAILS, CLICK HERE
The The Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland (RIAI ) & the Simon Communities of Ireland have joined forces for a special fundraising initiative called the “RIAI Simon Open Door Day” – whereby participating Architects around Ireland will open their offices on Saturday 7th March 2009, to give members of the public an hour’s consultation with an Architect in return for a €75 donation to Simon.
This is an excellent opportunity to get an hour’s consultation with an architect and assist in the wonderful work of the Simon community in addressing the huge problem of homelessness in Ireland.
In order to arrange a consultation, you need to book before noon on Wednesday, March 4th and the easiest way to do this is to register online by clicking here
The Sustainability Institute based in Westport, Co. Mayo in the West of Ireland is running a number of both short and long courses during 2009, which are worth checking out for anyone planning to build or renovate in a sustainable manner during 2009 or beyond.
One and Two Day Courses Offered in 2009 include:
Longer Courses and Modules:
12 Month Practical Sustainability Course
Click here for more information
Irish Minister for the Environment. Heritage and Local Government, John Gormley T.D.has announced statutory planning guidelines for Sustainable Residential Development in Urban Areas. These Guidelines will act as a blueprint for the future sustainable development of Irish cities, towns and villages in the coming years.
The guidelines don’t, unfortunately make any provision for the involvement of the local community or the householders in the design process.
The guidelines which are a welcome development stipulate that new developments should:
TO DOWNLOAD THE NEW GUIDELINE – CLICK HERE
Hopefully you were not too badly hit by the worldwide downturn in 2008.
This is a time of year when many will be taking stock of the past year and planning for 2009. There is some good news on the construction front. From the 1st of January 2009 a BER (Building Energy Rating) certificate will be compulsory for all homes being sold or rented in Ireland. This is an important step in “future-Proofing” our housing stock and reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.
As the cost of building new houses continues to drop and as there is now a regulatory framework for better quality, more comfortable and healthier homes, there is now a real opportunity to design and build the house of your dreams. If you are building in 2009, it is important to consider “recession-proofing” you new home. Attaining a higher energy rating will result in lower fuel bills indefinitely. Information on Building Energy Rating
Here’s wishing everyone a Happy and a Cosy Christmas
An interesting article in today’s Irish Independent by John Kennedy suggests “it’s time for forward thinkers to embrace Ireland’s future economic edge: green energy.
The smartest minds in silicon valley have their eyes and wallets on a bigger prize…electricity!
Tech firms from google to IBM realise that smart energy usage, from homes to cars that can manage their own use of electricity and fuel, and even sell surplus electricity back to the power companies.
Read the article: How 2.0 is set to be bigger than Web 2.0Electricity
To put all of this into context. If we go back two decades and look at where information technololy was at and how it has become an intricite part of everyone’s live’s. Mobile phones were literally unheard of in 1987, yet within a decade they were became an essential accessory for everyone from schoolkids to older folks.
Let’s now try to look forward a decade from now to 2018. Ireland has set a target of 40% renewable energy usage by 2020. Ireland in fairness, being one of the first countries in the world to do so. The technology is already developed to capture, at least this amount of energy from renewables, freely available in Ireland such as wind and wave power. In the 1980′s the technology to develop mobile phones and personal computers was similarily developed. It only took a few short years for that technology to be fully adapted for home users. It is very likely that renewable energy technology will become a domestic feature of every home within the next decade.
All of this is of immense importance for those of you who are thinking about designing your own homes now. Try to design your home with 2018 and even 2028 and beyond. Most of us will still be paying our mortgages well beyond that. Houses that maximise solar gain and are very well insulated now, will increase the possibility of that home being independent of its energy needs in a very short time.
The Cultivate Centre in Dublin have announced their courses in Green Building for 2009, which will be of interest to anyone designing or planning their own sustainable building for 2009.
The courses cover topics such as basic domestic energy auditing, wind energy, micro hydro and solar PV, solar water heating, green building and many others. Of particular interest is a course entitled “Want to build a house for €20,000 or even less” on Sunday 22nd February 2009. This day course is been given by Andy Wilson of the Sustainability Institute.
For full details on these and other courses please check out Cultivate
You don’t need to be an expert, when it comes to designing your house but it still useful to gain learn as much as you can early on. There are a number of useful courses going on around Ireland that can help you become acquainted with different aspects of designing and building sustainably.
The Living Architectre Centre in Co. Leitrim, run by architect Peter Cowman runs courses, which cover all aspects of sustainable building from pre-planning to construction stage. Peter also demonstrates how it is possible to build ‘mortgage-free”
http://www.livingarchitecturecentre.com
In 2009 House Design Online will be running courses in sustainable architecture. If you wish to be notified of when these courses will be happening, please complete and submit the contact form on the contact page and we will keep you informed.
The Irish Government announced today that 10% of the Irish Transport will be run by electric power by 2020, that’s about 250,000 vehicles. The government plan will involve tax incentives for businesses, a €1million project by Sustainable Energy Ireland to research, develop and demonstrate of vehicles nationally,Assistance for individuals purchasing electric vehicles and the Establishment of a National Task Force which will examine infrastructure options for national roll-out of electric vehicles, including street charging.
The minister Eamon Ryan, unfortunately does not include electric bicycles, also known as pedelecs in the measure.
Overall, the decision is to be welcomed. The issue of transport is very much related to how and where, we live.
Unfortunately many people have chosen to move to the countryside in Ireland to live ‘urban lives’, not interacting with the local population or using services and rely consequently on the overuse of transport.
If you are thinking, as many are, or moving to the countryside, consider using whatever local services are there such as shops, schools etc. If you work in the city or town, make provision in your design for the future possibility of being able to work, at least some of the time, from home.
When designing your home, consider the installation of a domestic wind turbine with the possibility of supplying your own transport energy. Imagine, not having to go to the petrol station once or twice a week. You could even start a tradition of homemade “Jumbo Breakfast Roll”, while your car is refuelling in the driveway!
The single most important instrument in designing your own house is You and your imagination. Start with two or more blank sheets of paper.
On one write down everything that comes into you head about your dream home. Don’t be limited by what others might say or what you’ve seen in magazines. Don’t be limited by what the Banks or Planners might think. It will be considerably easier to convince others later if the design originates from you. One very useful way of developing your idea is to use mind maps. Start with a sketch of yourself or/and your family in the centre of a blank sheet, from this, write or sketch symbols of considerations of your new home. Might be the layout, Materials or Heating. Be Creative, use colouring pencils.
Involve younger members of the family
Gene Roddenberry was the guy that brought us in to the future many years ago with the series “Star Trek”…going where no man had gone before…OK, it was Science Fiction, but what a pity that some of those who were fans of the 1970′s show didn’t hold on to a small bit of the imagination and “thinking into the future”, that the show evoked when they got themselves into positions where they could actually influence change. Imagine if Kirk, Spock and buddies made a brief return visit to planet earth. They hover over Dublin, spot the M50 at rush hour, imagining it to be an energy field surrounding the city. Their first reaction is that the city has been taken over by Klingons. Nothing is connected, people are wandering around in a trance, going nowhere. The guys get energized down to the ‘Red Cow’ Roundabout, but there is nothing they can to, They try Portlaoise, Galway, Limerick, Castlebar..but its all the same. (more…)
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