New Building Regulations energy rules for home renovations and extensions, 2019.

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“A follows D” - A recent major renovation and extension by Spacious Architects that brought an existing D rated house up to a BER A standard.

House owners planning to undertake major renovations or extensions will be required to ensure that the whole dwelling will meet the higher energy rating (BER) of B2 upon completion under new building regulations.

The new rules will come into effect from November 2019, and will also require all new homes to become nearly zero energy buildings (NZEB). That will require them to have a BER of A2, - twice as energy efficient as the current minimum required rating for new builds of A3.

Where more that 25 per cent of the surface of the building is undergoing renovation or an extension there will be a requirement that the whole building should achieve an energy efficiency of B2 or cost optimal level.

On November 1, amendments to Part L and Part F of the building regulations (relating to energy efficiency and ventilations) for new residential dwellings and dwellings getting major renovations come into effect. The Government said the rules will be subject to transition arrangements to allow flexibility to developers.

Requirements for major renovation of domestic buildings

For existing buildings, it is proposed that major renovation is typically activated under the following circumstances, where the work affects greater than 25% surface area of the existing dwelling:

• External Wall Renovation, external or internal insulation

• External Wall & Window Renovation

• External Wall & Roof Renovation

• External Wall & Floor Renovation

• New Extension

The cost optimal level is a primary energy performance of less than 125 kWh/m2/yr (B2 BER) when calculated using DEAP or upgrade of roof insulation and heating system. The Cost Optimal Study was updated in 2018.

Painting, replastering, rendering, reslating, cavity wall insulation are not considered major renovation works.

Energy upgrade works to the house pictured above included:

• Air to water heat pump

• Underfloor heating

• Super levels of insulation to floors, walls and roof

• Triple glazed windows and rooflights

• Airtightness membranes and tapes throughout

• Demand controlled ventilation system

Client Comments:

“We could not recommend Paul from Spacious Architects highly enough. Paul designed and project managed the renovation of our house in Dun Laoghaire from start to finish. The house was completely transformed and extended from 140m2 with a poor C2 energy rating, to 210m2 with a deep energy retrofit, to bring it up to an A3 BER.

We chose Paul over other architects at the outset as he was easy to deal with and he took the time to really understand what we wanted to achieve with the works. Our main aims were to have a house that was energy efficient and had living spaces that were bright, contemporary, spacious, functional and properly connected to our outdoor spaces. Paul achieved all of this and more. Energy wise the house is amazingly warm and comfortable with an air-to-water heat pump and underfloor heating. The airtightness was brought up to current standards for new builds and a demand controlled ventilation system was installed.

The spaces are beautifully designed with unique features (e.g the porch retains original brickwork walls that have been painted and lit with concealed lighting and there is custom designed bespoke joinery throughout). Our main living space at the back of the house is south-facing and on the same level as the patio and garden making them all feel like one space on a sunny day when the large sliding doors are open. The overall design and functionality of the house was very well thought out.

In terms of delivering the project, Paul was highly involved throughout. He was regularly onsite to ensure builders were delivering to spec. His high attention to detail ensured no corners were cut. On several occasions Paul asked the builders to redo aspects of work that he was not 100% happy with.

In short, Paul delivered on everything that was asked of him. He takes ideas on board and puts thought into them to develop them further. He is well versed in interior design and complex energy requirements to ensure projects look well while also being functional and highly efficient. And he holds everyone involved to account right through to completion of the jobs. We are very happy with the finished product and would recommend Paul to anyone.” Colin & Cathy McBride.

Our Latest nZEB new build house has just been completed - See it here.
Link: Irish Times article

Irish Times feature - As Green as a Period House can be.

SPACIOUS - Registered architects and designers

T: 01-5585205 | M: 089-2447264

George's Street Studios, First Floor, 53/54 George's Street Lower, Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin.

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NZEB - Nearly Zero Energy Buildings in Ireland

Today we've been at the nZEB-15 National Retrofit Conference at Dublin Institute of Technology listening to the latest research, developments and education in this energy retrofit technology for Irish buildings.

Introduction video - Near Zero Energy Buildings

Some Information on Nearly Zero Energy Buildings standards in Ireland:

From January, 1st 2019 every new public building will have to be designed to nearly zero energy building standards. Also, all other new buildings will have to comply with the new nearly zero energy buildings standards from January, 1st 2021. This arises from the Recast European Performance of Buildings Directive 2010/30/EU.

For a typical dwelling this will equate to 45 kWh/m2/annum and an Energy Performance Coefficient (EPC) and Carbon Performance Coefficient (CPC) of 0.302 and 0.305 in accordance with the common general framework set out in Annex I of Directive 2010/31/EU on the energy performance of buildings (Recast). This takes account of the energy load for space heating, water heating, fixed lighting and ventilation. A very significant proportion of which will be covered from renewable energy sources produced on-site or nearby. (Ref: Towards Nearly Zero Energy Buildings in Ireland – Planning for 2020 and beyond. 

 The proposed improvement from current building  standards  to  an intermediate and final NZEB target for buildings other than dwellings are:

Targets will be further refined when developing new the technical performance standard TGD L – Buildings other than Dwellings. (Source: Towards NZEB in Ireland- Planning for 2020 and beyond)

Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD)

The EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD - 2002/91/EC) is the main European legislative instrument for improving the energy efficiency of Europe's building stock. Under the Directive, the following obligations were introduced in all Member States:

• A methodology to calculate and rate the integrated energy performance of buildings
• A system of energy certification for new and existing buildings, with display requirements for public buildings
• Regular inspections of heating and air-conditioning systems
• Minimum energy performance standards for new buildings and for existing buildings that undergo major renovation with a useful floor area over 1000m2

The EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) was transposed into Irish Law from 2006 onwards.

From 2013, the EPBD was superseded by the Recast EPBD and S.I. No 666 of 2006 was superseded by S.I. 243 of 2012.  See more at: http://www.seai.ie/Your_Building/EPBD

Changes in the Building Regulations in Ireland

Building Regulations were first introduced in Ireland in 1976 in Draft form and revised draft Regulations were introduced in 1981. The Building Regulations were formally revised in 1991, 1997, 2002, 2005, 2008 and 2011.

There have been significant step changes in the Irish Building Regulations since 2005. Technical Guidance Document Part L (TGD L), of the 2008 Regulations required a 40% reduction in primary energy use compared to a reference dwelling specified in the TGD Part L 2005 Regulations. TGD L of the 2011 Regulations require a 60% reduction in the primary energy us. The gradual improvements leading to NZEB standards for dwellings are summarised in the table below. 

*These energy values are for a typical two storey semi-detached house.

Information from NZEB Open Doors Ireland.