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Passive houses open to public this November
The International Passive House Days, during which passive house residents open their doors to members of the public, takes place this year from 9 to 11 November.
The utopian Usonian
Dr Marc Ó Riain looks at the influence of 20th century architectural giant Frank Lloyd Wright on low energy building design.
Marketplace news
Eoin Leonard of i3PT nominated for entrepreneurial award
Eoin Leonard, CEO of i3PT Certification, has been named an EY Entrepreneur of the Year finalist for 2018.
18-10-2018 Marketplace
Tramex launches two new data loggers for buildings
Tramex, the Irish designer and manufacturer of moisture monitors, has launched two new FeedBack DataLoggers — the DL-RHTA and DL-RHTX — for monitoring ambient conditions in buildings.
18-10-2018 Marketplace
Charlie Luxton launches Ecological’s UK seminar tour
Charlie Luxton will speak at the first event in Ecological’s Perfect Airtight Seal on 16 October at the National Self Build and Renovation Centre, Swindon, while the London event on 18 October will take place in the Building Centre.
10-10-2018 Marketplace
Sola recruiting two building services engineers
SOLA Energy Solutions, the pioneering Tipperary based deep retrofit contractor, is currently seeking to hire two mechanical/building service engineers to join its growing team.
08-10-2018 Marketplace
Daikin launches new Altherma monobloc heat pump
Daikin have launched a new air-to-water monobloc heat pump that the company says is the ideal system for users with limited installation space inside. “The system delivers cutting-edge performance within the market’s most compact monobloc outdoor unit,” said Daikin Ireland heating manager John O’Shaughnessy. It delivers space heating with an optional connection to provide domestic hot water.
26-09-2018 Marketplace
Versatile appoints passive house specialist
Michael McCarthy, a certified trainer with the Passive House Academy and an international authority on the passive house standard as lead passive house certifier on the MosArt team, has joined Versatile as the new ventilation specialist within its heating, cooling & ventilation division.
23-08-2018 Marketplace
Stunning Bath home features Urban Front oak doors
A stylish new low energy home within a World Heritage Site on the outskirts of Bath is one of the latest projects to feature an e98 passiv front door from UK manufacturer Urban Front.
14-08-2018 Marketplace
Saint-Gobain launches free nZEB training courses
The Saint-Gobain Ireland Technical Academy is adding to its existing training portfolio by launching a series of free nZEB modular courses. Starting this July, these innovative nZEB courses will offer those working in construction in Ireland a chance to upskill, free of charge, in an increasingly regulated area of the construction industry.
14-08-2018 Marketplace
News and blogs
Two houses for the price of one
Housing pundit and architect Mel Reynolds argues that local authority action could be the key to solving the housing crisis.
Health & well-being the focus of Better Homes 2018
The Irish Green Building Council will host its Better Homes 2018 conference in the Alex Hotel, Dublin on Thursday 8 November.
New NUIG study to examine ventilation in A-rated homes
A research project examining the effectiveness of ventilation systems in low energy homes is one of 45 new sustainable energy projects to receive government funding in companies and institutions across Ireland.
Building industry must tackle gender imbalance — CIF
The construction industry needs more female workers to meet current demand for skills and to deliver Ireland’s urgent housing and infrastructure needs, construction leaders say.
New UK retrofit standard will mandate ventilation & post occupancy checks
PAS 2035 follows high profile retrofit failures under government schemes
Current Irish housing policy is to not build housing
Even the most cursory examination of the figures shows how little housing the state is building, writes architect Mel Reynolds.
UK Passivhaus Awards to be presented at London Build
The annual UK Passivhaus Awards take place this year on 24 October at the London Build trade fair.
BER data: sick buildings risk while new build surges
Over a third of new homes may be sick buildings which fail to comply with minimum ventilation requirements under Part F of the building regulations, new analysis by Passive House Plus has indicated.
Filling the retrofit policy void
The imperative to engage in evidence-based deep retrofit grows by the day. With the UK government dragging its heels, Peter Rickaby finds signs of hope in local initiatives, and in burgeoning Irish efforts.
The House of Tomorrow, 1933
In his third column on visionary eco-buildings of the 20th century, Dr Marc Ó Riain looks at the pioneering passive solar designs of Fred Keck.
Government failing to act on radon in rented houses
Consultation on rental standards also criticised.
Breaking the mould in Thamesmead
The net effect of poor insulation levels, underheating and under-ventilation in buildings poses a major public health threat. Peter Rickaby describes one pioneering London project that’s taking a practical, methodical – and scalable – approach to solving the problem.
Water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink
Inertia with state-owned land is exacerbating Ireland’s housing crisis, argues housing commentator and architect Mel Reynolds, in spite of the state possessing enough zoned land to make a major dent in solving the problem.
nZEB Ireland launched at national conference
nZEB Ireland, an independent not-for-profit organization established to fill the knowledge gap on the EU’s nearly zero energy building (nZEB) standard in Ireland, has been launched.
New IGBC scheme measures carbon footprint of building materials
The Irish Green Building Council has launched a new programme to measure the carbon footprint of construction products. The Environmental Product Declaration Ireland Programme (EPD Ireland) allows manufacturers to publish independently verified information about the environmental footprint of their products.
DLR social housing gets Home Performance Index silver cert
Irish Green Building Council has awarded the exacting Home Performance Index silver certification to a multi-unit social housing development in Dún Laoghaire.
Ecological host UK-wide airtightness seminars
To celebrate BBA approval of its Pro Clima Intello Plus intelligent airtight membrane, Ecological Building Systems and Pro Clima have announced a seminar tour that will bring airtightness insights to five locations around the UK.
Aru Joinery wins sustainable building award
Dublin-based Aru Joinery has picked up the award for best window and doors installation company at Build magazine’s 2018 Sustainable Building Awards.
Passive House Plus launches sustainable building web directory
Passive House Plus has launched a beta version of its new content-rich web platform for the sustainable building sector, Marketplace+.
Better housing means fewer A&E admissions, study finds
Dampness reduction via better ventilation seen to be key
The slow, heavy gears of deep retrofit start to turn
At SEAI's 2018 deep retrofit conference, there are signs that action to overhaul Ireland's outdated, inefficient building stock is gradually moving forward
Dublin to host conference on rapid-build nZEB construction
A new one-day conference set to be held in Dublin next month will look at the twin challenges of solving Ireland's housing crisis with rapid-build construction, while at the same time meeting new standards for nearly zero energy buildings (nZEBs).
The prebiotic passive house
As understanding grows of the importance to human health of good bacteria in our environment, and new hospitals in the US start to undergo ‘prebiotic’ treatment, Dr Peter Rickaby asks how long it will be before microbiology becomes a core part of building design.
1948: The Dover Sun House
In his second column on visionary eco-buildings of the 20th century, Dr Marc Ó Riain looks at the Dover Sun House, which used a pioneering salt solution to capture and store solar energy
