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Linham brings low energy social housing to Fairview
Low energy building contractor and developer Linham Construction is currently on site with a new five-unit development in Fairview, Co Dublin. The project will feature five ultra low energy houses, all of which have already been sold to a housing association to provide for social housing needs in the area.
This article was originally published in issue 17 of Passive House Plus magazine. Want immediate access to all back issues and exclusive extra content? Click here to subscribe for as little as €10, or click here to receive the next issue free of charge
The units feature 350mm Geocell foam glass gravel and aggregate — for which Linham is the exclusive Irish agent — under the concrete slab. Geocell is a lightweight, load bearing and highly insulating material that is also breathable and Pyrite-free. It boasts high compressive strength and is made from 100% recycled material. It is designed to remove the need for strip foundations and rising walls.
Meanwhile the development’s external walls are constructed with Quinn Lite blocks with external insulation, while the windows will be fitted within the insulation layer rather than the blockwork. Internal wet plaster forms the main airtightness layer, the roof space will feature EcoJoists insulated with mineral wool, and Nilan Compact P units will provide for space heating, hot water and ventilation.
Linham director Frank Flynn, said progress progress is quick on site, with the development expected to be complete in November. “It’s so fast, because it’s terribly simple.
“Using the Geocell with a ground bearing slab you’re very quickly out of the ground. The time spent in the ground with traditional rising walls — and all the traditional cold bridging difficulties that they have — is overcome very quickly. So you’re out of the ground very quickly, and then you’re immediately onto a single leaf of blockwork.”
“The striking thing is that that it’s terribly simple. There are very few unusual interfaces that you have to overcome,” he continued. “It’s going to be quite innovative and inventive as far as social housing is concerned.”
Linham previously constructed 10 other units on Merville Avenue, and Flynn told Passive House Plus that the method of construction employed here allows for a fast build while still using traditional materials and on-site construction. “If there’s anything about it that makes this work, it’s the simplicity,” he said.
