retrofit - passivehouseplus.ie

Progress on retrofitting Europe's building stock is sluggish, but there is a way out of the mire. 

A house in south Dublin recently became the first Irish building to become EnerPHit certified. Architect Joseph Little describes the challenges of meeting the Passive House Institute’s standard for upgrading existing buildings.

In spite of a consensus that most buildings need deep energy upgrades, both Ireland and the UK have barely scratched the surface. Joseph Curtin – one of Ireland’s leading energy policy wonks –discusses how to kick start en masse upgrade work.

The pioneering passive house retrofit of a derelict farm building to create a visitor and education centre at Yorkshire Wildlife Trust's Stirley Community Farm, Huddersfield, is nearing completion and will be open to the public on Sunday, 1 September 2013 from 11am to 3pm.

Work is nearing completion at Stirley Farm, Green Building Store's design and build project to turn a derelict barn into an Enerphit-certified education centre for the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust. Enerphit is the Passive House Institute's slightly less onerous standard for retrofit projects.

Bord Gáis has ceased offering home insulation products and boiler installations through its Home Team division due to a drop off in demand. The company will continue to offer boiler servicing and repair.

The move reflects the recent nationwide decline in home energy upgrades, a trend that is investigated in the new issue of Construct Ireland.

Is it possible to ditch fossil fuels and run a 1970s Irish bungalow on solar energy? Norman McMillan’s renovated A1-rated bungalow in Carlow proves it is. 

The government is withdrawing grant support for heat pumps and biomass boilers and reducing grants for other energy efficiency upgrades as part of its new Better Energy national building upgrade programme. The government has allocated an additional €30m to the programme this year in addition to the €60m set aside in this year's budget. It expects the extra funding to support an additional 2,000 jobs in the retrofit sector in 2011.

The government is aiming to energy upgrade one million buildings by 2020, but huge investment will be needed to reach that goal as finance expert Jack O’Keeffe of Larchmont Consulting explains

High levels of external insulation, abundant natural light and a minimalist approach to ventilation are ensuring that Malahide Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club is as green as its courts

Architect Eva Murphyova creates a modern and sustainable take on the traditional farm settlement with the addition of a new envelope, timber frame extension and sustainable heat sources

Bank of Ireland has launched Ireland's first "green equity release" loan. The new mortgage feature allows customers to unlock equity in their home to invest in energy efficient home improvements.

Homeowners with SEAI grant approval for their home improvements can now avail of the bank’s LTV mortgage rate of 3%.

As the en masse energy upgrading of Irish homes and other buildings takes-off on an unprecedented scale, there are real dangers that even conscientious clients, professionals and contractors will make decisions that fail to save energy and create unhealthy buildings. Pioneering green architect Joseph Little, draws from the research and experience of his architectural practice & Building Life Consultancy to offer advice that should be heeded before any energy upgrade.

The ESB has launched Halo, the utility's new home energy upgrade and efficiency service. The Halo Installation Service is designed as a "one-stop solution" for home energy upgrades, the company said.

A log bungalow in rural Meath has been extended and given a total energy upgrade – and wood is at the heart of the renovation, with a timber frame extension and external insulation system along with a fresh log finish.
Words: Lenny Antonelli

Local authorities upgraded hundreds of houses last year under a €20m government scheme, and the Department of Environment has doubled funding for 2010. With local energy agencies playing a key role on the ground, the programme offers vital lessons for keeping quality high in energy retrofit schemes. Words: Lenny Antonelli

Renovated agricultural barn marries its traditional look with modern green features

The RIAI, in partnership with Joseph Little Architects, has announced the launch of an intensive one day programme on home energy upgrades designed specifically for architectural professionals. The course will be delivered through lectures and workshops.

Sligo estate house adds hemp lime extension & renovation with vertical bore-hole heat pump

G rated Limerick semi-d upgraded to A3 with full envelope & heating system upgrade

Any building, no matter how cold and draughty, no matter how remote, can be improved to world-class energy performance, as an upgraded and extended Donegal cottage dating back to the 1800s proves.

The energy and climate change secretary, Ed Miliband, has announced details of a "green loans" scheme to help people pay for improvements to their homes to make them more energy efficient.

The scheme, which would see loans remain attached to the house where insulation, solar panels or other green technology was installed, aims to overcome the financial barriers and upfront costs people face when trying make their homes greener.

Rising energy use in buildings contributed to an increase of 1.5% in overall energy demand in 2008, despite the economy contracting by 3% over the same period, a new report from Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI) reveals today.

A new Sustainable Energy Ireland grant scheme will offer financial support to public and private sector organisations for energy upgrades and retrofits.

Ulster Bank has launched a discounted loan for home improvements carried out through Sustainable Energy Ireland’s Home Energy Saving scheme and Greener Homes Scheme.

ESB yesterday announced a series of initiatives to create up to 6,000 new jobs and training opportunities. Up to 3,700 new jobs will be created outside the company in Ireland in sectors such as smart networks and smart metering, wind energy, electric vehicles, home insulation and new sustainable technologies.

The €50m Home Energy Saving scheme is open for applications as of today.

The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland has announced a new €5million deep retrofit pilot programme for 2017 projects to upgrade inefficient buildings to an A3 rating or better – with a particular emphasis on ventilation, airtightness, thermal bridging, interstitial condensation and preventing overheating. Grants are available to cover between 50 and 95% of the costs of deep retrofit works for di�fferent categories of participants.