Unelected officials in Dublin City Council have rejected the decision by city councillors to make the passive house standard or equivalent energy performance standards a mandatory planning condition for all new buildings in the city. The council also included a statement to protect the route of the controversial Eastern Bypass, in spite of councillors voting against it.
World-renowned author, environmentalist and advisor to the Democratic Party Bill McKibben has praised the green leadership that Ireland is starting to show through Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown and Dublin City Council voting to make the passive house standard or demonstrably equivalent alternatives mandatory for all new buildings.
75% of the housing stock will need to be upgraded to A2 BERs by 2050 if Ireland is to hit its 80% CO2 emissions reductions target.
Leading renewable technology supplier Unipipe has become the Irish distributors for the Austrian Smartflower – which the company claim is the world’s first self-contained solar PV system.
It is well documented that parapets allow conductive materials to transfer energy through the thermal barrier and are therefore just as prone to the problems of thermal bridging as balconies.
SMET Building Products has advised those specifying floor screed to avoid product failure, particularly in heated screeds, by ensuring their choice of products meets the right standards. “Historically, floor screed failures have regularly resulted from the interaction of heated screed constructions with a wide range of coverings. Failure by the contractor to check on residual moisture and consequent installation of coverings on an overly wet screed may have serious implications for the durability and longevity of the flooring,” said Joris Smet of SMET Building Products.
Folding attic stairs are a common addition to many homes in Ireland but, like any product that requires cutting a larger aperture in the building fabric, it has the potential to leak air like a sieve.
Leading external insulation supplier Hammond Roof & Energy has launched a new technical roadshow series promoting the Soltherm external insulation system – at a live passive house construction site in Carlow.
A Galway-based timber frame construction firm established last year that specialises in passive house has committed to using 100 per cent ecological building materials and advanced technologies to keep its environmental footprint to a minimum.
Investing in heat recovery ventilation units without paying due attention to distribution systems may risk undermining energy performance and indoor air quality, a leading ventilation expert has warned.