We met with Tony & Siobhan in 2009 and together we set about designing a contemporary interpretation of the traditional Irish closed courtyard farmstead on their family farm land. The Passivhaus Standard was a target, but it was secondary to designing a home that not only fitted well into the local Irish landscape but also fitted with their growing family lifestyle.
The design won the Irish category of the Saint-Gobain Gypsum National Trophy 2012 award, for its excellent design and performance and was one of only 3 Irish projects to represent Ireland in the International Section of the Awards in London the same year.
The house was featured on RTE’s About the House with Duncan Stewart, in both Construct Ireland and Passive House Plus magazines, and was presented at the SEAI Energy Show.
The build method for this 295m2 house design was 300mm wide infill cavity construction walls, raft foundation floor on 400mm wrap insulation, timber A-frame pitched roof, zinc flat roof and triple glazed Passivhaus certified windows. The U-values of these building elements were as low as 0.08 W/m2K.
The airtight level achieved was unprecedented at the time of construction with as low as 0.30 h-1 air changes at +/- 50 pascal.
Using the Paul Novus Heat Recovery Ventilation System (HRVS) as its main heating source with a heat recovery rate of 93%, and an electrical efficiency of 0.24 Wh/m3, the house had a back-up geothermal heat pump with a borehole.
