If you are self-building in a remote location, and own a large site, a well-managed woodland could be a sustainable solution to all of your fuel needs. Good news comes in the form of the NI Woodland Grant Schemes, which opened in June. To qualify you will need to plant 0.2 hectare (about half an […] More
The construction sector in the UK and Ireland are pushing for modular construction, or the process of building homes off site and assembling them on site within a matter of days or weeks, delegates at the 2021 Digital Construction Summit heard. Building this way is more efficient for developers as it’s quicker and has eight […] More
Brian Corry of Selfbuild+ asks self-build expert John Corless how to avoid the most common mistakes when building your home, and how to avoid having to make changes on site. They discuss: How to put together the design brief: unique for you and your site Avoiding design creep: the right house size/footprint and how not […] More
Episode 41 – Rodger O’Connor explains how he designed his home to be super energy efficient, including his insulation and airtightness strategy, choice of heating systems, photovoltaic panels and how he managed the build. Read the full article and see the images here. Favourite More
As material prices continue their upward climb, an independent TD is calling for a reduced VAT rate on building materials in ROI while the Federation of Master Builders is looking for VAT cuts in the NI renovation sector. Material price increases since January 2021, due to Covid, Brexit, and lack of felling licences among others, […] More
Episode 40 – Padraic Rogers of mybuildingsupplies.ie talks through how material prices increases are affecting self-builders: – Causes for price increases– What materials are hit the hardest and by how much– Shipping costs– What self-builders can do to reduce the impact of cost increases Favourite More
Meet a self-builder in NI who’s built his house from IntegraSPEC insulating concrete formwork (ICF) and who outlines the benefits of this building method, with visuals of the house under construction. Favourite More
Episode 39 – Seasoned self-builders Paul and Anne Dyer share how they managed to get planning permission in an area with a presumption against development (hint: it took a while), and how they hand built their underground house, leaving only specialist work such as tanking the roof and walls, to specialist trades. They discuss:– Wildflower […] More
Brian Corry from Selfbuild Ireland talks to Niall Healy from Healy Corneilius about Project Management. Their conversation covers how a self-builder might go about choosing whether to go down the main contractor/ project manager or direct labour route of a self-build project. Favourite More
DIY self-builders who plan to build with anything but blockwork are struggling to get insurance. Síofra Ní Chonluain and Mark McHugh’s decision to self-build was in large part driven by their desire to build themselves an affordable, eco friendly home. “We chose a factory made timber frame system that is exceptionally energy efficient, made by Scandinavian […] More
Ask the Expert – Brian Corry of Selfbuild+ chats with self-build expert John Corless about how to keep on top of costs on site. They discuss the need to have a budget and a schedule in place, as any deviation from these will lead to delays/additional costs in making right. A quanitity surveyor will help […] More
Delays, cost over runs, variations, clashes of personalities, power struggles and now COVID-19 are some of the many issues that self-builders have to face. Where there are changes or unexpected issues, there will be a price to pay in time and money. Who pays, why, and how much it’s going to cost along with the […] More