Hot house power

Moycullen €350,000When Gerry and Siobhan Falvey built their five-bedroom home in 2004, they installed higher levels of insulation than was the norm at the time.

“Because our engineer was obsessed with energy saving meant we already had an incredibly warm house.” Last year the couple replaced their oil system with an electric air to water heat pump. The pump extracts heat from the air, and uses this to heat water for the heating system. The existing underfloor heating meant they could set their house to a constant temperature and heat it with half-price night-rate electricity.

The pump cost a little over €9,000 to install but has reduced heating costs from €1,500 to €450 (based on monthly calculations for 2012).The house has constant heat and hot water for this price and an A3 BER, unusual for a retrofit.

This timber-frame and limestone clad house house is less than 13km from Galway, in Moycullen. On two-thirds of an acre, it has a large back garden and cobbled driveway. The interior is bright and spacious with maple floors throughout. A dining-/livingroom is well lit thanks to low E Value argon-filled windows, which again keep heating costs down.

With a total floor area 265sq m (2,852sq ft), the house has five bedrooms and three reception rooms and includes surround sound system, central vacuum and electric gates. The Falveys are selling up as they have inherited a house in the city.

Knockbane, Moycullen, Co Galway

DescriptionEnergy efficient five-bed house on two-thirds of an acre with BER A3

AgentDooley Auctioneers