Retrofitting tales: ‘It’s a bit like a boat, you can’t just fix one hole’

Davin Larkin and Niki Byrne bought a typical rural bungalow outside Oughterard, Co Galway. It was damp, with two heating systems, poor light and minimal insulation, with an F energy rating – "F for freezing," they point out.

“It was a roof over our heads but it did not feel particularly homely,” Niki recalls. Over five years, they sought to upgrade their home themselves in a step-by-step way, but this proved too difficult.

They decided to go for a complete retrofit with specialist help – a project managed by Electric Ireland Superhomes (EIS) which began in November 2020 but was then delayed by Covid lockdown. They eventually had a transformed home with an A2 energy grading last October.

Niki describes the outcome as “a totally different way of living” with a constant 20-degree temperature, no draughts and no need to have to constantly close doors.

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Constancy of temperature does not mean “roasting”, she explains, as the combination of insulation and ventilation, as well as heating using an air-to-water heat pump, make for a perfectly sealed building – compared to using fossil fuels to drive temperature up as required.

Because of the extra works, it cost €65,000, while they got an SEAI grant of €20,000. But engaging EIS meant it did the grant application and paid contractors while easing worry over providing upfront funds. A key element of the Government’s retrofit programme involves scale-up of this type of one-stop-shop option.

In one go

Davin advises doing a retrofit in one go if possible, though he accepts this will not be possible for everybody. In their case, it meant having to rent for a few months.

Their first electricity bill was €380 for two months. “If that is as bad as it gets in winter, that’s pretty good,” he believes. It covers “heating and hot water 24/7 and other electricity use”.

Cormac Madden and his wife, Mary O'Toole, upgraded their four-bedroom Co Dublin home, starting in 2016 and managing to make incremental improvements. The original two-storey semi-detached house had a BER rating of G in 1996, when they first moved in.

The house was built around 1960, “the worst possible period of house construction in Ireland in terms of energy rating”, Cormac notes. It’s a cavity-block construction with suspended wooden floors.

Over the years they installed double-glazed windows, and external wall and attic insulation to achieve a C1 BER. “There were many reasons to consider further energy upgrades: lower energy and heating bills, improved warmth and comfort,” he says, but they really wanted to move away from fossil fuels.

He became a believer in the “whole house” approach. “You really need to look at the energy performance of all of the elements in a house that impact heat loss and energy efficiency. It’s a bit like a boat: you can’t just fix one hole – the boat will still sink unless all of the holes are repaired.”

Stressful

Having had some construction projects that were challenging and stressful in the past, “it was invaluable to have the support of Electric Ireland Superhomes in particular to source the contractor and project manage the work.”

The overall experience was positive but there were some timing issues; the only challenging period was when they were without heat for a few days during November.

Their home energy report recommended fabric upgrades such as cavity wall insulation, attic insulation and high-performing external doors. An existing gas boiler was replaced with a thermostatically controlled air source heat pump.

An airtightness target of less than 5 air changes per hour was achieved, complemented by a “demand-controlled ventilation system” to ensure healthy air circulation and moisture control. Solar PV helped improve the BER to A3.

Cormac rejects any suggestion that heat pumps are unsuitable for older homes. “It’s transformational – and such a lovely way to live: constant and cost-efficient heat and full comfort . . . In the future it won’t be a new kitchen that will be the object of desire that people will save up for, it will be a heat pump.”