allan . curran . architects

Refurbishment, renovation and extension to existing 1980’s dwelling located in Co. Fermanagh

Much of modern domestic architecture and especially those aspects associated with house extensions is based around two features – daylight and access to the patio (and the garden beyond). Both these aspects are designed to make the best of the little sunshine we get in Ireland. Actually, when we approached the month of May you might be surprised to know that during May and June, our sunniest months we get on average between 5 hours of sunshine a day in the northwest and 7 hours a day in the south east. There are, of course, no free lunches. Windows cost approximately 4 times as much per square meter as an insulated block wall and while triple glazing is now almost standard you also lose 6 times more heat through a triple glazed window than you do through the same area of insulated block work.

 

When it comes to the cost of creating a patio the sky can be the limit, but with some consideration of the materials, the layout and the levels, you can achieve an attractive area on which to enjoy the outdoors at a reasonable cost. In this particular case we managed to reduce the original quotation by almost 50% just by considering those various aspects.

 

Tags: refurbishment, renovation, extension, planning, enniskillen architect