Rural Design Advice for Individual Houses in the Countryside

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4.PLANNING THE SITEBuilding OrientationSustainable Site PlanningOrientation is concerned with the location of theproposed house in relation to views (both to and from thesite) and to the elements (wind direction and path of thesun). The most acceptable site layout needs to achieve anumber of often conflicting considerations, such as viewsand prospects, climate, shelter, privacy, and minimisingimpact on the surroundings.Whereas orientating a house to take full advantage ofviews can be of benefit to the owner, this may well resultin the house being over-conspicuous in the landscape.Sometimes a partial or glimpsed view outwards maysuffice, framed by vegetation or the local topography.Elsewhere it may be necessary to orientate the house sothat just a specific part of it has access to the view (e.g.from a gable end).A thorough site appraisal is required to ensure that viewsboth of and from the property are considered from avariety of different vantage points.Being more efficient in how we use energy in our dailylives can strongly influence the selection of a site. Manydecisions affecting the energy performance of a houseneed to be taken early in the site planning and designprocess. Considering increased energy efficiency at anearly stage can also have immediate benefits such as: Saving money on electricity and heating bills; Creating a more comfortable and convenient home;and Making a vital contribution to reducing climatechange.Energy PerformanceThe EU Directive on the Energy Performance ofBuildings requires every home for sale or rent in Irelandto be rated as to its energy performance. This must bedetermined and demonstrated in two distinct ways - allnew dwellings must address both: Building Regulations Technical Guidance Document - LBuilding form arranged to create shelter and privacyThe Building Regulations require that all houses areconstructed to minimum standards of materials,workmanship, services and energy consumption. TheTechnical Guidance Documents (TGD) give instructionand guidance on the manner in which compliance withthe building regulation can be made. TGD – L concernsenergy use and CO 2 emissions from buildings. Theprimary method of demonstrating compliance with thebuilding regulation under TGD – L is by minimising CO 2emissions associated with energy consumption in thebuilding. The method of determining the energy and CO 2performance is the Domestic Energy AssessmentProcedure (DEAP).Building Energy RatingThe EU Directive on the Energy Performance ofBuildings requires every new home constructed, sold orrented must be rated as to its energy & CO 2performance. New houses constructed after 2007 shouldhave a BER of B1 or better.34.County Limerick: Rural Design Advice for Individual Houses in the Countryside
PLANNING THE SITE4.Building Location and FormTraditionally buildings in the countryside were positionedto take advantage of available shelter, such as naturalfolds in the landform, orientating the building in relationto prevailing winds and the path of the sun, and usingsheltered areas next to woodlands. Such factors areequally relevant to present day houses for energyconservation reasons.A detached house in the countryside can present a largeexposed surface area that needs to be carefullyconsidered in relation to energy efficiency. Layoutsshould try to avoid any unnecessary exposure to theelements and the new building positioned to takeaccount of the prevailing wind direction (particularly fromthe south-west) and to create a good micro-climate.Internal LayoutOrganise the internal layout of the house to make bestuse of sunshine and daylight - locate the most usedrooms on the south side and least used rooms to thenorth side. As well as reducing energy costs andlowering fuel bills, sunny south-facing rooms have highamenity value. Try to minimise projections such as bayand dormer windows, which increase the surface-tovolumeratio of a building and thereby increase heat loss.They also tend to be more difficult to insulate effectively.Tree and hedge screeningNA compact building form is best for reducing heat loss. Arectangular building with one of the longer facades facingsouth can allow for increased solar heating, day-lightingand natural ventilation. Pitched roofs should also haveone slope orientated south to allow for optimumperformance of a roof-mounted or roof-integrated activesolar heating system.WEvening -living, sittingGarage, storage,servicesDay - living,conservatory,patioStudy, office,kitchenKitchen, breakfast,bedroomsEPrevailingwindsSOrientate the uses of the house to maximise on solar gain.Creating Shelter:Use existing natural features of the site to helpprotect the building from the elements.Arrange the site to guide the wind over and aroundthe building.Use the house, out-buildings and garden walls tocreate a more enclosed micro-climate.Introduce shelter planting of native species to helpdissipate the wind.Retain existing boundaries such as hedgerows, stonewalls or earth and stone banks.45.Traditional grouping of buildings for natural internal shelterCounty Limerick: Rural Design Advice for Individual Houses in the Countryside35.
Page 1 and 2: Rural DesignAdvice forIndividualHou
Page 3: CONTENTSPage1. Introduction 1Purpos
Page 6 and 7: 1.INTRODUCTIONPurpose of the Design
Page 8 and 9: 1.INTRODUCTIONThe Local Planning Au
Page 10 and 11: 2.EVOLUTION OF THE COUNTRY HOUSEThe
Page 12 and 13: 2.EVOLUTION OF THE COUNTRY HOUSECla
Page 14 and 15: 2.EVOLUTION OF THE COUNTRY HOUSEVer
Page 16 and 17: 2.EVOLUTION OF THE COUNTRY HOUSEMod
Page 18 and 19: 3.SELECTING THE SITEIf a proper fit
Page 20 and 21: 3.SELECTING THE SITEAgricultural Lo
Page 22 and 23: 3.SELECTING THE SITE31.Western Upla
Page 24 and 25: 3.SELECTING THE SITESite LocationLo
Page 26 and 27: 3.SELECTING THE SITEExisting Develo
Page 28 and 29: 3.SELECTING THE SITERoads and Infra
Page 30 and 31: 3.SELECTING THE SITESite Selection
Page 32 and 33: 4.PLANNING THE SITEContextThe new c
Page 34 and 35: 4.PLANNING THE SITEScale, Building
Page 36 and 37: 4.PLANNING THE SITESimple dominant
Page 40 and 41: 4.PLANNING THE SITERenewable Energy
Page 42 and 43: 4.PLANNING THE SITEGeothermal Energ
Page 44 and 45: 4.PLANNING THE SITEA. Local Sustain
Page 46 and 47: 4.PLANNING THE SITEBoundariesRoadsi
Page 48 and 49: 4.PLANNING THE SITESite Planning Ch
Page 50 and 51: 5.DESIGNING THE HOUSEThe use of sta
Page 52 and 53: 5.DESIGNING THE HOUSETry to avoid:
Page 54 and 55: 5.DESIGNING THE HOUSEBuilding Form
Page 56 and 57: 5.DESIGNING THE HOUSERoofs and Chim
Page 58 and 59: 5.DESIGNING THE HOUSEDoors, Porches
Page 60 and 61: 5.DESIGNING THE HOUSEConservatories
Page 62 and 63: 5.DESIGNING THE HOUSEBuilding Conve
Page 64 and 65: 5.DESIGNING THE HOUSEExtensions to
Page 66 and 67: 6.DESIGNING WITH THE PLANNING SYSTE
Page 72 and 73: 1.APPENDIXRecommended Planting Type
Page 74 and 75: APPENDIX 2.Building RegulationsThe
Page 76: APPENDIX 3a.Design Statement for si

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