Miles Sampson News

03/01/2012 Septic Tank Inspections and Maintenance.

Irish rural home owners have been relatively lucky to date with the minimal costs that are involved in owning septic tanks. Unfortunately the relaxed regulation has meant that ground water is being polluted and this is affecting drinking water (a situation that nobody wants). The situation is about to change as the European Court of Justice has ruled that the Irish government have not been giving enough due diligence to the matter. See update from minister for the environment.

But the costs of registration (suggested to be €50 every 5 years) will be one of the lower costs associated with running at wastewater treatment system. Some other costs that people are not initially aware of are:

Electricity to run the majority of the new types of systems. The majority of the systems on the market have some type of motor or compressor. This runs constantly or frequently and therefore consumes a constant amount of electricity.
Desludging. All tanks need desludging periodically and this can only be done by a licenced contractor, which has associated costs. As regulations tighten up this is something that will need more attention.
Replacement parts to systems. Most new systems that contain motors, pumps, compressors and other mechanical parts will inevitably wear out or fail. These parts will have to be replaced which involves the cost of the new parts plus the cost of the repairer.

We have experience in dealing with many types of systems and can help recommend the best solution to save money and help protect the environment.

10/12/2011 Construct Ireland Magazine Article now Available Online.

Our eco renovation and extension of a terrace house in Stillorgan, Co. Dublin has been featured in the prominent Construct Ireland Magazine. The renovation involved stripping the house and upgrading the insulation to super levels. The extension is built predominantly with timber frame construction, which allows for higher levels of insulation to be fitted. The extension roof is covered with Sedum so that views from the upstairs windows are pleasing. A whole house mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery is fitted. This reduces heat loss by ventilation and ensures that the inhabitants are living with fresh air and no mildew from to high levels of humidity. To read the article click here.

01/12/2011 Faster charging points for electric cars.

It has been announced that faster charging points have now been developed for electric cars that reduce charging time to 1 hour. Why is this significant? Well one of the main benefits of electric cars is that they will be able to store energy produced by renewable energy when there is surplus production. This will happen mostly overnight when the car is plugged in at the home of the owner. This electricity will be cheap. But as everybody is aware one of the major shortcomings of electric cars is their drive range on one charge of the battery, currently up to 200km. This is where fast charging points will become very important. Fast charging points will be located at motorway stops and car parks in city centre locations. This will mean that one will be able to travel across the country with an electric car. By taking a recommend safety break and lunch at one of the motorway stops the car can be fully charged. Also if you arrive in the city and see that you are running low on juice, then you can park and charge while you pick up a few things in the shops or attend a meeting. When you return to the car it will be ready to continue its journey. Of course this ″quick juice″ will probably be more expensive than the slow night charge; however it will still be much cheaper than current petrol prices. But why are electric cars so important to the environment. Well transportation is one of the areas that energy will always be needed. It is a law of physics that in order for movement to happen, energy is required. Buildings on the other hand can currently be built to consume no energy and even generate a surplus. On the other side of the equation Ireland has the potential to generate huge amounts of renewable energy. Wind power and wave power alone will have huge production. For people who want to live self-sufficiently they can generate their power for the electric car with onsite renewables. So the electric car is the perfect marriage between using this plentiful supply of renewable energy and making transportation more environmentally friendly. Click here for more informaiton.

11/11/2011 Construct Ireland features the Campill renovation project.

Construct Ireland, the largest construction related magazine in Ireland, has featured the eco renovation we undertook of one of Camphill's Dublin properties. The renovation and extension of the 1950's terrace house for use as a ″co-living″ residence for people with intellectual disabilities was undertaken in a sustainable manner. From the selection of materials to the superinsulation of the building fabric, no area of the build was left unchecked. See Issue 7, Volume 5 for the full article. Check their website for newsagent outlets www.constructireland.ie

07/11/2011 Miles Sampson comments on the recent Medium-Term budget announcement.

Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan, has just announced the medium-term fiscal statement. There are two trends that home owners and people thinking of building should take note of.

Property Tax which will start out as a ″Household Charge″ is being introduced. When it is fully implemented it will be based on a valuation of the property. A substantial part of the value assigned to the property will be based on the square meter area of the property. That will basically mean that the bigger the house the more you pay. People thinking of building a new house should be very prudent about the size of the house; but smaller houses are not necessarily worse as we now know from the excessive ″McMansions″ that have been built all over the country. A good architect or designer will create a beautiful house that feels spacious and is functional without being excessively large. Using techniques like maximising sunlight and built-in furniture will make a home that is a joy to live in but will not cost a fortune in property tax.
Carbon Tax is already happening, but it is due to constantly increase in years to come. Carbon tax is basically a government tax put on fuels that create carbon changing gases and harm the environment, so the more fuel you use the more you pay. It is a way of encouraging people to live more energy efficient lives. A passive house is one of the most efficient types of houses that can be built and they are currently no more expensive to build than regular houses, so anybody thinking of building a new house would be foolish to build anything to a lesser standard. Miles Sampson BArch can also offer designs that will earn you money instead of costing you money by producing energy that you can sell. Thankfully even existing houses can be upgraded to save energy and therefore save the amount that has to be paid on carbon taxes.

Be prepared for the future and avoid ever increasing costs by talking to us today.

28/10/2011 Promoting home grown vegetables.

G.I.Y. is a charity setup to promote and support growing vegetables and fruit at home for the kitchen. This is an ambition of many people, but they often get put off by early failed attempts. G.I.Y., abbreviated for Grow It Yourself, aims to help and support people who want to grow their own vegetables. The advantages of growing your own vegetables are numerous, including:

Home grown vegetables do not have to travel, so no energy is used or pollution generated for transporting the produce to the kitchen table.
Home grown vegetables normally use ″man-power″ to do the manual work. Humans are much more efficient machines than tractors and harvesters; therefore far less impact is made on the environment.
Working in the garden is good exercise and helps avoid the epidemic of obesity.
Showing children how to grow food gives them a better appreciation of food nutrition and helps them enjoy vegetables they may otherwise not want to try.
Spending time in the garden is a good and productive reason to be outdoors, something that is a good antidote to many peoples office/factory job lifestyle.
Home grown food is normally organic, which is generally healthier.
Organically grown food has less embodied energy because it has less fertilizers and pesticides, therefore it uses less scare resources and puts less pressure on the environment.
Home grown food costs very little, which helps give important savings in these recessionary times.
Growing vegetables and fruit in the garden means you do not have to cut the lawn. What better than to have a garden that provides for you?
And now G.I.Y. offers a support network to make it much easier. See www.giyireland.com

17/10/2011 Planning permission granted by Galway CoCo for new eco house.

Galway County Council have granted planning permission for a new super eco house in Craughwell, Co. Galway. This projects aims to act as an exemplar project in sustainable building of one off rural houses. To ensure that the ambitious aims of this project are achieved, a 3 fold approach to the build will be applied; (1) build to certified passive house standard (2) achieve an A plus Building Energy Rating BER (3) build low carbon construction. The style of the house mixes the advantages of traditional and contemporary design to take maximum advantages of the site and make a light filled house that costs nothing to run. The planners acknowledged the importance of this quality design in their report when they commented ″The proposed development of a passive house using sustainable building methods and materials and which maximises the natural sun path is to be welcomed and encouraged″. www.GreenTec.ie has been appointed the contractor for the project. A blog has been setup by the client to follow the construction of the dwelling. To follow click on www.zerocarbonpassivehouse.com

15/08/2011 Easy Urban Farming

A new initiative in Canada is turning boring back lawns into productive organic gardens; alas without all the hassle. In the city of Calgary a team called Leaf and Lyre Urban Farmers www.leafandlyre.com will take over your back garden, even if it is small, and use it to grow organic vegetables for local markets and restaurants. In return you can eat as much fresh organic vegetables as you like and get your garden maintained. The concept also creates a community of likeminded people and helps urban dwellers get an understanding of one of the basics requirements of survival; food. This arrangement has many advantages, including food security and reduced food miles. The initiative is based on the SPIN (S-mall P-lot IN-tensive) farming method www.spinfarming.com which is spreading across Canada. We are looking forward to this initiative starting on this side of the Atlantic, especially in Ireland where there is a high percentage of suburban dwellers that have gardens ideal for this kind of initiative.

03/07/2011 Solar Impulse finishes its European tour

Solar Impulse is a solar powered aeroplane that flies without the need for any fuels. It can even fly through the night! All power is generated onboard via the solar array and is stored in onboard batteries for night flight. Solar Impulse ambition is to circumnavigate the world. It has now successfully completed its tour of Europe, stopping in Brussels and Paris. The success of these flights prove that long distance flight using renewable energy is possible. See www.solarimpulse.com for more details.

09/05/2011 Full planning permission for dwelling on Cork Costal Site

Cork County Council has granted full planning permission for a Miles Sampson designed 2 storey dwelling on a prominent costal site, despite restrictions on building height. The house design uses inspiration from traditional structures of the area to achieve a stylish, compact, sustainable architecture for the clients, who are delighted to have full planning permission for the house of their dreams.

15/02/2011 British building company publish Passiv Haus video

The Green Building Store in the UK has published an online video about their experience constructing the first passive house dwelling in the UK. This informative video explains all aspects of the design, construction and components of a passiv haus. To view follow this link. Miles Sampson BArch are currently finishing a unique passive house in Ireland, which will be available to view online shortly. Check back regularly for updates.

09/10/2010 permission for dwelling on Costal Site

Clare County Council has granted permission for a dwelling on a costal site, where the client had had previous difficulty in getting permission. The permission was grant without trouble when submitted by Miles Sampson BArch and the client are delighted to finally have permission to be able to build.

24/06/2010 Another permission granted in the Eco Village

Miles Sampson BArch has received permission for yet another dwelling in the Eco Village in Cloughjordan. The permission came through without any delays or requests for changes although the designed featured some unique curved features.

21/06/2010 3 storey grass roofed house

Permission has been granted for a 3 storey dwelling house in the Eco Village. The design also features a curved tower section and grass roof. Permission was granted without any delays.

28/05/2010 Timber clad and grass roof dwelling granted permission

North Tipperary County Council has decided to grant full planning permission for a uniquely designed dwelling in the Eco Village in Cloughjordan by Miles Sampson BArch. The building was designed following their stated principals; sustainable architecture and innovative design. This enabled the designers to be awarded a grant of permission for a fully timber clad building with a grass sod roof, which is notoriously difficult to be awarded in rural areas. In addition to the use of natural materials, the house is designed to maximise passive solar gains by placing the majority of the glazing to the south with minimal openings on the north. Miles Sampson BArch is now making preparations along with the client to prepare for the construction of this unique building.

23/04/2010 Fire Safety and Disability Access Certificates granted

Miles Sampson BArch has been granted the fire safety certificate and disability access certificate for the timber framed apartment building located in the Eco Village in Cloughjordan in Tipperary. Although timber frame construction is a relatively new construction method for apartment buildings in Ireland, extensive consultation and attention to detail ensured that the design was passed by building control. The apartment building has been custom designed to the client's wishes, allowing the owners to live a more sustainable lifestyle in surroundings that meet their every need. The building has many ecological features, including; planted roof, extensive timber cladding, recycled newspaper insulation, timber frame structure, connection to district heating system etc. During the design phase, a great deal of attention was given to important aspects of the building, like abundant natural daylight for all apartments and ample external open space, which has produced a design of superior architectural merit. Construction is anticipated to start on site early this summer.

22/09/2009 Orders being taken for 1st serious electric car

Combating the energy used in transportation is one of the great challenges we face in dealing with climate change and CO2 reduction. It seems clear that the solution will not depend on one new invention or solution; it is going to require a many different approaches to dealing with the problem. And one of the most important elements will be the use of electric cars run on renewable energy. Bluecar, a joint venture between Bollore and Pininfarina looks like it will be the first to offer an electric car that does not look like a teenage box car, and a car that can actually cover enough distance to make it useful in Ireland. This is especially important to Ireland, because it has a higher than average amount of people living rurally. The things that make electric cars are so important are:

A huge amount of transportation is taken by commuting to work or bringing children to school. These distances are well within the range of one charge of batteries, therefore electric cars will be able to deal with a large part of the transport sector.
They do not produce any waste substance when being driven
They use an existing infrastructure of energy supply (the electricity grid).
The energy to run them can be provided by existing renewable technologies (unlike hydrogen).
They can easily be "filled", just need to find a power outlet.
Parking garages and work places can easily provide power outlets to recharge the car.
Anybody can generate the electricity required to power them (put some PV panels on the roof or install a wind turbine).
Because the batteries in the car can be charged at point of power generation there is no transmission losses associated with electricity networks.
The car batteries can be used as energy sync to store renewable energy (basically if a wind turbine is installed beside a house it will be producing a lot of energy when everybody is sleeping. This energy is wasted or sent to the grid, but having a car to charge up is a much more intelligent use of the energy).

It is important to remember that electric cars only become truly sustainable if the electricity is from 100% renewable sources. Both Photovoltaics and wind energy work together to provide electricity, because often when one does not supply energy the other does. In the future your home will provide the power for your transportation, how nice is that!

To place your pre-order visit www.solaris-energy.ie and to view the car visit www.bluecar.fr Remember to get an architect/designer that knows how to integrate them into your design.

15/09/2009 Miles Sampson BArch wins appeal

An Bord Pleanala have upheld the decision of Killarney Town Council to give planning permission for a new two and a half storey dwelling close to the town centre. An Bord Pleanala cited "sustainable building" and "significant architectural merit" among their reasons to grant permission.

26/08/2009 Permission granted for Eco Apartments

North Tipperary County Council has decided to grant planning permission for the Miles Sampson BArch. designed ecological apartment building in The Eco Village in Cloughjordan, Co. Tipperary. This building will bring a new standard in apartment living. The proposal overcame the planner's concerns by presenting a contemporary well resolved design that reacts to its location. Each apartment will have good southern orientation and a layered facade to ensure privacy and usable open space while adhering to the ecological charter of The Eco Village.

06/08/2009 Permission granted in sensitive Lough Gur

Limerick County Council has decided to grant planning permission for the Miles Sampson designed extension to an existing house in the scenic and archaeologically sensitive area of Lough Gur, Co. Limerick. By designing a contemporary building that makes reference to vernacular farm buildings, considerable extension and renovation of the house will improve the advantage that the house takes of it beautiful surroundings by giving many of the exiting rooms connections to these views.

04/06/2009 Organic Fruit and Vegetables

Organic fruit and vegetables are good for your health, help the environment and taste better. But getting a steady supply of organic fresh produce can be difficult, expensive and time consuming. This does not always have to be the case. Luckily there are services that deliver a box of fresh fruit and veg each week. By purchasing in bulk and offering what is in season they can offer quality organic produce at regular prices. Some suppliers include: Absolutely Organic in Dublin and Recapte in Barcelona

17/02/2009 Permission granted for Passive House in Killarney

Killarney Town Council has decided to grant planning permission for a passive house designed by Miles Sampson. BArch in Killarney town. The design takes maximum advantage of the site by increasing the sunny garden and locating parking to the cold north. We are now working closely with the client to build a passive house certified by the passiv haus institute in Germany. In the future it is hoped that this house could be rented for short stays to people thinking of building a passive house, so that they could experience a passive house before they commit to building/buying one. Killarney is an ideal location for Passive house holidays with its breathtaking natural beauty, national parks, lakes and the ring of Kerry. Project details to follow soon on this website

08/01/2009 The Story of Stuff

This is a great website (even if it is a little dumbed down) about consumerism and what it is doing to the planet (socially and environmentally). Have a look, if for no other reason than to pass it onto somebody who is a little less informed. Visit www.storyofstuff.com.

02/01/2009 - Self recycling Christmas cards

This year Miles Sampson, BArch. use the ″Grow a Note″ series of Christmas cards produced by the Green Field Paper Company. These cards are embedded with seeds and made with 100% recycled paper and natural soya inks. When dampened and placed in soil they burst into flower. This is a truly recyclable card and helps makes Christmas a little greener. Visit www.greenfieldpaper.com for more information.

25/11/2008 - Planning Granted in Cork

Cork CoCo have granted full planning permission for a contemporarily designed eco house near Mallow in Cork. This is the first planning application by Miles Sampson BArch in county Cork, but the design was accepted without question by the council. The design is for a contemporary design two storey family house with grass roof and substantial glazing to the south. The house is designed to benefit from substantial solar gains which will reduce the heating cost and help protect the environment. To see more information about the project visit the projects page or click here.

19/11/2008 - Authentic Business

The other day I met Neil Crofts, the author of authentic business. In a nutshell authentic business is about doing things the right way. It is a business that does not make its primary goal: profit, but profit is a side product of its primary goal e.g. for a weaver to make beautiful quilts without damaging the environment, exploiting people or cheating clients. In our case this is to make design beautiful buildings that our clients enjoy and are happy in. To find out more about authentic business visit www.authenticbusiness.co.uk
www.authentictransformation.co.uk
www.authenticinspiration.co.uk

04/11/2008 - Planning Permission Granted for Hotel Complex

Clare CoCo grant planning permission for the redevelopment of The Miles Sampson designed Smyths Hotel in Feakle, Co Clare

On the 4th of November 2008 Clare County Council decided to grant planning permission for the redevelopment of Smyths Hotel.

The new project involves:

10 bedroom hotel, with large function room, conference room, gym.
9 Holiday cottages that will be managed by the hotel and have been designed so they can be configured as self catering accommodation or as separate additional bedrooms.
14 sheltered housing / retirement village units. These are designed for aging people who seek the support of local service, but do not was to go into full care. The units can be used as normal houses and as the owners age the services of the hotel will be at hand to give assistance.

Throughout the project Miles Sampson BArch worked closely with consultants to create a sustainable development, both in environmental and economic terms.