Mark Stephens Architects

Now I’m not saying that the design isn’t important, it is but your architect should be able to work with you, the site and planning in order to achieve a design that everyone is happy is (obviously if you appoint a good architect ahem).

What will really scupper your dream home is all the stuff that the architect has no control over. The items listed below are fairly general to rural Ireland with an emphasis on Mayo Planning:

* Site suitability – I work with several consultants that specialise in the tests for septic tanks, effluent treatment units and percolation/polishing areas. These specialists will work with me and your site to achieve the best solution to ‘get it through planning’ whilst still achieving EPA guidelines.

* Water – You’re obviously going to need a potable water supply. Obviously the best solution is to connect to a mains supply but unless you’re in a city/town then this is a non-starter. You can connect to a group water scheme (if there is space) but bear in mind you might need to pay a hefty deposit prior to connection (€2000+ in some places). You can also drill a well but you’ll probably need to test the water as part of the planning application.

* Road Safety – Now this can be a really troublesome one; you’ll need clear visibility up and down the road. This visibility is set by a set-back distance from the access junction and being able to look without obstruction a minimum distance up and down the road, this distance is set by the speed of the road. Your architect as part of the planning permission will need to supply a site visibility diagram where the triangles of visibility (at a specific height) are shown. The Council obviously doesn’t want to give a planning permission that creates a road hazard; your architect however can analyse the best position to create a site access; work with solicitors (if required) to obtain visibility over neighbours’ lands.

What you can be assured of is that your architect should do his upmost to address each planning ‘challenge’ and work diligently to solve the problems one by one.

Comments as ever welcome…

5 things potential clients shouldn’t say to architects…

1. I know exactly what I want, I just want you to draw it up.

The architects skills go way beyond ‘just drawing things up’; if you know EXACTLY what you need then you may need someone else other than an architect.

2. I’ve had a few goes at drawing up a plan but I just can’t get it right. I don’t want you to draw anything until I’ve got it right.

I’m not going to even start on this one!

3. I’ve been looking at this book of plans and I’d like this one on page xy

I’d even written a FACT SHEET on this!

4. Phone call at 10.55pm; turn Grand Designs NOW on More 4+1 and copy that!

Same as 3. really

5. I really like the big 2 storey, Georgian Mansion look with columns and large bay windows on either side.

Just so there’s no confusion; here’s the Mayo Design Guide for one-off Rural Houses, read this and then weep.

I’ll be adding to this list when I hear something good (bad)!…(and yes, I’ve heard all of these). Comments as always welcome…

I suppose this is a bit of a continuation of the post on ‘Is your planning permission running out?’; with the premise of the post being ‘How do you get your house self-built in a reasonable time?’.

Now I’m not talking about how you find a site, how you get the money to buy the site, how you appoint your architect (ahem), how you get your planning permission, how you draw, specify and detail your house, or how you get the money to finally build your house. What I am talking about however is the impetus to actually get started and to finally start building…

The answer is straightforward, you need to make your current living conditions uncomfortable. The more uncomfortable the better. the worse the living conditions – the quicker you’ll get your house built. Look at the success stories on Grand Designs, all the ones on time the self-builders are living in a caravan on the site and unless you’re absolutely loaded then the trick to getting your house self-built within a reasonable time frame is to live uncomfortably either in temporary accommodation or a caravan on the site.

Now, I’m not going to slag off the house we lived in whilst self building our house as I still know the landlord (also the house has been subsequently refurbished), let’s just say it was not the best or warmest house I’d ever lived in and we self-built our own house over a two year period. In my experience if you want as I say to get your house built in a good time frame then GET UNCOMFORTABLE!.

Now I’m talking about project managing your own build; the alternative to getting your house built quicker is to employ a main contractor; I worked with 2 separate clients recently – the first was main contractor led and the client was living in the house after 7 months; the second is just finishing now – 4 years later. It’s a little mathematical calculation each self-builder needs to make – how much money do you have, how much do you want to save (self building as opposed to going the main contractor route) and how badly do you want to move into your house. Don’t forget also that as well as big savings when self-building/project managing there are also big headaches and an incredible amount of time is required ordering and signing for materials, coordinating and getting tradesmen on site…the list and headaches are endless.

There you go, comments welcome as always and below is piccie of our one we did earlier:

In these highly litigious times; the appointment of an expert witness is unfortunately all-too common and this blog post follows the excellent CPD course I completed at the RIAI on becoming an Expert Witness recently.

Firstly, what is an ‘Expert Witness’?

A dispute starts:

a. Claim is made by Person 1.

b. Claim is rejected by Person 2.

c. That rejection is inturn rejected by Person 1.

In order to settle the dispute, unbiased Expert Witnesses are appointed to investigate, prepare reports and then possibly to present those reports in court in order to provide evidence to support their findings.

Who can be an Expert Witness?

Basically it’s anyone with a specialist knowledge that can investigate and present their findings in an unbiased manner. This work is ideal for the architectural profession as it is them (more than any other design professional) that is trained to see the overall picture on any construction project; the GP if you like of designing and building.

If you think about the level of expertise and training that EVERY architect would have from design, planning, Building Regulations, Construction, detailing, contract administration, inspections, certificates…the list is endless and it is time that architects started to undertake this work again.

Therefore, if if you have any need for an Expert Witness, please do not hesitate to CONTACT ME…

I can also put you in touch with other Expert Witnesses that have particular expertise in Structural Engineering / structural failures and experts with specific knowledge in specific areas concerning Planning, again CONTACT ME…

Any avid reader of this blog will have seen the posts on the differences between Ireland and the UK regarding the pathetic Building Control system here. If you’ve missed them, here they are:

I demand and effective Building Control Poll

Misconceptions regarding Planning, Building Regulations/Control & Priory Court

Planning,Building Regulations/Control & Priory Hall contd…

Well it looks as if Ireland may get a better Building Control system. It’s not that the Building Regulations are poor (they are in many ways better than the UK if not Europe), the problem is with ensuring compliance.

They’re only in draft form at the moment and they’re a consultation document for public consultation which closes on the 24th May 2012.

Click here to view the Draft Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2012 (pdf, 163kb)

In summary, the draft regulations propose the following:

1. Building Regulation Compliant drawings & documentation to be lodged at same time as Building Commencement Notice

2. The client/building owner must appoint an “assigned” professional, at the above stage, to inspect and certify, at Completion Stage, that the building fully complies with the Building Regulations.

The list of “assigned” professionals includes (currently) registered architects, registered building surveyors or a chartered engineers.

3. The “assigned” professional doesn’t have to be the person submitting the compliance documentation at Commencement Stage, but the documentation/certification/inspection on completion must be by an “assigned” professional.

4. The Completion Certificate requires the “assigned” professional to take legal liability for compliance.

The RIAI has several issues with the proposed draft regulations which I’m not going to go into here but my opinion is that I welcome the change but still feel the only way to properly move forward is with an effective Building Control system along the lines of the UK either with Local Authority Building Control Officers or via Approved Building Inspectors.

This also means that although lodging the drawings is fine, there is still no check upon what is actually on those drawings; and it appears that the draft regulations serve only to assign blame upon completion when the proverbial shit hits the fan; a move not actually or truly helping build quality.

I’ll probably be adding to this post over time but comments as always welcome in the meantime…

Following on from Bob Borson’s Blog post that included his favourite Sharpie Pen, Scott Taylors original blog post ‘All about me’ and finally my blog post All About Me! I eventually found a Sharpie pen – in Easons in Galway (100 mileish round trip):

So what did I think? How does it compare with the European equivalent? Here’s the TopGear track challenge for pens:

1. Thinness:

No comparison the Sharpie UltraFine is at least half the thickness of the Staedtler Fine

2. Ergonomics:

Not much in it but I think the Sharpie has it again, better shape, easier to hold

3. Bleedthrough

Here I tested it on my Moleskine notebook, the Staedtler really shows through on the next page; again the Sharpie is the winner.

So I guess Bob Borson is right, the Sharpie is a gorgeous pen, especially for architects

Up until very recently, the time period for your planning permission was 5 years but due to the economic melt-down you can now extend this period by a maximum of a further 5 years citing ‘economic reasons’

Sounds good doesn’t it ? Fill in a simple form and you get an extra 5 years added to your planning permission.

Here’s the form in fact for you to fill in (the Mayo County Council version)

Too good to be true? Unfortunately yes.

Below is a photograph of a house near Westport where the planning history on the site went back to the 70′s. I came in after the outline planning permission was granted to undertake the ‘Planning Permission subsequent to outline’ in After an initial refusal (the proposed scheme was deemed not to be ‘single storey’ which was one of the outline planning conditions), the house as you see it (a double pitched, traditional design with a mezzanine over the kitchen/living area) was granted with an expiry date in May 2012.

Fast forward 5 years, planning is expiring and nothing has been built.

Fill the form in, pay the €62 and wait for the time extension.

Uh-Uh – refused due to road safety, local needs…..and lose €62 into the bargain.

The bottom line is that the planning authority is working to the current planning guidelines of the specific site in question; this means everything and anything can be raked up – from Septic tanks (very popular topic at the moment), road safety, local needs, maybe even the design!

Luckily, we started building at the beginning of this year and we’ve built up to wall plate as required by the Council. It was a bit of a rush getting everything ready, contracts signed etc… but the contractor (Howard Healy & Sons, Swinford) did his job admirably and we’re planning compliant with a month to spare, phew.

Conclusion

1. If you’re Irish Planning Permission is running out, don’t leave it until the last minute to extend as there may be unforeseen problems you’ll need to address.

2. Unless your planning permission was lovely and straightforward (highly unlikely) then be prepared to battle with newer, more stringent planning requirements.

3. If you need to get building within a planning deadline, it’s surprising how fast a shell can go up, find the money from somewhere and get started.

4. If you need an architect to help build to a specific deadline, prepare construction and tender information, form the contract between you and your builder and inspect/certify the project through the construction period – then please CONTACT me.

Comments as always welcome…

As the faithful readers will know, we designed and built our own house and this short blog post gives advice to those hoping to do the same.

As well as the hard work getting the money to buy the land and perseverance to see the whole thing through; the answer to the above question on ‘What is the secret of building your own house?’ is straightforward:

Don’t get too comfortable.

You will have seen it countless times on Grand Designs, the couple having to live in a caravan at the top of the site whilst the house is constructed around them.

The fact that they have stepped out of their comfortable house and are living close to the build helps incredibly in terms of getting your house built on time.

Doing it this way means that there’s no excuses in getting your house built, it’s a matter of necessity when the living conditions in your caravan are limited and fractious. There’s no lovely big, centrally heated house to return to, no lovely deep baths to relax in…

So my advice for those wanting to self-build their house is (obviously after you’ve got the land ready and you’re property is sold) is to move out straightaway, move into the caravan on the site and GET STARTED!

Well I’m making my way through the tear sheets on completed projects and here’s the latest one on a project we did a while back for Sculptor Tim Morris.

Click on the image below to open the pdf (approx 1.7Mb).

For more information on Tim’s work visit www.TimMorris.ie

Have you read my guest blog post on Cottageology yet? Titled ‘An Architects View on Irish Cottages – Restoring and Extending’

See the ‘AFTER’ photo of the Cobblers Cottage (below)

Enjoy, comments welcome…

Now you must know by now that I’m an avid user of social media, what with the blogging and tweeting but it still came as a big surprise that I’m one of the most influential architects using social media.

How do I know this? Thanks to the guys and gals at PeerIndex and the #ArchitectMap I am (currently at the time of blogging) the 24th highest ‘Influencer’. You can see the complete listing of Influential ‘Architects, Designers & Consultants on #ArchitectMap’ by either clicking on the image above or by CLICKING HERE.

Have I influenced you?

Comments as always welcome…

This was originally a guest post on Cottageology – a brilliant and highly recommended web site for lovers of the traditional Irish Cottage and all things Irish Cottage related. Here’s the original piece as it appears on Cottageology and also here you go below, ‘My view of the traditional Irish Cottage’ – enjoy:

My starting point for any project is always, “If this was my house, and taking the clients brief into account, what would be the best possible thing I can do?” As an architect I’m aware at all stages of creating an elegant, sustainable solution that the planners are going to like but the premise of “the best solution for the property” is one that holds well; if I don’t like what I’ve designed then how can I expect the clients to.

The premise of this post therefore is the proposals that if I were given a traditional Irish cottage then what would I do with it? We’ll need firstly to have a look at the design of these now neglected and Irish cottages and how they fit into 21st century living:

The vast majority of what you see as ‘The Traditional Irish Cottage’ fall into a similar design; usually with two bedrooms of a central living and cooking space. This central living space was the heart of the house which had an open fire for cooking and heating and frequently had a small ‘outshot’ which would house a small purpose built bed for Granny or Granddad to sleep in.

The cottage would have been built with whatever materials were to hand; stones for the walls, salvaged timber and thatch for the roof. Because of the scarcity of materials the house was only a single room deep and due to the tax on glass the windows would have been small and vertically orientated (the lintel over the window spanning a shorter distance).

The house would have been constructed by the owner with help from neighbours and friends. It is these characteristics that Ireland is now returning to in terms of new rural houses; the Cork Design Guide and the Mayo County Council Guidelines for Rural Houses both favour new houses that are a single room in depth (approximately 7-8metres), have vertically orientated windows and are constructed and finished in traditional materials.

But returning to our premise, what would I do if given a 19th century traditional Irish Cottage? Well, as you can see if the house is to be lived in for any extended period then the accommodation is insufficient by current day standards and the likelihood is that you’ll need to extend the property. Luckily the planners are happier when an existing property is extended (as long as all other planning factors such as road safety and site percolation are acceptable) rather than building anew. But what is the best way to sympathetically to extend a traditional cottage without losing its original charm and honesty.

Let’s assume therefore that your cottage has fallen into disrepair and firstly needs to be restored; we’ll need firstly therefore to tackle this before we can even consider extending it. As an RIAI architect accredited in Conservation (Grade III), the principle of ‘minimal intervention’ is the primary concern in work of this type; that is the minimal amount of work required in order to arrest the disrepair and to give the building a future for many years to come. This means using the correct materials and techniques to restore a building back to its original integrity. For a traditional cottage this means using lime mortars and renders for the stone walls, ideally repairing the original windows or secondly to install appropriately proportioned windows and doors that would be from the cottage’s period. The process of a house restoration takes time and care if you’re employing someone else to do it frequently a good sum of money due to the time involved. The gentle restoration of this type using the correct materials and construction is not a process to be taken lightly; it’s very easy to use the incorrect materials that actually increase the level of damp in a property rather than eliminating it. The biggest problem with stone cottages is the prevalent use of Portland Cement based renders on the walls that originally would have been finished in a naturally hydraulic lime based render. The problem with modern cement based renders on walls of this type is that water can penetrate any cracks in the render due to any slight wall movement (walls were frequently built on no or little or no foundations remember). This water then cannot find a way out of the building and crystallises as salt deposits on the walls; these deposits show as bubbled wallpaper or a salty crusts on the walls. The use of lime on walls allows the walls to dry out naturally and is therefore essential in restoring properties of this period.

Trying to obtain current levels of insulation in a traditional stone wall of this type is nigh on impossible; by drylining internally you will be drastically reducing the size of the rooms and insulating and rendering externally you’ll be changing drastically the appearance of the property. Instead (again with the premise that it’s my house and wanting to do the best that I could) I would be simply returning to the way the house was heated originally; by simply lighting a fire in the fireplace! You could however increase the thermal efficiency of the fireplace by installing a multi-fuel stove instead of leaving the fire open.

For more information on using Lime in your building, the book ‘Lime Works’ by Patrick McAfee is a brilliant resource on lime for render, mortar and floors.
So, you’ve carefully and diligently restored your lovely cottage but in what manner should it be extended?

I love tradition and the traditional Irish cottage is a great landmark in the collective history of Ireland (unfortunately tinged with oppression and sadness of this period) and it is for these reasons that it is essential that these landmarks are kept (rather than demolished) and if at all possible restored and brought back to their former glory.

But these houses are of a completely different time and period; and as such I feel that any extension that we make to them should be indicative of today’s time; that is of the 21st century. Doing this we rather than slavishly copying the old makes the building more honest, more legible and ‘easier to read’. The beautiful cottage is shown as ‘it would have been’ and the new bit is shown as something contemporary and of today’s time. Working in this way we actually enhance the original house rather than detract from it.

A good way of achieving a successful junction between old and new is to create a separation between the two, either through a step in elevation or through the use of a lighter material such as glass that creates a ‘separation’ between the existing and the new.

The conclusion therefore is not to be afraid in commissioning a contemporary, elegant structure that connects to your lovely cottage; doing this actually ‘sets-off’ the old rather than detracting from it with a simple copy of the old.
If you have an Irish Cottage of this type and would like to discuss further how you would like to restore and/or extend it then please do not hesitate to CONTACT ME.
Mark Stephens RIBA MRIAI
Mark Stephens Architects
Rooskey, Foxford, County Mayo
Tel: 085 159 4084
Email: info@markstephensarchitects.com
Web: http://markstephensarchitects.com

A bit of a continuation of the post on ‘Architect as Roller-Coaster Driver’ and the series on stuff they don’t teach at architecture school is that a. as a small business you go through periods of feast or famine; that is when all you seem to be doing is sending out invoices (which hopefully get paid) and the next minute either doing a stack of work before getting paid or praying for some work to come in.

Which brings us neatly to the second bit of the post heading: “Cashflow is king”. A well known phrase but what it means is that the cashflow in your business needs to be such that you can even out the feasts or famines.

Now there are three things that affect cashflow and can cripple your fledgling business:

1. Office accommodation

Renting an office is a big expense and for me it’s one that doesn’t make sense. I don’t really want people coming of the street and as a sole-trader I can work just as well from my purpose-built studio at my house.

2. Staff

Staff wages make a big dent in your cashflow and there’s a careful financial equation that needs to be made on net income vs staff expenses.

3. Marketing

If there’s one thing guaranteed to make your money disappear fast is spending money trying to chase it with ill informed and badly put together, inappropriately timed leaflets, brochures and marketing stuff. Sometimes in business it’s best just to sit tight, batten down the hatches and just get smart with how you’re going to spend your hard earned £,$ or €.

There you go, a little bit of business advice from someone who’s been around the block a few times, had bigger offices and is now working ‘smart’. Comments as always welcome…

I was speaking to Isabel Barros a while back and the ‘Architect as…’ series continues with ‘Architect as Confidant and Confessor’.

The role of architect gives a very privileged position; that of being party to a persons innermost thoughts, hearing their dreams and goals, listening to their confessions, where they went wrong in life and where they would like to be going. I’ve already explained said that Architects need to study psychology in order to understand human behaviour (CLICK HERE FOR THAT LINK); but they can very easily take on the role of the client’s Confidant, Confessor, therapist, counsellor and priest.

So where does the ‘Champion Fencer’ come in? This is a fencer in terms of using a sword rather than the timber variety. And what I mean is that the Architect needs a rapier like mind to understand the client and all of their dreams and aspirations described above in order to implement a strong design strategy.

It also means (at a later stage) that the architect needs a rapier like mind to cut through the bull-shit when the job’s on site; changes and variations are made to the project and the accounts (and budget) need to be kept in order – See the Blog post ‘Architect as Accountant’ for more information on this.

How involved should an architect get? How personal should she/he get? Who knows, it’s each every architects personal call and every client is different in terms of their ‘opening up’.

Comments as always welcome.