The following is a guest post from Mayo RIAI (Conservation Grade III) Architect – Mark Stephens. Mark also publishes the daily newsletter ‘The Architect Mark Daily‘ I am delighted to get an Architects advice and opinions on renovating Irish Cottages and I hope you enjoy the article. Take it away Mark:
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 also that 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 – 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
Irish cottages and how they fit into 21st century living.
The Traditional Irish Cottage
The vast majority of what you see as ‘The Traditional Irish Cottage’
fall into a similar design; usually two bedrooms with 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
7-8 metres), 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 extend a traditional cottage without losing its original charm and
honesty?
Restoring an Irish Cottage
Let’s assume therefore that your cottage has fallen into disrepair and
firstly needs to be restored; we’ll need 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 failing that, to install appropriately
proportioned windows and doors that are sympathetic to the cottage’s
period.
The importance of materials
The process of a house restoration takes time and care. If
you’re employing someone else to do it, it can work out quite expensive due to the amount of time and care it can take to do the job right. A 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 incorrect materials that actually
increase the level of damp in a property rather than eliminating it.
Lime Render
The biggest problem with stone cottages is the prevalent use of
Portland Cement based renders on 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 as 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.
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.
Insulation
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. By insulating and
rendering externally you’ll be drastically changing 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 simply return to
the way the house was heated originally; by 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.
Extending your Irish Cottage
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 we make to them should be
indicative of today’s time; that is of the 21st century. In doing this – 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 section 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 of 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
[…] Have you read my guest blog post on Cottageology yet? Titled ‘An Architects View on Irish Cottages – Restoring and Extending’ […]
[…] 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’ – […]
the cottage…
[…]Architects view on Irish Cottage renovation, restoration and extension[…]…
The restoration looks great, but I’m not so sure about the modern extensions. Especially the first one looks way to modern for my taste, but the second one (the one made mostly of glass) might not be so bad.
I wanted some advice about our Irish cottage which uses an enormous amount of fuel (logs) in the 3 chimneys. Two have wood burning stoves installed and there is also oil fired central heating but it is really eating money for little return. Should we dispose of one chimney and knock two rooms into one with one fire?
Also, it is a holiday cottage so the chimneys get damp when not in regular use. Can you please help?
Hi Ann, so sorry for the delay with replying to this comment – I’ve had a crazy year and poor Cottageology got neglected. You need to get a structural engineer to look into the problem. Its practically impossible to make a cottage air-tight (and also would you really want to but thats a whole other debate…), an engineer will assess your property and help you understand what you can do to improve it. I would have thought that wood burning stoves would cut down on a lot of your issues but as you mentioned – lack of use leads to… Read more »
I used a specialist conservation builder when renovating my cottage. I replaced cement render on both gables with a lime render. I repointed the stone front with lime mortar. I replastered inside with lime plaster. I used hemp under the lime for insulation. Result? The damp problem has been replaced by a “wet problem”. The walls in some places are literally wet to the touch depending on the weather. Using lime is no guarantee whatsoever that you will have a warm dry home. People considering this approach need to be warned….if you use the old methods, you may well end… Read more »
Hi Kevin – brilliant comment! I really want to get out and photograph more cottage renovations this year – would you be interested and you can tell your cautionary tail about insulation and traditional methods. I would love to give all sides of the story – not just what people ‘should’ do but what works and problems that renovators have faced. Pop me an email at orla@cottageology.com if you’d be interested!
My sympathies to Kevin. There is a a lot of information out there about cottage renovations but you really have to dig through a lot of horse apples to get to the nub it. Slapping lime plaster all over the place won’t address a damp problem if it is a rising damp problem. I have a 200 yr old (guess) rubble stone wall cottage that we have renovated and extended with a timber frame timber clad extension built to near passive house standard. With the cottage we have essentially created an insulated inner skin and left the walls as they… Read more »
Hi Paul – fantastic comment, it is easily one of the biggest issues that cottage renovators face – thank you for taking the time to write this!
Hi Paul,
I know this is an old message but i would love to know more abt your renovation as I am starting one myself.
Pls email me if possible.
Paul, I am considering doing a farmhouse cottage renovation and would be interested in hearing more about your project. Can you please touch base with me so we can discuss. IT sounds like you did an excellent job. Thank you.
I’m currently going extending and building out the back of my 19th century cottage but I can not get an engineer to over see the house because they can’t certify the old building. They have all said they will do it if I knock the cottage and rebuild the same. Can this be done without planning? It’s been said to hit it with the digger and work away but I’d enough trouble with the planners so don’t really want more. Any help will be great!!!
Hi David – The new regulations has everyone terrified into paralysis so your best bet will be to put your query to the Building Regs Forum – http://www.bregsforum.com/ Its a voluntary group of architects who are interpreting the new regulations and lobbying for clarification and change. I will also see if anyone can help on FB or twitter.
Hi.Im about to return to Ireland and want to buy a cottage possibly in Mayo and restore it to a reasonable and very simple living standard.Would 50-70 k be a realistic figure incl property cost?
Any suggestions would be very welcome.
I’m afraid I have no answer for you on this – it is a case of how long is a piece of string. Even if you already had a cottage it would be impossible to forecast a budget without a detailed engineers report and a plan for what you want to achieve. People have renovated cottages on a shoestring but they generally do the work themselves, salvage and/or have access to free/cheap labor, materials and services. Best of luck if you do decide to come home & keep in touch if you decide to go ahead with a renovation :-).
Hi we are hoping to renovate my grandparents cottage its over 100 years old. We have decided on ivory sash pvc windows however a contemporary design for the extension at the rear. This may sound crazy! But i am thinking of alucad sliders one at side and one at the rear in… black! on the outside The whole corner will be glass. But one door nesr window. Would it look out of place being black? New roof slates going in in black gutters etc. I havent seen this before slong side with 2 colours. only at rear. Need some advice
Hi Lisa, design questions are really subjective – ideally you should try to quickly mock up the shape of the cottage in something like Google Sketchup and composite it on an image of the site to get a better idea of how it would look in situ. If it is outside your comfort zone – ask an engineer or architect. I’ve often seen two differing styles from traditional to contemporary on one building especially when there is an extension to a heritage building – sash windows rarely suit a contemporary extension!
My wife and I currently own a 3 room semi detached 19th century cottage outside Ballymore co westmeath and have lived in it for a couple of months, We are trying to restore while we are living in it but its not easy as its quite small, we also see water on the walls and mold can be a problem if the house isn’t aired out daily, the cottage next door has been vacant for the last 10 years and is in disrepair, we are hoping to buy this cottage and maybe knock the wall to make the two homes… Read more »
Hi Steve – sounds exciting! I know that the owners of Old Farm Cottage did something similar though they just extended into Babe’s Room (which was an attached piggery which was beside the building). As always with these things – the only thing to do is to talk with a local engineer or architect. Its been a while since I dealt with planning authorities but I found that they were pretty helpful when it came to pre-planning meetings too – perhaps that is all you need. I hope that is of some help :-)!
looking for ideas for cottage conversion in meath
Hi Cathriona – you should have a chat with a local architect in your area – planning laws vary and change and architects have experience and expertise in renovation and restoration. Kind Regards, Orla
That’s really interesting Paul and Kevin. I am so confused as to what to do with my 1840s single storey rubble wall cottage in Bray which has a cement render, uneven concrete floor, Kingspan dry lined wall, UPvc windows and no vents. Of course it has some damp patches on the walls in wet weather and the walls are cold to the touch, unlike the walls in the new part of the house. I’d like to put down new flooring a do something about the damp patches. The external walls were Injected and a damp sealant painted on the floors… Read more »
Hi. We have a rubble wall house about 100 years old. Walls are about 8 inches thick. Laois/Kildare border. Dry lined and fairly easy to heat. We are planning on changing the windows and thinking of adding external insulation at the same time. Any thoughts on external insulation and the implications for this type of house?
Hi Charlie, I’m afraid that I am not qualified to give advice on structural issues – your best bet is to take with a good structural engineer (one that is a friend of conservation preferably) or a conservation architect – see here for the directory: http://www.riai.ie/practice_directory/. Forums and online advice can only take you so far but insulation is important and expensive so it is best to get advice that you can rely on!
We want to build a traditional Irish cottage next summer here in the US. Are yhetr any guide’s, books, references we can access?
There aren’t many specifically for building traditional Irish cottages as they wouldn’t meet current regulations. You can check out the traditional layouts here – https://archive.cottageology.com/cottage-plans/. There a few books like Maura Shaffery’s that have interesting information on cottages but not much by way of plans. The Cork County Council Rural Development guidelines are really good for getting ideas for modern interpretations of cottages – http://www.corkcoco.ie/co/pdf/578944050.pdf Traditional Irish cottages would have been one room deep and typically with only two or three rooms which is generally considered too small for modern families so I always recommend getting an architect to interpret… Read more »
We have a 2 room traditional cottage no electricity water or sewage poor access grass lane for tractors at mo but in love with it and plot where do we start?
I can’t stress this enough – get professional advice when starting a build, even if you intend to self build – get an architect and/or structural engineer out to assess the site and building first. The regulations are constantly changing and no two sites or cottages are the same. Your first port of call should always be professional advice. If you are short on cash, make them aware and agree a fixed fee survey at least then you will get a better idea of the scope of the project and the costs involved. Best of luck with your project 🙂
Hi Orla Similar problems to other folk on here…I’ve inherited my father’s thatched cottage in Donegal…it hasn’t been lived in for three years now….we came over from England to look at it in March and it is in a dreadful state of semi-dereliction. I’ve set it up as a ‘HelpX’ project and have volunteers coming for two months in the summer. My budget is only £10k and all of that will be taken up with rethatching and repairing the roof…a third of the roof is collapsed completely and I was wondering what you thought of the ideea of clearing this… Read more »
Hi Helena, I can’t stress enough how important it is to have an engineer on board to address these problems. Everyone online has opinions but they are not responsible for the build or its outcome – an engineer will make sure you are making the right decisions, that the build is safe and that you are in compliance with regulation which will be important for insurance and re-sale if ever required. I know it is an expense but it will save you a lot of headaches in the long run! I’d love to see how your cottage renovation is going… Read more »
Hi. Could anyone tell me if you wanted to renovate a cottage, is there a time restriction and are you allowed to stay on the property in temporary accommodation . tnxx
Hi Lesley – did you ever get an answer on this – I would be interested to know the answer myself as I’ve never been asked this question before! I’ve often thought about that myself – a caravan on site would be ideal, I know many people do it but does it require planning permission – will put it out there on the Facebook group.
Kind Regards,
Orla
What would you recommend as a damp proof membrane for floor in a rubble/mud wall 150 year old cottage? Is a sand and lime mix suitable for the floor?
Hi Shane – I think you ment to send this directly to Mark – his contact details are info@markstephensarchitects.com
Kind Regards,
Orla
If the above picture of the cottage were completely restored, approximately what would be the cost? That includes insulation, electrical, water, etc.
We have just put in plans to planning on our listed cottage and need some advise. We are keeping the cottage as is and putting a modern extension on but they what us to change some as it’s not in keeping with a cottage. I taught nowadays they like new to be new and keep the old as old. Not try to blend it. Any suggestions.