Fulfilling requirements in Malahide

F our years ago, Joe Fallon Design were approached by homeowners in Malahide to design an extension for their house.

Work commenced on the property coming towards the end of 2016 and it was completed in the middle of 2017. The Architectural Technologist over this project was Eric Stilwell of Joe Fallon Architectural Design.

Mr Stilwell has experience in small and large scale design projects including domestic and residential design work, church refurbishment, cultural buildings and exhibition spaces. As part of the Joe Fallon Design team, Eric brings to life various designs using drafting and 3D modelling software.

He employs his design flair, technical ability and renewable energy expertise in realising sustainable buildings that are not only suitable for the client, but for the surrounding environment as well. “This was an extension project and there wasn’t any renovation work to the rest of the house.

The clients wanted their living space extended. The work took approximately four months and it (the work) went smoothly enough,’’ said Eric Stilwell.

“Before extending their living space, it was originally an open plan kitchen/dining room with the conservatory opening up off that space, it was quite dark and the ceilings were quite low as they were decorational ceilings. It wasn’t as open a space as you would have expected for a large house.

“The clients wanted to open up all of that space and get rid of the sun room because it wasn’t being used at all because those rooms are generally too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter so they weren’t using it at all so they wanted to take advantage of the space that they had,’’ enthused Mr Stilwell.

“The obvious thing to do is to tack it on to the end of the house and we see that a lot and we try and correct that mindset as best we can,’’ he added. “At the moment, prices are going up and they are higher than they used to be so unfortunately either the expectations need to be lowered or the budgets need to be increased in order to achieve that. It is just the way the market is at the moment so it is important to be aware of that,’’ imparted Eric.

As to highlights of this project?

“The highlight to this particular job was soundproofing! The clients had a young daughter and they have recently had a baby so they were very conscious of the utility room and their bedroom being above the living space so it was very important to sound proof the utility and we all sound proofed the floor between the ground floor and the first floor. We added insulation and sound proofing boards to achieve this,’’ he added. “Thankfully the clients are very happy with their home which is always a good outcome for us. We’re very proud of this house, ‘’ concluded Eric Stilwell.

We moved the utility to the middle of the house in order to open up the back of the living space,’’ he added. With more and more people opting to add an extension on to their property, would Mr Stilwell have any words of wisdom or things to consider before doing so? “When you are thinking about extending your home and when you are laying out the spaces in your own mind; consider moving the utilities to the middle of the house and open up the back of the house to take advantage of the light and the garden.

 

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