Building Energy Rating (BER) Certificate in Ireland

Utilising renewable energy sources can give many benefits; such as reducing our energy spending, our dependence on fossil fuels and our impact on the environment.

For householders, the most practical areas for the use of renewable energies in the home are for space heating and the supply of domestic hot water which account for over 70% of household energy consumption.

If you are building a new home you should make use of passive solar design principles from the onset, which can be incorporated at no extra cost while bringing substantial gains in energy savings and comfort.

Passive solar design makes use of the energy produced by the sun to provide heat and light in your dwelling. To design the lay-out of your house to maximise the heat and light gain from the south facing sun can greatly reduce your energy bills by as much as10%. With additional measures this saving can be further enhanced.

Using wood chips/pellets instead of peat and coal to heat our homes makes a positive contribution to the environment as they come from sustainable resources. Wood fuel grows over a 5-20 year period, whereas peat and coal took thousands of years to form and is depleting rapidly.

With a new range of modern, highly efficient stoves and boilers available using wood fuel, it’s a cleaner and greener choice.

Geothermal or Ground Source Heat Pumps collect heat from solar energy stored within the ground and are ideal for the Irish climate. This is an excellent energy source to be used in conjunction with underfloor heating.

These systems use a small amount of electricity to draw a much larger amount of heat from the ground. Installation costs are higher than those of a conventional heating system but running costs are much lower.

In Ireland, solar heating systems can provide economical hot water and space heating for homes and buildings, in fact as much as 60% of the annual hot water requirements. It is also documented that, one square metre of solar panel receives the equivalent of more than 100 litres of oil in free solar energy per year.

A solar water heater produces hot water by converting sunlight into heat through its solar panels or tubes. The heat is stored in a large hot water cylinder readily available when you need it. It converts both direct and indirect sunlight into heat, so it works even on dull days.

The energy that travels in the wind can be captured and converted to provide electricity. There is no cheaper, cleaner source of energy than energy you do not have to produce. Wind energy provides a clean, sustainable solution to our energy needs. It can be used as an alternative to fossil fuels in generating electricity, without the emission of greenhouse gases. And there will always be wind; it is inexhaustible and renewable.

Passive solar design
Wood pellet burners
Geothermal/Ground Source Heat Pumps
Solar Panels
Wind Turbines

M.C.M Architecture & Surveying Ltd t/a MCM Associates : Meetinhgouse St, Raphoe, Co.Donegal, Tel: 074 91 44968

These are just some of the main renewables currently on the markets but there are other new technologies now available and if you need further info contact us