The Selfbuild Podcast

Jonny Orr of Daniel George Kitchens and Caroline O'Neill of Digg Mama chat about Caroline’s kitchen design journey including how she went about it and what steps she would recommend self-builders taking. The chat also focused on:·        Main things to consider when designing a kitchen; common mistakes to avoid.·    &n

Matt Kinloch of SONAS Bathrooms and Darrel McCauley of Spectrum Bathrooms joined us at Selfbuild Live Belfast to talk about what’s trending in bathroom designs and how to get the style on a budget, includingColours and style in general: what’s on trend, e.g. is barbiecore a thing in bathrooms? What are the classics?General budget saving advice: consider number of bathrooms

Pete Cole of Pete Cole Consulting shares the most common issues he comes across self-build sites, including:How to work to a budget - where to spend your moneyEvaluating site conditions, from utilities running through the site to contaminationTask approval in NI, developer enquiriesVariations to designs and importance of site meetingsHow to choose a builder and pitfalls of going di

DJ Ramsdale of DJ Build Estimations updates us on builds costs in Ireland at Selfbuild Extend & Renovate Live Limerick in January 2024. He covers:How are projects costed for maximum accuracy?How much is an average self-build costing nowadays, per sqm? For what type of house?What is the most cost effective type of house to build? Size, shape, choice of building method for floor,

Architect Mark Stephens, who is based in Co Mayo, chats about how to get planning permission in ROI including:-         What is planning permission-         Who needs planning permission and under what circumstances-         The application process-

Francis Rilley of Unilin Insulation and Andrew Rennie of Energy Store chat about insulating your home in Ireland today. We caught up with them at Selfbuild Live Belfast 2023 to chat about:The different types of insulation with pros and cons for each including cost, thermal efficiency, fire resistanceRecipe for an energy efficient building fabric: insulation and airtightnessTypical

Where are build costs heading? We look at the situation in Ireland today, in 2023 with DJ Ramsdale of DJ Build Estimations who tunes in to answer your questions about how much it costs to build in Ireland in 2023, from what method is cheapest to what to expect to pay overall. He covers:What’s the most cost effective construction method?Is a dormer cheaper than a two storey h

Kieran Dwyer of insurance broker SelfBuild Protect chats about: What self-build insurance is and why you need itIs self-build insurance mandatory like car insurance?What do mortgage providers look forWhat makes it difficult to insure a new build projectWhen do insurance companies insure non-standard builds?How much does insurance cost todayRenovations and extensions: when does self

Barry McCarron, Chairman of the Passive House Association of Ireland, chats about doing up his family to make it energy efficient, including:Going from a bungalow to an A rated homeCost details and how it compared to building newWhat is the fabric first approachWhat are the main types of insulation? Where are each best used?How much insulation is enough: cost optimal amount to inst

Paul Lawford explains how he built his tiny home on wheels from scratch, including:What is a tiny houseWhy he decided to build a tiny house to live inHow he built it from start to finish, DIY with no previous experienceWhere he sourced materialsHow much it costThe case for tiny house living Tips and advice to others thinking of a building themselves tiny houseLessons learned Hosted