Residents of a new housing development in Dublin are enjoying increased levels of thermal comfort, and reduced heat loss after Rockwool insulation was installed on the external envelope. The development aims to provide low-energy housing for its residents.
Silken Park, a Durkan Residential housing development, features a combination of two, three and four bed houses. Every part of the development was carefully considered to reduce energy use and to make the houses comfortable and healthy to live in. The construction and the design teams were tasked with creating a cost effective building envelope that delivered efficient fabric performance and excellent overall thermal performance.
As the main contractor on this project, Ecofix adopted the ‘fabric-first’ approach to the construction to build a well-insulated and airtight building. Key to this approach is the use of an external wall insulation system that completely wraps the houses, designed to minimise thermal bridging.
Specifically designed to meet high thermal standards, Rockwool External Wall DD Slab, Rockwool’s BrickShield and Rockwool RedArt Silicone render systems were the perfect solution for this project, according to the company.
Developed in a partnership between Rockwool and Ibstock, the BrickShield system was used to provide a real brick finish on the external wall insulation. Rockwool insulation boards were fixed using an adhesive around the perimeter of each piece of insulation as well as mechanically fixed with thermally-broken Insulating wall anchors.
Offering triple value, the Rockwool REDArt Silicone EWI System is designed for thermal performance, fire protection as well as aiming to provide an attractive exterior for projects. The REDArt rendering solution has been developed to be installed on a wide range of substrates and wall construction types. This has provided Silken Park with an efficient thermal solution to minimise the resident’s heating requirements and provide high standards of thermal comfort.
“Rockwool is our first choice of insulation because it is breathable and fire proof” says Jay Stuart, technical director, Ecofix UK and Ireland. “The particular product that Rockwool provided us with to build these houses is dual density. This means it is impact resistant on the outside, and slightly softer on the inside where it is fitted against the masonry wall. This means that the slab compresses and fills all the unevenness on the masonry wall achieving a perfect fit of insulation. In addition, the technical support Rockwool provided was second to none which helped in the delivery of the project on time.”
Rockwool thermally engineered and environmentally-friendly solution has helped to provide energy efficiency and reduced heating consumption. The building fabric has low heat loss which is in line with design predictions and aims to provide the residents with increased levels of thermal comfort in a cost-effective manner.
“Durkan Residential is seeing savings of approximately 10% in the external walls themselves” said Andrew Kinnear, commercial director at Durkan Residential. “We are seeing a faster build, which is reducing our time on site.”
