When Australian-born Matthew Sheehan visited Claregalway Castle for a conference in 2014, he was enchanted by the look and feel of the oak-frame timberwork used in the construction of the building.
He and his wife, Olwyn, were looking to build a family home on a parcel of land close to Naas, in Co Kildare, that had been given to the couple by Olwyn’s sheep-and-tillage farming parents.
Having seen the exposed timbers and king-post roof at the ancestral home of Clanricarde de Burgo, the two opticians thought they would like something similar in their house.
“I like the geometry of oak-frame construction,” says Sheehan. “It conveys a sense of robustness and durability, and it looks beautiful. When we subsequently saw the visitor centre in Castlecomer, which also uses an oak-frame construction, we realised that it was possible and achievable in Ireland, that there were people here who could do that work.”
One such person was woodwright Paul Price, who specialises in traditional carpentry and has worked on several castle restorations. Each frame he makes is custom-built, and the frame used on the Sheehans’ house was made in Price’s workshop before it was erected on site. The oak used is from Durrow, in Co Laois.
Advertisement
“This is an expensive way of building a house,” Sheehan said. “You would not choose it if cost-control was your primary motivator.”
The couple sought a well-insulated home and were easily persuaded when their builder, father-and-son team Pat and Paul Doran suggested they aim for the passive house standard.
“Everyone asks if the noise of the rain on the roof wakes us up at night, but it’s dead quiet. We sleep wonderfully in our new house
As a passive-house specialist, Paul Doran believes that buildings should be built in such a manner that the energy demand for heating and hot water is as close as possible to zero.
However, on this project the builders were breaking new ground because this was the first timber-frame dwelling they had built. They discovered that it was easier to achieve the required air-tightness with this method of building.
The engineer overseeing the construction ruled that both the timber frame and the structural insulated panels should be self-supporting. “Effectively it’s a building within a building,” says Doran.
Advertisement
The oak frame also had an impact on the size of the building and its layout. “The size was constrained by the cost of the frame, but a three-bedroom house is what suits our needs,” says Sheehan.
“There is me and Olwyn, and our two daughters, Nerida and Adelaide, one of whom has just started walking and the other has yet to start. We didn’t want one of those massive houses that you see dotted around the countryside — where they have only one child and loads of empty spare bedrooms.”
The downstairs is almost completely open plan. “We have only one internal door downstairs and that is to seal off the lavatory,” says Sheehan.
“Otherwise you can walk from there, through the kitchen and the dining area, into the living room and the snug without having to open another door. I’ve lived in a lot of open-plan houses like this — they’re much more common in Australia.”
The kitchen features a large stainless steel countertop that was custom-made. “That’s where Olwyn and I are going to have Iron Chef competitions, because we both love to cook,” says Sheehan. “We’ve got a five-ring gas stove and an electric oven, and it’s a great kitchen to cook in.” They added a Charles and Ray Eames-style bar-stools and dining chairs.
Advertisement
To save space, the staircase has been placed to the side of the house, rather than in the middle.
Upstairs, the three bedrooms have vaulted ceilings, with only the en suite bathroom and family shower room having flat ceilings, above which there are services, such as the water tank and the heat-exchange unit. The sense of airiness is enhanced by the decor: downstairs the ceilings feature exposed oak joists topped with birch plywood; upstairs the ceiling spaces between the exposed roof trusses are the same colour as the walls.
“All the walls are white, except for one,” says Sheehan. “In the girls’ room, on one of the walls there is a mural painted by one of Olwyn’s best friends, which is a fantastic map of the world.”
Heating is provided by an air-source heat pump that feeds the radiators and which also benefits significantly from solar gain — there is a lot more glazing at the back of the house, which faces the south, than there is at the front.
“So far it is very comfortable,” says Sheehan. “We have been in the house only a few weeks so far. It shouldn’t get too hot in June and July because there is a porch over the downstairs windows at the back that should provide some shading when the sun is out.”
Advertisement
Olwyn has a compulsion to open windows, but that won’t be necessary here as the air indoors is fresh and the house doesn’t feel stuffy.
It has a cedar cladding, which Sheehan says smells wonderful. The roofing material is powdered steel.
The vertical stripe of the roof contrasts well with the horizontal stripe of the cladding. Metal roofs are more common in Australia than they are in Ireland.
Sheehan says: “Everyone asks if the noise of the rain on the roof wakes us up at night, and it doesn’t. It’s dead quiet and we sleep wonderfully in our new house.”