Design guide · Carlow County Council
Rural Design Guide (County Development Plan, chapter 13)
The council's guidance on siting and designing a house in the countryside.
Carlow County Council · 24 pages
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- Rural Design Guide 314 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 Fig. 13.16 Horizontal emphasis windows can dominate appearance producing a house that can look imbalanced and more suited to a suburban location. Fig. 13.17 – Simple forms are used with the proportions to each other carefully considered (Scrabo Clachan by BGA Architects) Fig. 13.18 –The proportions and expression of the chimney breast are a clever reinterpretation of the traditional forms. They offset and contrast well with the material palette used. The proportions of the glazing balance the contrasting materials used. (Simply Architecture) 13.4.5 Massing Massing reflects the manner in which the elements of a house are assembled i.e. in one big bulk mass, or in an assembly of more slimmed down elements. In a rural context, it is important that the massing of a dwelling is considered relative to the size of the site and the setting in which it is being placed. As a general rule, one large “block” of a house is not usually suitable for most sites in terms of visual impact or architectural aesthetic. A solution can be to break down the massing and bulk using traditional better proportioned forms. Fig. 13.19 – Breaking down bulk with use of simple forms to get the massing right.
- Rural Design Guide 315 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 Fig. 13.20 – The forms and massing of each block and how they relate to each other helps define the building’s relationship to the landscape. (Tierney Haines Architects) Fig. 13.21 – The transparency of some forms helps in the definition of the massing of each block. It also helps to establish a relationship with the landscape (Tierney Haines Architects) Fig. 13.22 – The massing of the building forms are appropriately relaxed by the positioning of the window on the corner. The extended dormer window at first floor also has the same fenestration from ground floor carried up which break up the extent of roof at first floor. (Patrick Bradley Architects) Key Principles Proportion and Massing ▪ Achieve attractive proportions in the building design. ▪ Utilise a plan which will allow a good solidto-void relationship in its windows and doors. ▪ Avoid boxy/wide/deep plan houses. They will appear bulky and squat. Narrow plan houses are more appropriate and generally make better use of sunlight and daylight. ▪ Break down the massing of the house to articulate different elements in order to reduce its bulk where necessary.
- Rural Design Guide 316 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 13.4.6 Architectural Elements 13.4.6.1 Roofs The roof of a rural house makes an important contribution to its profile. Traditional rural houses tended to have simple roof shapes, that were mostly gabled with minimal eaves and verge detailing, and generally sloped 35° to 45°. New houses tend to be constructed where the roof sits as a ‘lid’ oversailing the external walls. In such cases the roof can present as an overly dominant feature relative to the overall house structure. Roofs with large overhangs should therefore be avoided, minimised, or mitigated by good design. More traditional and simple rural roof edges are preferable. House types that require excessive roofing (i.e. ratio of roof-to-wall) need careful consideration. For example, deep plan houses, in the form of bungalow or dormer types, can have excessively large roofs which can also appear unbalanced relative to the overall house structure. While pitched roofs are most commonly used other shapes of roof are possible, but great care should be taken to ensure that they are in keeping with the overall design concept. Inspiration can be taken from the typical agricultural buildings found throughout the County. To assist in integrating a rural house into the landscape, roofs are normally required to be finished with tiles or slates, using a blue/black or slate grey colour. However, in certain circumstances alternative materials such as metal sheeting and zinc may also be appropriate. Fig. 13.23 Simple eaves with dormer window extended out flush with the façade in matching render. Fig. 13.24 Avoid box verges and eaves and the use of cladding. Ideally dormer windows should be connected to the façade as in Figure 13.22 and not be protruding separately from the roof. 13.4.6.2 Dormer House The roofscape of dormer houses, particularly where mid-roof dormer windows are used, has often become the principal feature of the rural landscape. The deep (double) floor plan of this type of house, coupled with accommodation provision in the roof, can result in a structure with larger massing and bulk, and a larger, busier and more complex roof profile. For these reasons, and depending on site context and layout, a welldesigned single storey building, or full two storey building may be preferable to a dormer. The formulation of a design for a dormer house requires careful consideration. In particular, the following should be taken into account:
- Rural Design Guide 317 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 ▪ The minimisation of busy eaves lines and roof planes. ▪ The use of rooflights flush with the roof plane instead of mid-roof dormer windows. ▪ The use of traditional wall-plate/eaves dormers with a plaster finish extending from the external wall/façade, instead of mid-roof dormers. Figure 13.25 Prominent mid-roof dormers should be avoided. Fig. 13.26 Use of Alternative approach to mid-roof dormers can be symmetrical rooflights to simply roof profile and reduce building scale. Fig. 13.27 This 1 ½ storey height helps reduce the mass of the building and potential proportion of the roof relative to wall area. There is also an example of a modern interpretation of the dormer window which is a much nicer detail than a typical mid-roof dormer. (Tierney Haines Architects) 13.4.6.3 Chimneys Chimneys where proposed are an important element of a house but can often be overlooked when formulating a design. If poorly designed or positioned, chimneys can detract from the appearance of a house. Generally, chimney stacks should be located through and across the roof ridge. For traditional gabled rural houses, they can be found flush with the face of the gable wall. Fig. 13.28 Placement of chimney stack through roof ridge or flush with gable wall, visually integrates with the overall appearance of a house, adding more substance and presence. Fig. 13.29 Avoid visually prominent externally located chimney breasts. Fig. 13.30 Avoid chimney placement on the roof plane, which appears tall, spindly, narrow and weak.
- Rural Design Guide 318 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 Key Principles Roofs and Chimneys ▪ Roofs should be appropriately scaled and proportioned. ▪ Roofs are normally required to be finished with tiles or slates, using a blue/black or slate grey colour. ▪ The treatment of eaves/verges should be studied carefully and relate directly to the proposed building type. ▪ Overhanging eaves/verges should be avoided, minimised, or mitigated by good design. Clean simple lines with good detailing can give a more distinct appearance. ▪ Chimney stacks should be located through and across the roof ridge. ▪ Avoid tall spindly chimneys positioned on the roof pitch and chimneys positioned along the full length of external walls. 13.4.6.4 Windows and Doors Windows and doors are the predominant openings of a building, and therefore their size, shape and positioning significantly influences the scale and proportions of a house. Traditionally, rural houses had openings surrounded by larges areas of solid wall giving rise to a high solid-to-void relationship. Building practices and materials are now such that larger windows can be utilised with a variety of shapes and sizes, but their appearance can look at odds within the simpler rural setting. In many cases, a series of smaller windows with a vertical emphasis, or of square proportion, sit more comfortably than large horizontal openings. Windows with a vertical emphasis generally work better as they help to balance the width of the building and provide better light and articulation between the interior and exterior. Traditionally doors were the only item of embellishment on the otherwise simple exteriors of rural houses. Proportions, colour and detail are fundamental to making doors an attractive feature of a house. Fig. 13.31 Vertical emphasis windows and symmetrical arrangement. Fig. 13.32 Typical bungalow with horizontal windows. Fig. 13.33 Vertical windows appear appropriate and can contribute to higher solid-to-wall effect.
- Rural Design Guide 319 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 Fig. 13.34 Appropriate simple design panelled and sheeted doors. Key Principles Windows and Doors ▪ Keep the range of window opening sizes and shapes to a minimum. ▪ Arrange openings to maximise a high solidto-void appearance. ▪ To avoid a discordant appearance, keep the arrangement of window openings simple, observing the central axis generated by the shape of the wall. ▪ Vertical emphasis windows are generally preferable to horizontal emphasis. ▪ Bay windows were not a traditional feature of rural houses and can lead to an overly fussy appearance. ▪ Doors should reflect the shape of the opening and are most successful in their simplest form (sheeted or panelled timber). ▪ While the door and surround need to admit light into the hallway, avoid large glazed panels in doors which can look over elaborate and cluttered. A window above or beside the door (used traditionally) is a good alternative. ▪ Where porches are required they should be kept simple, and closely integrated with the main building in terms of size, shape, proportion, and external finishes. ▪ In the interests of sustainable development environmentally friendly materials should be used for windows and doors. ▪ “Replica” Georgian and Victorian style windows are not acceptable.
- Rural Design Guide 320 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 13.4.6.5 External Finishes, Materials and Colour Finishes, materials and colour, in addition to the shape and form of a building, make an important contribution to the appearance of a rural house in the landscape. The palette of materials, in particular those used in the elevations of any one rural house, should be kept to a minimum. Locally sourced indigenous materials should be used where possible, e.g. stone and timber. Indigenous materials have a natural harmony and should be selected with care to ensure that they improve with age and weathering. The palette of materials used in the structure should also be specifically chosen to respond to the rural setting. Key Principles External Finishes, Materials and Colour ▪ External materials are best kept simple. Use a small number of high-quality finishes. ▪ Avoid dry dash, brick and artificial or reconstituted stone. These finishes are generally not suited to rural areas. ▪ Avoid quoins which are generally not suited to rural areas. ▪ Use natural, soft and neutral colours on external walls. They provide an attractive contrast to dark roofs and strong window and door colour. ▪ Avoid bright and garish colours. ▪ Avoid expensive add-ons and frills which are often added to compensate for poor design e.g. Classical porticos and columns. ▪ When selecting materials finishes their likely maintenance requirements should also be considered. 13.4.7 Landscaping and Boundary Treatments Good site selection can be defined as one which allows a new rural house to settle into and integrate with its surroundings. The aim should be to work with the rural landscape and not against it, by keeping and appropriately supplementing (where required) features that will help visually absorb and integrate a new building into its surroundings. This includes landscape features such as trees and hedgerows, stone walls, sod banks, and existing ground levels/contours. Boundaries, including the materials used for them, inform the rural character of an area. Trees and hedgerows in particular, help blend new buildings into the landscape and greatly enhance amenity and wildlife/biodiversity value. Irish country gardens differ from traditional suburban gardens by the way they embrace the house and appear to connect seamlessly to the natural landscape. Trees and hedgerows also provide a site with colour, texture and structure, at the same time as screening unattractive views, absorbing road noise, and providing privacy.
- Rural Design Guide 321 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 Key Principles Landscaping and Boundary Treatments ▪ Work with the landscape by formulating a layout and design that responds to existing landscape features. ▪ Remove as little of the existing landscaping features as possible i.e. trees, hedgerows, stone walls, sod banks, contours etc. ▪ Use contours of site to soften the setting of a rural house. ▪ Avoid suburban type landscaping and formal symmetrical layouts. Straight lines are not appropriate in rural areas. ▪ Avoid surrounding the house with hard landscaping which will divorce it from the natural context of the site. ▪ Avoid tarmacadam, concrete and brick driveways. Aim for self-draining gravel which is more suitable for a rural setting in terms of visual impact and surface water drainage. ▪ Design informal layouts. ▪ Plant wild meadows or strim grass areas which are more natural to rural areas. ▪ Reduce or avoid large areas of mown lawn. ▪ Plant native trees in groups of three or more. Create new mixed hedgerows of native/local species to maintain biodiversity. ▪ Avoid planting non-native single species such as Leyland Cypress. ▪ Retain ponds and ditches on the site. ▪ Avoid replacing boundaries with unsympathetic fencing, pre-cast decorative concrete blocks and artificial stone. ▪ Where possible commence planting of the required boundaries before the construction of the house commences. 13.4.8 Entrances New site entrances must provide sightlines onto a public road in accordance with the development management standards in Chapter 16. The setback/removal of existing boundaries to achieve entrance sightlines should be kept to an absolute minimum. Where unavoidable, the setback/removed section(s) should be replaced with similar boundary treatment to the original. This could include mitigation planting with the same indigenous tree and hedge species, and/or the careful removal and reconstruction of an existing stone wall. The appearance of entrances shall be modest and suitable to the rural context. Overly elaborate entrances with high wing walls, pillars and gates will not be permitted. Fig. 13.35 Examples of unacceptable entrance gates.
- Rural Design Guide 322 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 Figure 13.36 Example of more appropriate entrance design, more modest and simple approach, and using lower wall and pier heights. Key Principles Entrances ▪ Aim to retain the existing front boundary where possible by just making a simple splayed or bell mouthed opening. ▪ If traffic safety requires that an existing roadside boundary must be setback, always aim to re-establish what is existing i.e. hedgerow for a hedgerow, stone wall for stone wall. ▪ Avoid high roadside boundary walls, entrance walls, gateways and piers which visually dominate the site and the surrounding rural area. 13.4.9 Sustainability and Energy Efficiency Rural housing has significant energy impacts. The houses themselves tend to be above the national average in terms of floor area, hence requiring more energy. There are also increased transport requirements as rural housing is often sited a distance from towns and villages with associated services, e.g. schools, shops and places of employment. However, rural housing also presents an opportunity to integrate a wide range of sustainable energy approaches and technologies. Rural houses should therefore be designed and built so that they use as little energy as possible, by minimising heat loss and increasing solar gain. This will ensure that the householder is investing in a future-proofed home. The EU Directive on the Energy Performance of Buildings introduced mandatory energy rating for houses, and the requirement that Energy labels (Building Energy Rating BER Certificates) are available for each house i.e. A, B, C, D rating etc. Houses should be designed to achieve the highest possible energy rating, which will reduce the overall running cost of the house as well as being good for the environment The Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) standard applies to all new buildings (including major renovations) since December 2020. For all new domestic builds, NZEB is equivalent to a 25% improvement in energy performance on the 2011 Building Regulations. Compliance with NZEB is expected, but proposals that can clearly define and prove their intentions of exceeding these targets in a meaningful way will be encouraged by the Council. There are also other formal accreditation systems that look at the bigger picture of a development’s overall carbon footprint such as LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) and BREEAM, which
- Rural Design Guide 323 | P a g e Draft Carlow County Development Plan 2022-2028 can confirm a projects sustainability credentials. 13.4.10 Solar Gain and Solar Energy The design and orientation of rural houses can bring about more sustainable communities and reduce the operational costs throughout a building’s life by reducing the need for artificial lighting and heating. In some cases, site planning and appropriate orientation alone can almost halve the energy demand of a house. Development proposals for rural houses should incorporate basic passive solar design principles to: ▪ Maximise solar gains in building through good orientation, layout, and glazing; ▪ Avoid heat losses through ensuring a high level of insulation and air-tightness of buildings; and, ▪ Ensure a high degree of comfort by using controlled ventilation and day lighting. Development proposals are also encouraged to explore the use of renewable energy technologies e.g. solar panels, wood pellet boilers, heat pumps, micro wind turbines. Grants are available to help with some of the additional initial costs. For further information refer to the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) at www.seai.ie Fig. 13.37 Careful and informed site planning and house orientation to benefit from solar gain.
Source Carlow County Council: Rural Design Guide (County Development Plan, chapter 13) · Licence the publisher's termsText read from the publisher’s PDF; tables, maps and drawings do not survive as text, and page numbers are the PDF’s (its first page is 1). Check the original before relying on a passage.