r/DIYIreland

We recently made an update to our renovation calculator. You can still manually calculate the cost of a renovation in Ireland, but now you can also use AI Snapshot to pull the data for you. You just have to paste a URL from MyHome.ie or Sherry Fitzgerald or other agents (except daft 😔) or upload a photo of a kitchen or bathroom. My thinking was if I am at a home viewing to buy it can give me a quick sense of how much it could cost.

I'd love for you guys to check it out and let me know what you think! Any feedback is welcomed.

But also, I built this because I'm in the market for a home and every other house needs a renovation. Now that I actually know the costs, the math is just not mathing? Are people out there genuinely doing full renovations and just paying the extra cost? Or is everyone just... not doing them? If you did do a full reno, was it worth it?

Curious to know!

Thanks!

PAINT stripper! I take no responsibility for your filthy mind! (Sorry....)

Anyway, I have a steel-framed gate with wooden panelling that needs a bit of love and wondering if anyone has any recommendations of a good paint stripper? I've been on google and Woodies website but the reviews for the products they sell seem to be a bit hit-and-miss.

Anyone have any real-world recommendations by any chance?

I've seen building codes referenced on this site and others alot and while it used to be more of an American thing I hear it alot here lately too. I understand there are codes but my question is from a common sense point of view what difference do the make to people here? I have never taken codes into account so am curious as to other people's attitudes?

Obviously there are those here that have panic attacks at the thought of doing anything outside the rules, and there's others that will win Darwin awards.

But my question is more along the lines of if no one ever inspects anything does it matter if you say put a socket in the wrong place or put a light fitting on a socket line etc etc.

Is it that people are worried about selling prices afterwards or is it safely?

Hello. I’m living in my house for the past nine years. Over the past several months or so we are having a baffling issue in the living room where a strong smell comes and goes.

I’d describe it as an onion type cooking smell, as if someone has been frying onions. It’s so strong at times that we can’t use the room. Now that the weather is milder we have windows open all the time which helps, but you can still get the smell at times.

It can happen any time but seems to be more often mid morning until afternoon the smell appears and then subsides over a few hours.

We have pulled the room apart looking for the source but found nothing. It’s a relatively small room, typical 4 bed semi D.

We changed the bay window last October and drilled a vent in the room but apart from that nothing has changed that would cause this type of smell. I thought initially that it may be the window sealant off-gassing but surely that should be settled by now that the windows are on 8-9 months.

Has anybody dealt with anything like this before?

Looking for opinions before I pull the trigger on a gas boiler replacement.

I’ve a 3-storey townhouse with an existing hot water cylinder (not combi). Current boiler is old and the heating layout isn’t ideal — downstairs can trigger heat upstairs and my third-floor bedroom tends to run warmer than the second floor.

Current proposal:

• Viessmann Vitodens 100-W gas boiler – €3,100
• Smart 3-zone system + control panel/wireless controls (ground floor / upstairs / hot water) – €1,220
• Wireless switch – €125
• Long flue correction as existing flue isn’t compliant – €280

Total: €4,600

Installer also plans to add cleaning chemical beforehand and refill with inhibitor afterwards.

I’m looking into whether a 4-zone setup (ground floor / first floor / third floor / hot water) could work for the €700 SEAI controls grant and potentially help improve BER from C1 (160.3) to at least B3 before my mortgage rate changes in Sept 2027.

If a proper 4th zone isn’t practical without major disruption, we’re also looking at TRVs or smart TRVs on radiators instead, especially for the top floor as it runs warmer.

The heating engineer has been very responsive and seems on the ball, which has honestly been rare trying to get trades to call back.

Questions:

1. Fair price?
2. Is Viessmann 100-W worth paying more for over something like Ideal?
3. Should a magnetic filter be standard?
4. Worth pursuing the extra zoning / €700 SEAI route?
5. Would TRVs or smart TRVs make sense here?
6. Any red flags or things I should clarify before going ahead?

Hi all . I want to put in an immersion switch to heat my water. What does the job entail and do I need to get a new water cylinder? Thanks in advance.

Hi, so I'm planning a kitchen renovation in Dublin. The kitchen is approx 6 x 3 metres and has a suspended timber floor. The main work is replacing & insulating the floor, vaulting and insulating the ceiling, and replacing a back window with a sliding door, plus new kitchen units etc. The current floor is tiled.

I got quotes from different builders for the full job, and I picked one that quoted a good initial price after seeing the place. He said there could be some extras depending on that way I do certain things e.g. insulate the floor joists with PIR boards versus replace the joists with concrete.

Since giving the first quote however his overall price has now almost doubled. One of the main increases was the cost of doing the floor. His initial price for it was 3.3k and it's now gone up to 6.8k. This is the breakdown of the new price:

Labour:

Installing PIR insulation - 600. Installing plywood 18 mm + 18 mm - 700. Installing backer board or decoupling membrane - 400. Electric floor installation (15 sq.m) - 450. Tiling, grouting - 900

Consumables & Materials:

PIR insulation (8 boards) - 750. Adhesive (4 tubs) - 56. Plywood (14 boards) - 754. Screws 5x60 (1000) - 70. Treated timber battens for PIR - 65. Tile adhesive (7 bags) - 270. Backer board (28 boards) - 580. Board disk (6 packs) - 30. Sealant (4 tubes) - 60. Joint tape (1 roll) - 32. Self levelling compound (12 bags) - 280. Electric mat 15 sq.m (kit) - 600. Epoxy grout - 107. Other consumables - 150

Total 6854

So the new price for the floor is almost 7k, and I'm wondering if this is excessive for PIR insulation / OSB / backing boards? He said he would inspect the joists when the floor is lifted, and if there's rot or they're not in good condition then he would put in a concrete floor which he said would be "considerably more expensive".

Would be happy to get thoughts and opinions on the cost of replacing the floor.

Hello. I was in B&Q and asked about a sealant that I can use behind kitchen counters and the stove. The lad working there gave me soudal roof and gutter sealant. I asked him a few times if it was a suitable kitchen, he has confirmed with confidence. I have applied it and started reading online and worried about its safety. What do you think? Should I remove it or is it fine to leave it?

Is there any way to find what ber assessor did the report on my home? Doesn't say in the cert or advisory report just gives his assessor number.

I’m getting a small back garden job priced and just wondering if this sounds fair.

The quote is €3,500 for preparing the site, digging out, whacking/compacting, laying 18m² of porcelain paving, and adding granite kerbing. The builder/paver has estimated it as about 4 days labour.

The access is awkward enough. We are in a mid-terrace house with no rear entrance, so everything has to come through the house. It’s for a back garden pergola/seating area, so it needs to be level and finished properly.

I know porcelain takes more work than standard slabs, especially with proper prep, cutting, jointing and getting levels right, and the granite kerbing obviously adds cost. The awkward access probably adds a fair bit too.

Just trying to get a sense of whether €3,500 is about right, on the high side, or too much.

Has anyone had similar work done recently?