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Water Supply
Water is one of the most important things that you have to deal with as a self builder. You have to find out what options are available to you and at what costs. You need to find out what the conditions are on your planning permission and make sure that they are complied with and done. It is not just the question of the planning permission that you have to consider, you also have to think about other things like the environment in your choice of methods.
Water, water everywhere as far as the eye can see. It does not matter which direction you go in Ireland you will end up heading for water. Unfortunately, we can not use that water for our daily use as it is full of salt and we have to rely on one of the following options:
Private supply through a well or stream: with this option what you have is the initial cost specially if you have to go for a well. Depending on the depth of the hole, this could cost anything upto and above €5000 but the benefits of it would be that you would probably end up with a much better quality water than to the one which comes out of the tap. It is highly recommended that you also add a water treatment system to your water supply to get rid of all the unwanted things like lime, iron, and a few other things that might be present in your location. You might be eligible for a water grant which usually covers upto 80% of the cost of the well . There are some conditions regarding this grant and you can find out what they are by visiting your local county council and Local Planning Department
Public water supplier This is the water from the tap connected to your house by the local authorities. You have no control over its quality even though there is a standard that they have to keep within. There is usually a connection fee and this amount can be found usually on your planning permission or your Local Planning Department.
Group water schemes: This is when a community joins together to supply water to the area and is monitored locally. The cost involved depends on the scheme and you should find out from them about the total outlay and if there is any kind of grant to help you with it. Do remember, not all areas have a Group Scheme as it may not be financially viable.
As far as building a house you are going to find out that if you do not have one of the options above for your water supplies you will not be able to get planning permission. You will find that as part of any planning permission you are required to connect to a water supply, usually before you commence your build. The bad news is that you have to pay for this connection as a contribution towards the public water or the cost of digging for a well, but the good news is that after the initial cost you do not currently have to pay for anything else. Since 1997 the water supply from mains water has been free and the water from a private supply has always been free apart from general maintenance.
To find out about water saving go to Rain water recovery systems
Waste , Natural Energy
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