What is Part L Compliance

Part L refers to the building regulations. Conservation of Fuel and Energy in Dwellings is part L of the technical guidance documents. The TGD Part L sets out how a new residential building needs to comply with the required regulations. Part L specifies that a new house should be constructed to meet the below

Providing that the energy performance of the dwelling is such as to limit the calculated primary energy consumption and related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions insofar as is reasonably practicable, when both energy consumption and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are calculated using the Dwelling Energy Assessment Procedure (DEAP) published by Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland;

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providing that, for new dwellings, a reasonable proportion of the energy consumption to meet the energy performance of a dwelling is provided by renewable energy sources;

The new dwelling must meet the required values of the MPEPC of 0.4 or less and the MPCC of 0.46 or less to comply with part L. This calculation is done with the DEAP software and can only be done with registered SEAI assessors.

When a dwelling complies with part L of the TGD and meets the above values the new house will have a BER rating of A3. All new houses are required to have a BER rating of A3. Part L is currently being reviewed and a new TGD will be introduced soon, these requirements are called NZEB. An NZEB (Nearly Zero Energy Building) will require to have a final BER of A2 when completed.

Why get a Part L Compliance?

When you receive a planning permission from your local authority (county council) you are required to submit a commencement notice.  The commencement notice requires that you submit a part L provisional BER and construction specification. You cannot opt out of Part L requirements.

The BCMS was introduced in 2014 and this requires that all buildings have to be proven compliant with the relevant regulations. Proof of compliance can be done for new buildings through the DEAP software and the builder complying with our checklist throughout construction. We cannot prove compliance for new buildings that we did not do the Part L compliance on. If you require a final BER Cert and we have not been part of the Part L compliance you will be required to prove all elements of the building that are not visible.

How to comply with Part L

The 2005 building regulations were superseded in 2011 with a 60% increase in efficiency toward new buildings. This increase added an additional cost to the construction of the dwelling greatly but it will also help to build a more comfortable dwelling that requires less heating.

There are many approaches to comply with Part L but it is essential that the planned construction specification of the dwelling is inputted into DEAP software, as the software provides “green ticks” to show compliance with the building regulations.

There are many different combinations of heating systems, wall constructions, attic insulation and ventilation techniques used to comply with Part L 2011. All the different combinations have a cost associated with them, we can provide advice on the initial purchase and installation costs along with possible Life cycle cost of the building as a whole.

For our Part L compliance, we provide a detailed report on all elements that affect the BER DEAP file. Contact us today to get a quotation for a Part L compliance Provisional BER.

Email a set of your Drawings to [email protected] to receive a competitive quote for your part L compliance.