We're thinking of building on a sloping site. We're still waiting to find an architect but in the meantime I wondered if anyone has any ideas or experiences of building on a sloping site.
We're looking at an upside down house with the living areas on the first floor. The two options we need to decide between would be having a 'buried' back to our ground floor and be able to walk in the back door. Or excavate the back, have windows in the back of the ground floor and a bridge to the back door. Hope that makes sense.
Personally I like the idea of a buried ground floor ( at the back only) but I'm worried about the cost and efficacy of tanking. Any input would be welcome.
I'd suggest you consider creating a decent sheltered courtyard and bridge over, otherwise you will be costing for tanking or a "box in a box" to ensure its dry.
However the object of the exercise is to keep earth away from the wall of the house so you need to excavate three sides of a hole, stabilise the ground forming the "walls" and build the house within it, draining the courtyard to the "front". You'll also need to protect from falls into the courtyard.
If you want to see what happens when it all goes wrong in difficult site conditions, follow the current court case between Sheridan the film maker and De Blacam and Meagher, multi-award winning RIAI-registered architects.
OTOH, if you appoint an archtiect with some sense, he may suggest a drained cavity to the rear, within a retaining wall structure, and with storage and utility spaces arrayed along it to limit any fallout from water ingress to servant spaces.
Detail design with heavy ramifications if it all goes wrong cannot really be entered into on AAM - too many variables - but the above outline some basic choices.
BTW had you considered the ODOS solution in Wicklow?
Raise the house on columns out of the ground!
ONQ.
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All advice on AAM is remote from the situation and cannot be relied upon as a defence or support - in and of itself - should legal action be taken.
Competent legal and building professionals should be asked to advise in Real Life with rights to inspect and issue reports on the matters at hand.