Room to Improve (v2)

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121656282#Comment_121656282

Promised to highlight the grants available.

You can’t detail every situation or criteria, that would soon bore.

event

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121656104#Comment_121656104

Yeah it shows you don't really understand his business 👍

Atlantic Dawn

Contractor has a nice walkthrough the house up on Tik Tok, can see the heatpump in the back garden and new fence betweem the neighbouring houses 😁

https://www.tiktok.com/@larkrock.green.ho/video/7326990695980338465

gmisk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121656498#Comment_121656498

He is a nutritionist, he needs to post videos of him making food, giving tips, plans etc his social stuff is very focussed on instagram. I get what he is doing. I just don't think the entire design of most of the key areas of an expensive house refurb should be based on him taking videos, what his wife needed or wanted didnt really seem to come into it to much of a degree, despite her being the main bread winner.

That is my point.

Westernview

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121655451#Comment_121655451

That's it exactly. It's about getting people talking about it and ultimately viewer numbers. If they did more modest homes and less drama with budgets they wouldn't get the same viewership. People want to see a bit of wow factor even if they can't afford it themselves.

Same with people still complaining about glass boxes even after 15 seasons. He ain't gonna change to doing cottage extensions with small windows. The clients generally don't want that anyway.

GAAcailin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121656201#Comment_121656201

What is the estate name?

event

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121656544#Comment_121656544

So being the breadwinner dictates you more of a voice in the house, regardless of what you need for your job?

Maybe all she needs is a simple desk to WFH whereas he needs a big kitchen and a bigger office as he will be stuck in it for 8-10 hours a day, 6 days a week.

PARlance

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121656544#Comment_121656544

The roles are reversed quite often and not much is ever really made of the wife having biggest say in the design.

I also think she seemed happy with the design in the end.

Wasn't a fan of him at all but can't see an issue in him pushing for what he wanted.

gmisk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121656785#Comment_121656785

No, I only really mentioned the breadwinner thing as it was explicitly discussed in the show. The house setup before felt more setup for his job, dedicated office, a peninsula that made the dishwasher unusable. While his wife shared a cold space that was a playroom.

After the refurb the kitchen was tailored to his needs and his aesthetic (coffee shop) was important, they brought in things from his family home, they went with a far more expensive home office option for him, while he was gasping at other relatively small but necessary costs in the main house (that felt a bit performative tbh).

A solicitor in my experience will on average work more hours than that. I was with one for 9 years.

Ah look it is just my take based on a heavily edited show. The refurb worked for them and they are happy that's all that matters really.

Princess Calla

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121657084#Comment_121657084

I do agree with what you are saying. However usually the wife is steering the design for the "greater good" of the whole family. Making it a nice space for everyone.

However I think in this case we have the person making the most money in a fairly stressful job consigned to a makeshift desk in the playroom, guaranteed with kids at her feet.

Then you have him, who has given up his job to follow his dreams , getting a fancy office and steering the whole design for his new "career". It's alot of money being spent on something that may fold within a year. Yeah they'll still have a nice kitchen at the end of it regardless. It was very much his vision.

Guaranteed those kids will be in creche 5 days a week while he's making "content" too.

FrancieBrady

There was a huge emphasis on him and his career in the show (the fairly pointless Donal what's his name insert etc). I wonder will the office spaces be used the way they said. I could see her using one of them in reality.

Sono

House turned out lovely in the end, that husband was an awful dose though, I’d say Dermot was glad to see the back of him.

I don’t think he mentioned enough about his food business….

event

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121657911#Comment_121657911

I have to reply here. He hasnt given up his job to follow his dreams. And not sure what you mean by a "career" or why its in inverted commas.

The man is a qualified sports nutritionist. He has worked for Dublin GAA and Leinster Rugby. He has written two cookbooks. He employs 3 other sport nutritionists for his company, Davey nutrition. He hosts seminars for companies. He hosts performance retreats in portugal for 5 days at a time. He works with high performing competitive athletes.

You seem to be insinuating he takes a few videos and puts them on instagram ffs.

kippy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121656544#Comment_121656544

I'd agree. At the end of the day, there was far too much focus on that angle. He needed a kitchen with a bit of light - ultimately they were recording on on iphone with no additional production gear in Donal Skeehans gaff. Didn't really make a whole pile of difference about lighting/counter tops/presses etc.

Twas absolute nonsense.

I know the guy has a "real" job as well and is by all accounts good at it, so the focus on the social media side really was just for self promotion - which is fine as well in general, just not when you are dealing with the design of what has to be a functional family kitchen ultimately.

SharkMX

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121637160#Comment_121637160

Was probably more to get the planning permission sorted before the show aired to be fair.

Deeec

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121657976#Comment_121657976

Thats all well and good but his job/business didnt need to feature so much in the programme. The emphasis on how he needed the kitchen a certain way was selfish on his family. Also he did mention his wife was the main earner so his business may be just a little more bit more than a hobby. Its hard to make good money doing what he is doing. My husband has one of his books and knows him but says alot of what he does doesnt actually generate money!

PARlance

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121657911#Comment_121657911

Not that I want to fight his in any way at all but I say the show took the influencer angle and ran/sprinted with it (which the husband wouldn't have minded at all I'm sure).

I just think that the wife came across as a strong individual and I don't think she would have stood by and let them run with a kitchen that she didn't like.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658068#Comment_121658068

I think they were always going to go for the slightly unusual aspect of the needs of this couple.

It had glitz (Donal What's his Name?) and wasn't your run of the mill kitchen requirement.

Emphasis was always going to be on him, not a solicitor needing a routine desk and computer.

event

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658068#Comment_121658068

"Little more than a hobby"

"My husband says he doesnt generate a lot of money"

This thread continues to deliver

Deeec

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658234#Comment_121658234

Well he does talks for free for sports clubs (that my husband is involved in) in the hope he will get some business out of it and spends his time doing videos which is vanity basically rather than good business. He admitted on TV that the wife is the earner. Im not saying he is bad at what he does but it doesnt pay the bills.

event

Ok boomer

Princess Calla

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121657976#Comment_121657976

Well I had never heard of him....not that that means anything.

He said himself he was walking away from his career and venturing out by himself.

He said himself the wife earns more.

That venture seemed to go as far as the kitchen ....I'm surprised they didn't go for a more professional style kitchen rather than "let's put a coffee machine on the counter (which let's face it the majority of us have) and say we're styling the kitchen on a cafe"

The light issue could easily be solved by daylight lamps when filming.

I'm not saying he doesn't have the skills to back it up, but it is a gamble.

I'm not sure if he walked in to the bank looking for a business loan, with that as a business plan how far he'd get.

From what was shown on tv , for someone who knows nothing about him, it came across a fairly Mickey mouse operation.

Some of the comments against the husband on here are a bit harsh and old fashioned. While he did come across as a bit of a douchebag a quick google shows him up to be fairly qualified and successful in his field of nutrition, a career that requires a lot of study and expertise. A career that I am sure is very rewarding over a miserable desk hockey career.

its not all about earnings, maybe his career allows him flexibility to play the role of a part time stay at home father allowing his wife focus on her career. A win win for both and a massive win for the young kids.

It looks like he does 1:1 consultations over zoom so the garden room would be a game changer for this, no distractions and will come across professional without having kids noise in the background. I also didn’t hear that only himself was getting the office key so a great place for her to work and be warm for important calls / times requiring focus when kids are around.

anyways a solicitor in Ireland earns €100k plus, he could be earning a reasonable €70k so his statement that his wife as the main earner would still be correct and is not the failure some posters are calling him.

Ah lads some of ye really don't have a clue about his job. A lot of assumptions. Being involved with multiple high performing sports teams in parallel, providing 1-1 consultations, 2 released books and the instragram will bring in income.

As an aside - I thought that program highlighted the absolute shocking value of housing in Dublin. They bought that 2 years ago for 500k and and have had to dump money into it to bring it up to scratch. In todays market the house would probably cost 600-700k.

Just my 2c but give me a nice regional house on a bit of land or a villa in Spain with a pool anyway of the week.

This market is nuts.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658563#Comment_121658563

Wages are nuts as well if a young solicitor earn €100k plus (the figure someone quoted in the previous post), working from home for some of the week (possibly with kids under her feet) and in a office the rest. The whole thing is not sustainable, any more than the boom of 2004-2007 was.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658594#Comment_121658594

I didn’t see any kids under her feet, did you or do you know them personally?

typical working from home routines for parents do not involve that, they involve kids in crèches / childminders etc! WFH has been a thing for 4 years if someone is minding their kids while working then they would have been found out at this stage.

fyi, I posted to this thread an hour ago, hence how I saw your post, I know you are sensitive and paranoid about posters replying to you.

ednwireland

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121656034#Comment_121656034

yeh I guess. and I don't think ireland has the level of smallish property investors renting and flipping property to support a homes under the hammer style program. ( which sad to say we have on record) which is in season 26 1196 episodes

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658614#Comment_121658614

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121653875#Comment_121653875

Sunny Dayz, you say "the wife working from the cold playroom" and "visions of her trying to amuse the kids etc". I hope George Early Transition does not read your post or they may attack you even worse than they attacked me!

I wonder if they upgraded insulation in the attic or replaced windows (upgraded?) upstairs etc in order to go from D to A BER? For a series "all about grants" (Dermot's words) and seeing as they availed of the energy grant (worth thirty something thousand afaik ) , there was not much detail.

tobefrank321

In fairness to the husband, he said at the start the wife wanted a house in Dublin. Sounds like he'd be happy anywhere, even down the country, but much of his business and her work is in Dublin so not easy to make the move. I can see them moving in a few years though, that back garden will get to them in the end. They'll get a good price for the house and can move somewhere with a bigger garden.

He got really emotional over those rocks, but obviously very personal to him.

I'd say eventually they'd move back to Sligo and buy a mansion there and do some sort of commuting to Dublin once or twice a week.

Dermot did a good job, ticked all their boxes and just about stayed within budget. He's getting better at this!

GAAcailin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658594#Comment_121658594

think she only works 3 days a week , so probably coming out with about €60

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658934#Comment_121658934

Gardens and plants seemed to be anathema to her anyway. Some people, more than you might think are like that. Many would live happily with outdoor spaces as easily maintained as that and do.

Former Former Former

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658877#Comment_121658877

For a series "all about grants" (Dermot's words) and seeing as they availed of the energy grant (worth thirty something thousand afaik ) , there was not much detail.

They very clearly said the whole house would be retrofitted and that the upstairs layout would remain the same.

Not sure what else there is to say. A few action shots of lads laying insulation in the attic isn't exactly riveting TV.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658993#Comment_121658993

We have established ( although it was not mentioned on the programme) they fitted a samsung heat pump, so they changed the heating system. It was not shown on the tv programme except on a brief birds eye view of the whole property : you can make it out half way down the side wall of the garden. They also put exterior cladding on some (but not all - they kept the brick at the front) of the exterior walls. The rest is quite vague, for a series "all about grants", but at least the house turned out quite nice in the end and the couple seemed happy with it.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658993#Comment_121658993

 A few action shots of lads laying insulation in the attic isn't exactly riveting TV.

We actually got a few. 😀

Also, nobody said anything about the show being 'all' about one thing either. That poster is getting increasingly desperate in the conspiracy theorising.

tobefrank321

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658959#Comment_121658959

I would say its more for the kids, the garden is too small. Fine for toddlers, but when they start looking for trampolines and swings and so on, not great. Husband seemed a bit iffy about Dublin, passed the decision off as hers. So sounds like he'd be happy to go anywhere, and was not as pushy as it appeared to come across in the program. He seemed to have a strong connection to Sligo, so who knows in a few years.

FrancieBrady

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659080#Comment_121659080

Yeh, it would be too small IMO too but that doesn't escape the fact that to many it is adequate. I'm sure they didn't buy a big house to live as a couple for their days and planned to start a family there. They would likely have considered the size of the garden then

Sleepy

I loved the idea of the stone tiles behind the coffee machine but did anyone else notice that the top row were mis-aligned? I'd be fuming if that happened to such a focal point of my renovation!

event

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121658993#Comment_121658993

Some people want the whole episode to be a Youtube How-To guide

RoboRat

My one takeaway from the last episode was the cost of a planter - were they making it from gold? Think he was quoting €4k. You could easily make a wooden planter for around €200 - €300.

The other thing that infuriates me about RTI is that they are not happy to do things down the line. I know they need the shiny new finished house for the show, but it's unrealistic. It's better to do what you can now and then save to do the rest later, rather than overstretching with loans. I understand the logic behind putting the foundations for the shed in, but the shed/ outdoor room could have been left for later. Likewise, the trees / shrubs could be done at a later date, or better still, buy saplings for a fraction of the price and watch them grow.

I'm not sure if this is true, but I heard that all the swanky furniture is put in for the show and it doesn't belong to the owners. That always struck me with the show... the homeowners were often stretched beyond their budget but behold, they have a €2k armchair and €1k coffee table. I would prefer if we get to see the house as it is, rather than it being dressed by professionals with high-value rental pieces.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659131#Comment_121659131

Never noticed that. I think the 6 stone tiles are a nice touch, and clearly mean a lot to the occupiers, so a great idea. The top tiles are smaller than the middle tiles which are smaller than the bottom tiles, but that would not bother me. If you are looking for something to be misaligned, the switches beside it are the same size or not level or evenly spaced from one another, is that what you mean?

What would bother me more about the kitchen is that corner of that great big slab of Roscommon granite counter top sticking out, and to a small toddler visiting or running around would be dangerous to hit their head off as it may not be in their eye level and no leg to support it. Saw a child split their head open once and not a pretty sight.

RoboRat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659131#Comment_121659131

I couldn't figure out how they pulled that off. There were too many tiles to be from the single rock that he brought for cutting, and the size was off - the tiles looked too big to be from the rock they cut. They looked like shop-bought tiles but he was quite emotional about them, so I'm wrong or he should change his career to acting. Perhaps they had other larger rocks but they all looked very uniform.

Former Former Former

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659059#Comment_121659059

The rest is quite vague, for a series "all about grants"

You seem utterly fixated on this off-the-cuff comment from Dermot. It was a throwaway remark, not some sort of mission statement for the series.

PARlance

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659148#Comment_121659148

I think there's some kind of reasonable middle ground to be had in fairness. A quick run through of the retrofit details and benefits would be informative and to be expected imo.

I certainly could have forgone the few minutes we lost seeing the 3 flutes in the kitchen and not a chef between them.

Penn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659274#Comment_121659274

I'd agree that some information could be provided, particularly expected cost savings on energy, what type of heating system is installed and how it works, or were there any changes that had to be made to accommodate the system.

They definitely don't need to get into the nitty gritty of what thickness of insulation they added etc, as anything like that isn't going to matter to most people because it would be different for so many different properties, but things like the expected cost savings from going from a D2 to an A2, or any other challenges that had to be addressed to accommodate the retrofit of insulation/heating system etc could help give people a better idea on if it's something they should consider, rather than "Doesn't Donal Skehan have a lovely bright wee kitchen!"

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659235#Comment_121659235

I noticed that too, but then I would expect that if Dermot went to the trouble of bringing a stone to Co. Laois to be cut, he probably took 2 or three, in case one cracked or did not work out or whatever. It looked like limestone? I thought the thinnest limestone could be cut was 1" but they must have succeeded in cutting it thinner to mach the level of the other tiles beside it. Great idea and it looks well.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659274#Comment_121659274

I agree. Hundreds of thousands of people are in their homes shivering and with high energy bills, and were or are wondering about these grant aided insulation / energy upgrades. If they are worth going for etc. Still no wiser really. Even if it was just on a seperate off peak programme which could be recorded and watched again. Would be very cheap for RTE to make too. ( the cook on R to I in that other kitchen said he can make viewable content with a phone. I will not call him a flute like you do, lets just call him a cook ).

tobefrank321

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121656228#Comment_121656228

Agreed. Its a fairly well-worn format at this stage but I have to say much more watchable than something like Grand Designs which can get too much into the nitty gritty. There's usually a human interest or back story element to RTI whereas something like Grand Designs or similar focus on the nuts and bolts. Plus a lot of the Grand Design projects end up as complete failures, costly mistakes, or half done, whereas Dermot tends to deliver and is getting better at doing it on budget. RTI does go a lot into details such as costs and where to source things so not totally neglecting that part. I'd imagine they can't do product placements though such as naming a particular brand of heat pump.

I think the balance is just right.

Sleepy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659217#Comment_121659217

Got a screenshot: the grout line of the top row (above the shelf) is about half a centimetre further to the right of the rest of the run. Just a small detail but one that would set my OCD on edge!

Looking at the number of tiles they got, it certainly looks like Dermot brought a boot load of rocks to the stone masons rather than just the one we saw on-screen.

Sleepy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659148#Comment_121659148

It actually amazes me that CoCo TV don't have a Youtube channel with more of the "behind the scenes" details of each episode. Think it could be a nice little money spinner for them!

event

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121659274#Comment_121659274

Maybe. That info is easily gotten online (I posted a link to it myself yesterday) but I suppose everyone wants everything spoon fed these days

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121660053#Comment_121660053

Show us where online yesterday you posted even basic details like did the upgrade windows upstairs ( say single or double glazed to triple? ) and if they increased insulation levels in attic. The Room to Improve programme - after all the waffle and discussion about the garden and planting, did not even show the left hand side of the garden at the end because there plonked in the middle of it is a great big heat pump, probably relatively noisy like most heat pumps ( 60 db ) ? With those programmes, remember they only show what they want to show.

Slightly more info would be great : like was it a d2 or d3 : it is now an A2 or A3? Someone else said they "could have forgone the few minutes we lost seeing the 3 flutes in the kitchen and not a chef between them" and it is hard not to agree with that.