FabTrads

About the Project

FabTrads involves the testing and characterisation of the thermal and hygrothermal properties of a wide range of traditional and historic building wall fabrics and constituent materials.

FabTrads is funded by the SEAI under the RDD scheme RDD729.

The project team includes Dr. Oliver Kinnane, Dr. Rosanne Walker, Dr. Caroline Engel Purcell and PhD candidate Anna Hofheinz from University College Dublin.

The project is being undertaken in collaboration with project partners Carrig Conservation, and with a steering group including members from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the Department of Environment Climate and Communications, he Office of Public Works, Dublin City Council, ICOMOS Ireland and the Irish Georgian Society.

Project Abstract

1 in 6 Irish buildings is of traditional construction – proper understanding of their material characteristics is essential to their conservation and energy performance rating. FabTrads will identify the hygrothermal performance of a large sample set of traditional building materials and fabrics, outputting high quality data for use in the National Calculation Methodology. It will identify the range of hygrothermal performance of these materials in practice, thereby providing key data for further modelling and guidance for future retrofit of traditional buildings. The research project will be undertaken by a small, core team with a strong track record in the analysis of traditional buildings and with extensive experience in the testing of building materials in the laboratory and in-situ. Fab Trads will monitor a robust sample size of traditional building materials and assemblies, including all those listed in the Topic 8 call. The testing will be carried out both in the laboratories of UCD and in-situ in traditional buildings. A sample set of buildings have already been identified for in-situ u-value testing, and materials will be sourced from buildings under conservation through the team’s network of contacts in the field. The project builds on an established and effective collaboration of these academics with conservationists, councils and the OPW. This collaboration will develop guidance documents and compliant datasets for use in the National Calculation Methodology, as well as disseminating the research widely through national and international industry and scientific academic publication.

Publications to Date

(opens in a new window)Case study of an Irish granite rubble wall: Impact of accurate material properties in hygrothermal simulations and comparison of measured and simulated thermal transmittances

(opens in a new window)The importance of material specific data in the hygrothermal modelling of traditional solid walls and its impact on the evaluation of retrofit strategies

(opens in a new window)The Influence of Paint on the Thermal and Moisture performance of Traditional Solid Walls

(opens in a new window)A comparative study of the hygrothermal performance of solid limestone walls and their effect on internal insulation strategies: Portland Limestone versus Irish Blue Limestone Construction

(opens in a new window)In-situ U-values of Traditional Solid Masonry and Early Mass Concrete Walls in Ireland: Results from the FabTrads and Built to Last Projects

(opens in a new window)Thermal conductivity testing of a range of Irish traditional bricks using Transient Line Source methodology

(opens in a new window)The impact of water repellent treatment on the hygrothermal performance of a range of traditional bricks

FabTrads Dissemination Day

A half-day in-person dissemination event will take place on Tuesday, 3 December 2024 at the Irish Georgian Society, 58 South William St, Dublin 2. This is a ticketed event and tickets can be purchased through Eventbrite (opens in a new window)here.