'Backed By Experience'
Do you have an building defect in your home or property? Perhaps dry rot, damp, mould etc. for example? Why not contact us for to have a comprehensive survey carried out, ensuring the highest quality research and assessment specific to your requirements. Contact Garry today at [email protected]
Consultancy & Skills Profile
Garry Gleeson (Link through page) |
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Company Founded: In 1999 by Garry Gleeson, a Traditional and Vernacular Building Specialist of 45 years and counting.
History: After an earlier stint in electronics college and not liking the carrier path, I moved to join M.F. Kent Ltd who were then, one of the largest and most successful M&E firms in the country, to train as an Estimator. Before ultimately leaving this role in 1978 and becoming a sole trader, I was continuously purchasing/researching technical books on building defects and was set up for life, when I was sent a photocopy of a leaflet on “How to Source Information”. In 1978, I left this role with the idea of finding a niche role in construction.
Learning: Immediately I purchased a personal library of traditional construction related BRE Digests, Defect Action Sheets, Info Papers; the Property Services Agency’s - Common Defects in Buildings; The Repair and Maintenance of Houses, by Ian A Gordon and Ian A Melville, 1200 pages of 2 x Building Surveyor’s lifetime insights and informed practice, working on traditional and vernacular buildings, and still in my view one of the best sources out there after 45 years. Other top notch author’s followed on specialist topics like “Damp and Rot Remediation”, the “Insulation Deskbook” which covered every form of insulation available and the applied math's required to work out the heat-less and savings calculations, be it for glass bead insulation, natural cork or oil based insulation derivatives, a desktop workbook. Information papers and manuals by TRADA, and the predecessor to BWPDA and on and on… to this day.
1980's Environmental Focus: Subscribed to and bought the Building Trades Journal weekly, and their Practical Building Books series while following the lively debates on the evolving new wave, low toxicity, environmental control movement, which mirrored my own early negative experience (skin melt) and withdrawal by early 1980s from heavy chemical use solutions.
Work Experience: My first 20 years was spent upskilling in Cork University, Waterford Institute of Technology and other educational institutions, along with developing my own enviro-solutions to damp, condensation and rot control for “vernacular” farm houses and cottages, strong farmer houses, moving up a notch into “traditional construction” with architect inspired detailed small gentry houses and church buildings etc., and began to provide my honed surveying and reporting skills to professional architects, engineers, Co. Councils etc.
Notable International Award |
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EUROPA NOSTRA Conservation Award 1987: Designed & implemented Environmental Control Treatments & Techniques for Damp, Dry Rot & Mould control, guided historic fabric retention in Bishop's House (currently Hibernian House), Henry St. Limerick, on behalf of Murray O'Laoire Architects - winners of this prestigious European award.
EU Funded Study 1998-99 |
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Conserve & Reuse Rural Vernacular Buildings: In 1998, I joined forces with Terry Cunningham of TEAGASC after he sourced part funding from the EU, to undertake a report and practical implementation of an exemplar eco-tourism focused reuse, after sensitively conserving and repurposing an abandoned cottage in the landscape - which became known as the ECO-BOOLEY. This was widely promoted in a 2000 TEAGASC open day, and was massively successful with large crowds including conservation officers and like minded individuals visiting from all over the country. 25 years later, it’s proven highly successful at dealing with rising and lateral damp, condensation, sustaining interior comfort levels, mini-hydro-electric own power generation, in-wall radiant heating using the excess electric power generation, hemp-lime insulating plaster, use of owner produced wool as roof insulation etc. etc.. Unfortunately the website is no longer live as of 21/6/23 but my original preliminary detailed report is available on request, and there are articles on the web from Passive HousePlus (see Ref.1 attached) and Wikipedia etc.. Search under EcoBooley Clogheen, Co. Tipperary.
Exemplar Conservation & Reuse
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Exemplar Listed Townhouse Sensitive Conservation & Reuse: In 2014-16, I planned and majority funded with assistance from LEADER, a 300+m2 environmentally focused, sensitive conservation and reuse of a large town-house in Clogheen, Co. Tipperary, E21 NW18, a 3 storey town-house dating from at least the late 1700s. This was a follow on project from the small footprint ECO-BOOLEY, to show that it's lessons and techniques could be applied on a large scale, where even more complex issues were present e.g. situated in a flood plane, subject to flash flooding c. every 10-15 years. Solutions were successfully implemented to eliminate repeat catastrophic costs arising where flood insurance cover is no longer provided. See www.thesallows.ie for a gallery of professional photos of completed building.
Notable Projects |
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From 100's of projects, I’ve selected a couple of significant one below:
Carton House, Maynooth: Completed a conservation report for Murray O’Laoire Architects and implemented the low toxicity, environmental control works to eliminate rampant Dry Rot and Damp ingress to critical architectural elements of the interiors, so that these could be saved and protected into the future.
Dromore Stables, Co. Clare: conservation report and prioritised works plan on behalf of The Heritage Council, Kilkenny, to conserve the building while at the same time protecting the very important resident bat colony.
Ardfinnan Castle, Co. Tipperary: Completed a conservation report and prioritised works plan along with the rare as hen’s teeth funding then available under the Building At Risk Grant, successfully applied for through Tipp. Co. Co. Implemented the low toxicity, environmental control works to eliminate rampant Dry Rot and Damp ingress to critical architectural elements of the interiors, so that these could be saved and protected into the future.
Model School, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary: Completed a conservation report and prioritised works plan on behalf of The OPW for low toxicity, environmental control works to eliminate rampant Dry Rot and Damp ingress to critical architectural elements of the interiors, so that these could be saved and protected into the future.
Strokestown House, Co. Roscommon: Completed a conservation report and prioritised works plan in collaboration with PUNCH Engineers on behalf of The Irish Heritage Trust, detailing low toxicity, environmental control works to eliminate rampant Dry Rot and Damp ingress to critical architectural elements of the interiors.
Irish Georgian Society
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Hunt Museum Stand 2014: Please see attached 4 page photo montage of our core surveying reports and conservation skills including leadwork, window and door joinery, dry rot and damp control projects. . See Ref.5 attached - file name - OL17'1421 GG CSLtd - 2014 IGS Traditional Skills Show Limerick Email.pdf - ADD PICS HERE?? ARE YOU A MEMBER OF THE OF THE SOCIETY??
In Depth CV |
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