Renovating one of Dún Laoghaire's older homes
Renovation work around Dún Laoghaire falls into three camps: Victorian and Edwardian houses in Monkstown, Glenageary, Sandycove and the streets off George's Street; 1960s and 1970s estates around Ballybrack and Glenageary; and apartment refits in the blocks along the seafront.
Each produces different waste, and the period houses come with rules the others do not. Here is what to check before anything comes out.
Check first: protected structures
Many period houses in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown are on the council's Record of Protected Structures, and some streets sit in Architectural Conservation Areas. Works that affect the character of a protected structure can need planning permission, and that can include removing original fireplaces, panelled doors, sash windows or decorative plasterwork.
Check the council's protected-structure guidance before strip-out. Protection can include interiors and fixtures. The owner can request a Section 57 declaration identifying work that would affect the structure's character and require permission.
Salvage before you scrap
Original features often have a resale value that modern fittings do not. Architectural salvage and reclamation dealers buy period pieces in decent condition:
- Cast-iron column radiators and cast-iron fireplace inserts.
- Four-panel and six-panel doors, with or without their brass furniture.
- Sash windows and shutters, if the timber is sound.
- Marble and slate fire surrounds.
- Cast-iron roll-top baths.
Get a salvage opinion before your builder starts. We collect what is left once the dealers have been, or the pieces they don't want.
What comes out of a period house, and what it costs
Every collection is a €100 call-out and labour charge for the van and two loaders, plus a set price per item from our price list, VAT included.
- Baths: €20 for acrylic or steel. Cast-iron baths weigh far more, so a person on our team checks the price before you book.
- Radiators: €10.50 each. Mention old column radiators so we know what we are lifting.
- Doors: €15 for a panelled internal door; €40 for a front door.
- Windows: €25 each, with the glass intact.
- Fireplaces: a cast-iron insert or timber surround is priced from your photos. Marble, slate and granite surrounds and hearths are stone, which we do not take.
- Floors: carpet at €2 per m², boards or laminate at €6 per m².
Lath and plaster, chimney breasts and hearths
Period renovations produce plenty of waste we can't take: lath-and-plaster ceilings, broken-out chimney breasts, brick, granite and old hearth slabs. That is rubble and stone, and it needs a skip or bulk bags.
On a terraced street with on-street parking, finding room for a skip is often the hardest part. Splitting the waste helps: the bulky fixtures take up most of a skip's space without weighing much, so with us taking the suite, doors and units, a smaller skip or a few bulk bags can handle the rubble. Our building-waste disposal guide covers skip permits and the other routes.
Asbestos in the 1960s and 1970s estates
Many homes around Ballybrack and Glenageary date from when asbestos was still in common use. Textured ceilings, vinyl floor tiles, soffits, boiler flues and pipe lagging can all contain it. Get an asbestos survey before stripping out ceilings, floors or a boiler cupboard. A specialist contractor must remove anything that tests positive; we can't take it, or anything contaminated by it.
Apartment refits along the seafront
Apartment blocks usually set rules for contractors. Check your house rules or ask the managing agent about:
- Lift booking, with protective covers fitted for removals.
- Permitted hours for removals and noisy work.
- Access and parking: a loading bay, a fob for the car park, or a concierge desk.
- Waste rules: many blocks do not allow building waste or old fittings in the communal bins, even for a day.
- Contractor details: some blocks ask for the collector's permit in advance. Ours is Waste Collection Permit NWCPO-25-13230-01, held by Glass Bag Recycling Ltd.
Our crew carries everything from the apartment to the van, so nothing needs to wait in a corridor.
Booking around the builders
Book us for just after the strip-out and before the new kitchen or bathroom is delivered. Collections run on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays, 14:00–16:00. If you are not living in the house during the works, access can be agreed in advance, such as your builder letting us in.
Photograph what is coming out, or type a list such as "cast-iron bath, toilet, basin, three panelled doors, 15 m² of carpet", and get your price. Everything else we take from homes nearby is on our Dún Laoghaire junk removal page.