We love our neighbourhood and our house, which we have lived in for over 30 years. While we had maintained it well during that time, we knew that within the next 10 years we were going to have to look at replacing the windows, the central heating boiler and consider re-wiring. Because all of our grandchildren live outside Dublin and we love having them to stay when they visit, downsizing wasn’t an option – so we decided to upgrade instead!

Renova did work for us many years ago, installing new bathrooms and carrying out some insulation work. We had been very impressed with their professionalism and the quality of their work at the time, so we decided to discuss our current ideas with them. We were keen to have a warmer home and also to move away from all fossil fuels. We were amazed at how much Renova had expanded since we first worked with them and by the deep retro-fit service they now offer. Having discussed the matter initially with John and Alan, we decided to proceed.

We were introduced to Siân who visited us and took the time to find out what aspects of the house worked for us and what didn’t. In general the original layout was good but Siân made a few suggestions which have really enhanced how we use the house. She has a great eye for space.

Together we agreed on the scope of the work and the process was very streamlined after that. We had three workshops in Renova’s offices with Siân, Paul and Anthony, where all major decisions were taken. We were very impressed by their attention to detail at those meetings which meant that we never had to make decisions in a hurry once the work got underway. Amanda and then later Barbara, made notes  – not an electrical socket was forgotten! Appointments were made with Renova’s suppliers after each workshop and we chose our new windows, kitchen, kitchen equipment, shower-room and lighting in advance of the work starting. That ensured that there were no delays due to delivery times during the retrofit itself.

We were concerned about the disruption to our neighbours during the construction stage but anytime we visited, our neighbours commented to us on how great our builders were. This was in no small way due to Lorcán who managed everything on site. He was amazing.

Part of the work entailed opening up an extension we had done 20 years ago and a few things came to light at that stage that needed to be remedied. However, Paul who oversaw our project always informed us of what the issue was and quickly came back to us with practical, properly costed solutions.

It was only as we visited the site as the works progressed that we realised the extent of the work involved. We realised too that much of the work is in the end hidden – the plumbing, under-floor heating, and wiring – so we were glad that we had chosen a company we could trust.

Renova estimated the time that it would take to complete the works and even gave us an exact date, which happened to be one of our birthdays. We are happy to say that we moved back home on that date in time to blow out the candles.

We would have no hesitation in recommending the Renova team. They are true professionals and a pleasure to deal with.

Lonan & Barbara, Dublin 6