Ireland built more homes in the first three months of 2026 than in any Q1 since records began in 2011. The NSAI has published a live amendment to I.S. 10101, the national rules for electrical installations, with changes affecting bathrooms, communal areas and energy efficiency compliance. And this week we cover the pre-job site visit: a five-minute habit that stops expensive surprises on the day.
📰 Industry News
Ireland's Strongest Q1 Home Building Output Since 2011
CSO figures released this month show 7,856 new homes were completed in Q1 2026, up 33% on Q1 2025. It is the strongest first-quarter output since records began in 2011. Apartment completions rose 33.3% to 2,355 units in the same period.
The pipeline ahead: AIB is forecasting 39,000 completions for the full year 2026, rising toward 45,000 by 2028. Sherry FitzGerald's report published 18 May says builds this year will be in line with or higher than 2025. Price growth has cooled to 3.7% nationally, the slowest since late 2023, as supply improves.
What it means for electrical contractors: A 33% jump in completions means a 33% jump in first-fix, second-fix and certification work. Apartment blocks are particularly strong this quarter and they bring communal emergency lighting, distribution boards, access control wiring and sign-off work on top of the standard unit fit-out. If you are not already pricing new build work, this is a good moment to pick up the phone to a builder you know.
SEAI Windows and Doors Grant Already at 7,000 Applications
The SEAI Windows and Doors grant launched in March 2026 and has already received more than 7,000 applications. Most homeowners applying for it are also active in the wider deep retrofit programme, where overall applications are up 96% year on year.
Why this creates electrical work: Window and door replacement sounds like a builder's job, but in practice it regularly pulls in an electrician. Socket positions change when window sills are altered. Extractor fan circuits need re-routing or upgrading when kitchen and bathroom windows are replaced with fixed units. Alarm contacts and sensors tied to existing windows and doors need reconnecting. It is quick, reliable work that bolts onto a job already in the house.
The practical angle: If you are on any homeowner's call list for retrofit work, let them know you handle the electrical side of window and door replacements too. Most homeowners assume they need a separate trade. They do not.
⚖️ Compliance Update
I.S. 10101:2020+A1:2024 Published: What Changed
The NSAI has published a live amendment to I.S. 10101, Ireland's national rules for electrical installations. The update is designated I.S. 10101:2020+A1:2024 and is now the current standard. Here is what changed.
Part 7 (Special locations): Updated requirements for bathrooms, swimming pools and other special locations. Boundary zones and required protection levels have been tightened in line with the latest IEC amendments. Relevant for domestic bathroom rewires and any commercial wet area installation.
Part 8 (Energy efficiency): A new energy efficiency section now sits formally within the standard. Relevant for any installation where the client is claiming SEAI grants, as certification requirements increasingly reference energy efficiency compliance.
Part 718 (Communal facilities and workplaces): This is a new section covering shared facilities in apartment blocks, offices and communal work areas. With apartment completions up 33% this quarter, this section is immediately practical for contractors doing fit-outs in multi-unit developments.
If you are still working from the 2020 edition without the A1:2024 amendment, you are not working to the current standard. The document is available through the NSAI website. RECI and ECSSA members should check their body's guidance on the transition.
🌿 May: Peak Season for Outdoor Entertaining
Evenings are stretching past 9pm now and will stay there until late June. That window is driving real demand from homeowners who want to get more use from their garden, patio or deck. The electrical side of outdoor entertaining is consistently under-estimated by homeowners and consistently over-deliverable by a good contractor.
LED strip lighting. This is the product that turns a patio or pergola from a daytime space into an evening one. Warm white under decking, RGB around a garden bar, cool white along an outdoor kitchen. The install is clean, the result is visible and the customer remembers it every time they use the space.
Shop LED Lights online, trade pricing available, call 01 401 9907 for contractor rates.
Outdoor sockets. A patio without an outdoor socket is an extension lead waiting to happen. One twin IP65 outdoor socket is a quick, tidy job that makes the space genuinely usable.
Motion sensor lights and floodlights. Security lighting is a natural add-on to any outdoor job at this time of year. If you are already running cable for a socket or strip lights, the marginal cost of adding a motion sensor head is low and the customer sees it as significant value.
Shop Motion Sensor Lights | Shop Floodlights
🔦 Product Spotlight: LED Strip Lighting
LED Strip Lights: The May Upsell That Sells Itself
LED strip lighting is one of those products customers do not know they want until they see it installed somewhere. Once they do, they want it everywhere. If you are doing any outdoor job this month, a garden socket, a security floodlight, a gate light, it is worth having the conversation about LED strip for under the decking, along the pergola or around the garden wall.
It is not just outdoor work. Strip lighting under kitchen cabinets, along bathroom mirror edges and in alcoves is consistently popular with homeowners who are renovating. The install is fast, the materials are low cost and the customer pays for your time and skill rather than expensive equipment.
Shop LED Lights at Shamrock Electrical
Trade pricing available on everything. Website prices are retail. Electricians and contractors always get better trade pricing when they contact us directly.
Call 01 401 9907 or email sales@shamrockelectrical.ie
Open a Trade Account and Get 10% Off Your First Order
Cable, trunking, conduit, consumer units, MCBs, RCDs, RCBOs and all switchgear are available in-store at Greenogue. Call or email for stock and trade pricing.
💡 Contractor Tip of the Week
The Pre-Job Site Visit: Five Minutes That Pay for Themselves
Most job surprises are not surprises at all. They are things that were there on day one but nobody looked. A quick site visit before you price a job does not need to take long, but done consistently it will stop you losing money on jobs that looked straightforward on the phone and were not.
Step 1: Check the consumer unit. Age, type, available ways, space for new circuits. A customer asking for an outdoor socket may have a full board with no room. Know this before you price, not after you start.
Step 2: Trace the cable route. Where is the cable going to run? Through a cavity wall, under a floor, around a door frame? The difference between a clean route and a difficult one can be two hours of additional labour. Walk it before you quote it.
Step 3: Check access points. Attic hatch, under-floor access, internal wall construction. If there is no attic access and the customer wants a ceiling rose moved, you need to know that before you price it.
Step 4: Note any existing non-standard work. Old wiring, non-compliant installations, previous cowboy work. If your job sits alongside someone else's questionable installation, flag it in writing before you start so it does not become your liability.
Step 5: Take three photos on your phone before you leave. Consumer unit, main cable entry point and the area where the work is going. Thirty seconds. Saved many contractors from a customer who later insists damage was caused during the job.
📅 Dates to Know: May and June 2026
- 29 May: EU Building Directive deadline. The deadline for Ireland to transpose the recast Energy Performance of Buildings Directive into national law. New requirements around building energy performance come into effect. Worth being aware of for any commercial or multi-unit work you are pricing now.
- 1 June: PrepayPower electricity price rise. An 8.8% rise takes effect. Use rising energy costs as a conversation opener with homeowners about LED upgrades. Lower running costs are a genuine selling point on every lighting job.
- Now through June: Peak outdoor season. Evenings stay bright past 9pm until late June. This is the six-week window where outdoor electrical work sells itself. If your diary has gaps, outdoor lighting and socket jobs are the fastest way to fill them.
A solid week for the Irish electrical trade. The new build pipeline is the healthiest it has been in over a decade, the retrofit programme is running at record volume and May evenings are delivering real demand. Use the window.
The Shamrock Electrical Team
Greenogue Business Park, Rathcoole, Co. Dublin
📬 Subscribe to The Spark
The Spark goes out every Wednesday morning to electrical contractors across Ireland. Free, no spam, unsubscribe any time.
📖 Previous Issues
- Issue 007: Irish fuel protests ended (ran 7-14 April), government survived no-confidence vo
- Issue 006: Iran ceasefire agreed (day 38), oil down 16% biggest single-day fall since 1991,
- Issue 005: Easter bank holiday opening hours, Iran war day 32 escalation, LED emergency bul
- Issue 004: Iran war week four alleged ceasefire signals, dynamic electricity tariffs launch
About Shamrock Electrical Supplies
Shamrock Electrical Supplies is an electrical wholesaler and retailer based in Greenogue Business Park, Rathcoole, Co. Dublin. We supply professional electrical contractors and homeowners across Ireland.
Contractors who open a trade account get competitive trade pricing, reliable stock availability, and a team that knows what they are talking about.
Find Us
Shamrock Electrical Supplies
Unit 22, Block 613, Jordanstown Road
Greenogue Business Park
Rathcoole, Co. Dublin, D24 TX98
Opening Hours
Monday to Thursday: 7am to 5:30pm
Friday: 7am to 5pm
Saturday: 9am to 1:30pm
Sunday: Closed
Get in Touch
📞 01 401 9907
✉️ sales@shamrockelectrical.ie
🌐 shamrockelectrical.ie
Open a Trade Account and Get 10% Off Your First Order