Annemieke and Kars
Annemieke and Kars bought the house from Kars’ great uncle about twenty years ago. “My great uncle actually used the house as a farm. Only a small part of the front house was used as living space. When we bought it it was very outdated and cramped. We tackled just about everything step-by-step.”
“The horse stable now houses our bathroom, the hay compartment is the utility room. In fact, the house has been moved towards the former barn behind the house. We have also created a six-person apartment at the back of the barn. All walls downstairs are insulated and HR glass has been installed. We have also tackled the roofs: the entire roof has been renewed and insulated from the outside. We did this with PUR plates that were placed on the roof timbers. Later we also did that at the barn.”
Together with our guests, we use as much energy as an average family
With our family of five, we try to use energy sparingly. It’s the little things: not taking a shower for too long, not leaving the lights on unnecessarily, the wood stove on or just an extra sweater. The switch to LED lamps really made a difference. We use relatively little energy. Together with our guests, we use as much energy as an average family.”
Next step
“We will soon replace all remaining single windows with HR++ glass. It’s just not comfortable in winter. Partly on the advice of the energy advisor, we also opted for a solar boiler. The subsidy is a nice extra motivation to do that. For the even longer term, solar panels and underfloor heating are still on the wish list and then we will be almost energy neutral. The nice thing is that we are hearing more and more people around us about sustainability. It is contagious.”
ISOLATION MEASURES
- Cavity wall insulation (styrofoam balls)
- Roof of house and shed (PUR panels from outside)
- Windows: HR glass
AND SOON:
- HR++ glass where there is still single glass
- Solar boiler
- Solar panels
- Underfloor heating
Do it yourself
Roof-insulation Sloping roof
Wall insulation
