Episode Information Suffolk, The Eco House

Date Published:

20/05/2008

Rob and Alida not only wanted to build their new house from scratch, they wanted to change the way they live: to be true, in their day-to-day lives, to their commitment to sustainability and protecting the environment.

They found an ideal green-field plot in October 1997, in the heart of Suffolk, and received planning permission after three months' tense wait. Rob and Alida paid £45,000 for their half-acre plot and spent about £99,000 on the build.

Rob hired an architect who had built his own eco house. To minimise the use of concrete, the manufacture of which is very polluting, the architect came up with a design involving a timber frame made of special beams. These beams, imported from Sweden, rest on a ring-beam of hard reclaimed wood which, in turn, is supported by concrete pillars.

The roof incorporates solar panels and its pitch is such that there is minimum penetration of the sun in the summer and maximum penetration in the winter. Because of this, and because the house is very well insulated, heating can be provided solely by wood-burning stoves. The outside of the house is clad in larch and Douglas fir weatherboarding.

Rainwater is collected for the washing machine and a tap in the utility room, and 'grey water' is recycled by means of a natural cleaning plant involving stones, bacteria and reeds.