The sun is out today which is great after the last few days of cold and lashing rain. This will be our first winter with our underfloor heating working throughout the ground floor of the house. Quite a milestone!
Of course the piping was all put in when the slab was poured right at the beginning, but it wasn't until last spring that we were able to purchase the heat pump that makes it all work.
There isn't any natural gas at this property, and as we have quite substantial winters, it's important that we are able manage the running costs of whatever heating we use. We have a wood burning fire in the family room that we light in the evenings that adds warmth and makes the room feel cozy. There is a lot of timber lying around that we are able to collect from the property and this fire is also connected to the piping in the floor and gives the heat pump a hand.
We've recently been doing some work on the garage/studio. Mainly installing new windows and doors in the garage section. Upstairs is the two bedroom studio that my sister and her children lived in for a few years.
New timber door and windows at back.
The main push to finish this building now is because we would like to be able to rent out the studio for short stays. I think it will be a good project for me to manage and hopefully will provide some extra funds to help negate our heating bill!
New unpainted garage doors at front.
Keith has built the garage doors and once they have had some details added, I'll give them a coat of paint. There is quite a bit still to do, but we've made a good start and hopefully it won't be too long before both the inside and the outside are ready. Can't wait to show some 'after' photos!
Small 'wicket door' for easy access.
nice blog, happened to be looking for notes on building a besser block wall and came across your other blog. Definitely now saved to the blog folder and I'll be back to do some more reading.
ReplyDeleteRod - Darwin
Cheers Rod, Thanks for visiting!
DeleteI would like to add that, if you want to retain heat inside your house, using a double-glazed window can help. This window can minimize loss of indoor heat during winter because of its specially-coated glass. And it can also prevent heat from entering the house in the hot summer days.
ReplyDeleteNancy Ferdinand
That was very reasonable, Nancy! ‘Cos you see when it comes to household concerns like heating and cooling, everything in the house works together. Using the appropriate windows can really improve the atmospheric difference your heating and cooling equipment cause inside the house. However, of course, you should prioritize the latter.
ReplyDelete-->Darryl Iorio