I Found My Dream House

Thanks Fully Charged Show for Helping Me Find Another House I Can’t Afford 😕

While perusing my daily YouTube feed, I came across a really interesting video from the guys over at Fully Chargedtitled "Can you Heat & Power a big house with Renewables?" It’s all about the Moonstone house and their journey of building an eco-mansion.

After watching the video and falling in love with the house and the technology behind it, I spent most of last night watching their video blog (themoonstoneproject.co.uk). I’m completely hooked. I either want to buy the place or build my own—it’s just a pity that I can barely afford a sausage roll, let alone a mansion.

The project has filled my head with a stream of ideas for a home I’d love to renovate—specifically, one I have my eye on in Bridlington.

My Renovation Plans

There are several reasons I love this house. It is stunning, with great architectural design. It features an outbuilding to the left that I could turn into a workshop and a plant room for batteries and heat exchangers. Plus, it’s just around the corner from Abi’s folks, and the garden is huge!

Here is how I’d tackle the project:

• The Garden: I’d clear the overgrown right-hand side, dig down to fit pipes for ground-source heat pumps, and install a small solar farm. This would provide power and heat, and we might even make money from the excess energy.
• The House: I’d strip everything back to the brickwork to add a boatload of insulation. I’d rewire the whole place, ensuring it’s fully networked, and look into an eco-friendly air-conditioning solution.
• Kitchen & Interior: I’d let Abi loose on the kitchen design and the rest of the house's décor.
• The Outhouse: If planning permission allows, I’d extend the outbuilding to attach it to the main house, adding a couple of bedrooms and a workshop. If not, I’d make it deeper and add garage doors. I’d also put my office upstairs in the outhouse, creating a nice separation between work and home life.
• Landscaping: I’d extend the side wall, replace the wire fence, add gates for vehicle access, and build a shaded decking area at the rear. The remaining garden space would feature raised beds and a lawn for BBQs and chilling out.

I know I’d probably never be able to make this dream a reality, but I have fun figuring these things out anyway. I just wish I could get the building plans so I could do a full 3D design based on the current structure!

Have you come across any amazing eco-homes? What ideas have they given you? Would you rather buy new or renovate an existing home? Let me know in the comments below!