When we arrived here 15 years ago, what we were looking for was a slower pace of life, a more self sufficient way of life, and to escape the treadmill of living to work as much as possible. Over the years, thousands of people have visited the farm to find out more about this way of life and we’ve loved helping them to do the same.
We’re really conscious that everyone has a different approach to the idea of off grid living, and for us it means producing our own energy, some of our own food and fuel, and generally trying to do as much for ourselves as possible.
What it doesn’t mean (for us at least) is doing without – we still have all (well most) of the regular conveniences that you’d expect to have in 2026.
So when we came to renovate Birch cottage, we wanted to show that its possible to take a fairly typical old building and retro fit it to a really good standard, so that it’s:
- Easy to heat
- Uses minimal energy
- Uses renewables as its source
- Doesn’t need any fossil fuels
- Has a living space that is as free from chemicals as possible
- Feels warm and cosy but isn’t unfamiliar
Plus we wanted to be able to know where all the materials came from, and ideally, furnish the cottage with objects that had a story, or were made by people we know.
So the cottage uses natural insulations – wood fibre and sheets wool; it uses local timber, mainly larch from Northern Ireland. Steve did all the work in the house (literally), and the furniture is all up cycled from family and friends. Things like the lamp in the living room are made from reclaimed timber, and the artwork is all by local artists.
In terms of being off grid, all the energy for the cottage is coming from our own solar and wind, and is stored in a big battery so that there is always power. Its served us well for well over a decade now.
Heating comes in several forms. We have log and pellet boilers, either of which can do all the hot water and central heating, but in the summer when there is a surplus of solar, we use that to heat the water. Plus if you have the fire lit, it has a back boiler and it is also heating the water. A lot of the wood fuel comes from our own woodland, and we’ve planted thousands of trees over the years to ensure that there’s always a supply.
Many people say that staying here has encouraged them to make changes to their own homes having seen that it is possible, and we’re enormously grateful that we’re able to help in this way. If you’re coming to stay and would like a chat about any of the things that you see here, then we’re always happy to help.