Couple’s grand design for eco-home
This fabulous eco-home, now for sale, was born after the owners took the surprise decision to demolish their old house and replace it with an energy-efficient new-build. Sharon Dale reports.
THE old adage “location, location, location” was uppermost in Bill and Carol Haygarth’s mind when they bought a top-end home in the village of Hawksworth, near Guiseley.
They chose well as the setting is hard to beat. It is surrounded by countryside and fabulous longrange views, which have proved good for body and soul.
Yet while it looks and feels miles away from the hustle and bustle, it is a five-minute drive from the nearest town and all its amenities.
The Haygarths moved into the property in 2004 conscious that they would have to make some changes to make it their own, though knocking it down and starting again had never crossed their minds at that point.
After all, it didn’t make great financial sense and would involve a lot of effort but that is exactly what they eventually decided to do. The result is a truly sensational rural home that is supremely energy efficient and practically perfect in every way.
The house is now on the market with Monroe estate agents as Bill and Carol plan to downsize to make ready for their golden years.
The price of £2.5m is keen given the location and the amount spent on creating the EPC A-rated ecohome and says Bill: “That doesn’t take into account 20 years worth of house price inflation and that doesn’t matter.”
For the Haygarths it was never about the money, though they saved on VAT, which is set at 20 per cent for most renovation work on houses but is zero for a new-build.
“Your home is the place where you spend most of your time and it has to be right. The old house, built in the 1980s, was not right. It was cold and the upstairs was a dormer and felt cramped,” says Bill.
“We replaced the doors and windows, insulated under the floorboards and had a 48 kw commercial gas boiler installed but it was still cold. I sat in my study one August and the thought of another winter and spending two hours clearing snow off the driveway made my heart sink.”
That 45m-long sloping driveway is no more and the old house is a distant memory thanks to a dream team that included recently retired architect Adam Clark and builder James Tiffany.
Bill and Carol spent a year doing their research, which included visiting building and renovating shows, reading homebuilding magazines and swotting up online, which is why they opted to have the new property built to Passive House standards.
Construction and fit out took 15 months during which time the couple rented in nearby Menston and the wait was well worth it.
The house is contemporary and U-shaped and is built from structural insulated panels covered with stone cladding, while the high specification windows are from Austrian manufacturer Gaulhofer.
Solar photovoltaic panels were also installed to generate electricity and there is a mechanical ventilation and heat recovery system that takes away stale air and replaces it with warm, fresh air.
The long drive is long gone and was replaced by a shorter one that is heated and clears ice and snow. There is also AV cabling in every room for TV and internet.
The reward for the overall investment is a beautiful cosy home with amazing views and to top that off the house won Best Individual New Home at the Local Authority Building Excellence Awards.
The property, named Hawkwind, is on Hillings Lane and is on a plot that is just under an acre and has breathtaking views.
Accessed through electric gates, there is a triple garage with electric doors. Inside the house, there is a boot room/utility, a toilet, a lift and a home cinema with projector, screen and surround sound speakers.
The showstopper is the open plan kitchen/living/dining area with integrated Siemens appliances, instant hot water tap, double ovens, a pantry and breakfast bar. The living area has a wood-burner, underfloor heating and a media wall.
There is also a separate snug, a study with great views and a guest toilet.
Upstairs, there are four large bedrooms with vaulted ceilings and fitted wardrobes. The main guest bedroom has a walk-in wardrobe and an en-suite whilst the principal bedroom has fitted furniture, an ensuite and a balcony.
There is also a guest apartment with its own kitchen, living room, bathroom and bedroom above the integral garage and accessed via the first floor. Outside, the property sits in a plot of almost an acre with landscaped and well-maintained lawned gardens and terraces.
Hawkwind is in rural Hawksworth, which is in easy reach of Guiseley with Ilkley a 15-minute drive away. Both have railway stations.
Pragmatic by nature, Bill says of the sale: “The house is 5,500 sq ft so it is too big for us now but we have enjoyed living here amongst a lovely small community and we have been very happy so we will be sorry to leave but it makes sense.”
After experiencing the benefits of a warm and energy efficient self-build home, the Haygarths are planning another on a smaller scale.
“We said we wouldn’t do it again but having designed our own home we couldn’t live with someone else’s design and in a house that wasn’t as good as the house we have now.”