Rural charm, modern comfort

How to give your cottage back its 16th-century charm, while still retaining a degree of modern comfort

Electricity Where there is no mains electricity, check with the local planning department or power supplier about getting your home connected. Generally, it is possible. If you can't be connected, a generator is an alternative (there are green options too, see box). They can run on Calor LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas), diesel or petrol and can power everything in your home. Just Generators can supply a suitable generator based on your total wattage requirements.

Rewiring Although old properties frequently need rewiring, it's complex to do. Find an experienced electrical engineer through the National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting. Any new electrical installation should minimise damage to the house's fabric, and at the same time be legal and safe. SPAB publishes a helpful technical pamphlet on the subject. You can sometimes refurbish decorative switches, while old conduits and gas pipework can be used for new cabling. English Heritage's leaflet Investigative Work On Historic Buildings is useful.

Gas In a property without mains gas, Calor LPG can be used in exactly the same way for heating, cooking and hot water. Storage tanks can be installed above or below ground and the new Think Tank® automatically orders gas when your supply is low. Set-up costs for Calor are competitive, as tank installation and the cost of the boiler itself are both less than for oil.

Oil costs about 17p per litre and the average cost of space and water heating for a three-bedroom house is £462 per year. As tanks are an eyesore, consider where you will site yours. Tanks must be 1.8m from the house but there is no maximum distance, so you could hide it in an outbuilding. For more information, visit the OFTEC (Oil Firing Technical Association) website.

Broadband Think about extra sockets and cabling at the building stage. BT promises connections for the entire country by summer 2005, although there will be some exceptions. As long as you are within 6-10km of a BT exchange and have a BT phone point, you can access Broadband now.

Insulation This is a good way to improve the thermal efficiency of a period home. Eco-friendly insulators, such as Thermafleece, made from sheep's wool, and cellulose insulation, made from recycled paper, are available.

Agas run on natural gas, Calor LPG, oil or electricity, but can only be used for cooking, though they will also gently warm the room in which they are sited. For heating and hot water you need a Rayburn Rangemaster.

Radiators should never be hung on panelling as they will strain it. Instead, use traditional, low cast-iron radiators that are freestanding. Choose reconditioned old ones or box in the radiator using a painted wooden cover with grilles and shelf above.

Open fires are labour-intensive, smoky and difficult to clean but they are authentic - many old houses would have had a fireplace in every room. These can be easily unblocked by locating a flue and chimney - some fireplace shops (old or new) offer a whole installation package. A stove - whether wood-burning or solid fuel - is an efficient way of keeping the heat in. You can also get realistic gas-powered stoves.

Underfloor heating is invisible and unobtrusive, but because installing it is disruptive (the existing floors must be lifted) and it operates at low temperatures (problematic in a draughty, thermally inefficient old property), many suppliers won't fit it in a period home.

Eco-friendly alternatives
Grants are available for green improvements to properties under the Government's Clear Skies initiative. The only problem is that they often involve altering the appearance of a house's exterior - you are unlikely to be able to fit solar panels to a listed building, for example. Discuss any plans for eco-friendly installations with your conservation officer.
Wind turbines To generate electricity from wind turbines you must be in an area that gets plenty of wind and permits them to be erected. Many protected areas don't allow them. If permitted, your site needs to be monitored to establish feasibility, which involves six months of metering the wind.
Micro-hydro systems If you have a fast-flowing stream on your property, you may be able to generate power from it using a micro-hydro system, typically used by owners of converted watermills. These can often produce more power than the property needs, so you could perhaps sell some back to the National Grid.
Wood-burning boilers These burn logs, wood chips or pellets for central heating. They create less pollution than fossil fuels and use a sustainable resource. Grants towards installing approved wood-burning appliances are available through the Clear Skies initiative.

Directory
Calor 0800 626 626 www.calorcountryliving.co.uk Provides Calor LPG fuel for cooking and heating. Also real-flame fires and stoves.
Centre for Sustainable Energy 0117 929 9950 www.cse.org.uk Free advice line 0117 929 9404.
Clear Skies 0870 243 0930 www.clear-skies.org Government initiative offering grants for eco-friendly domestic installations.
Construction Resources 020 7450 2211 www.ecoconstruct.com Stocks a range of natural insulation.
Just Generators 01263 820202 www.justgenerators.co.uk
The National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting NICEIC 020 7564 2320 www.niceic.org.uk List of approved electricians.
OFTEC Oil Firing Technical Association 0845 658 5080 www.oftec.org
The Organic Energy Company 0845 458 4076 www.organicenergy.co.uk Wood-pellet stoves and boilers plus pellet suppliers.
Thermafleece 01768 486285 www.secondnatureuk.com

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