No floor in the living room and kitchen and it is still cold inside. But it won’t take long before the Tolner family house will be completely preserved. With thanks to the municipality of Noordenveld.
“We try to help people make their homes more sustainable, reduce their energy bills and switch away from natural gas to be prepared for the future. But we notice that people think that is quite a big step,” said councilor Kirsten Ipema (Municipal Interests).
Because insulation involves a lot. In addition to finding out about various subsidies and figuring out how it can be implemented, the house also has to be emptied and all kinds of things have to be arranged. Ipema: “We notice that there are many people who dread this.”
That is why the municipality wants to show people how that process works and they do this through the Tolner family. “This has been offered to us and the municipality is helping us. It also ensures that the subsidies are arranged and any additional costs are paid by the municipality. For this we have to stand as a model home. So we must offer people from the area the opportunity to share our experience,” says Derk Tolner.
A lot needs to be done at their house in Norg. “The aim of this project is to show that you can get a 1970s home off gas,” says independent energy advisor Reinier Bruil. There are many of these types of homes in Norg. This is tackled from top to bottom.
“The first thing that is needed is insulation. This includes ventilation and, finally, sustainable techniques can be applied for heating and hot tap water,” Bruil sums up. The result? “It’s a mess, it’s a mess. It also takes a little longer than we expected,” Tolner laughs.
During the renovation you always come across things that you did not expect. For example, according to Tolner, the stairs to the attic had to be replaced because the floor has become thicker due to insulation. It comes as no surprise to councilor Ipema. “The story will probably not be ‘it’s a piece of cake and it can be arranged in no time’. But we hope to soon have a good story about how exactly it works and what it produces.”
How much energy costs it will save, what the practical advantages and disadvantages are, Tolner can tell you all about it later. But not yet. “It is cold now. Warm and cheaper is promised, we have to see.”
Councilor Ipema hopes that even though it is quite a job, people will still be inspired to get started. “And later to listen to the story of the Tolner family.”