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Ekkehard's All-Electric Retrofit in Woodville Park
·BlogEvent Recap
A virtual tour of Ekkehard's electrified cottage — proof that meaningful retrofits don't need a tear-down or a giant budget.
Welcome to the cottage
For Sustainable House Day 2025 we ran a virtual tour through Ekkehard's electrified cottage in Woodville Park. The brief from Ekkehard was characteristically clear: "Don't make it look fancier than it is."
It isn't. And that's the point.
What's been done
- Reverse cycle heating and cooling, replacing gas heaters
- Heat pump hot water, replacing the old gas storage system
- Induction cooktop, replacing gas
- A modest rooftop solar array sized to the house, not to a sales target
- Targeted draught-proofing and ceiling insulation upgrades
What it cost — honestly
We talked through the numbers in the tour. The headline: most of the changes paid back faster than expected, particularly hot water. The bits that took longer to pay back were still worth it for comfort alone.
Want to see for yourself?
Reach out and we'll see if we can connect you with someone in our community who's done a similar retrofit — there's nothing quite like seeing it in a real house.