GROUNDHOUSE ECOCHIC – brittany gite

“After a wonderful night’s sleep, I wake up to sun pouring in through the front of the Groundhouse. Despite having no heating on during the night, the house is pleasantly warm” Bibi Van Der Zee, Guardian, November 2010

“This completely self-sustaining eco home, built into the earth on one side and full of huge windows overlooking the garden on the other, was just the thing we were looking for. Nothing beats a week of eating local food, sleeping, reading, walking, biking, hiking, and cooking. Not to be missed: walking along the Nantes Brest Canal; Tremargat and its potter; the organic baker and organic food coop in Mellionec; and lovely hiking in the Foret de Quenecan followed by a visit to the Abbey of Bon Repos” Erica Berman, Hipparis.com

A unique high quality ecological home completed in 2009.  It offers complete ecological living with extraordinary space, light and style. Groundhouse was featured on Grand Designs and selected by Kevin McCloud as one of his top five all time favourite designs  (www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tFJa2aHgN4). As Kevin suggests “if this building is an exemplar, it isn’t so much just about sustainable construction as, perhaps, an example of how we all should be living.”

“We stayed at the Groundhouse and had a wonderful time.  It was the week that Western Europe was deluged by rain, and we stayed  indoors.  That might have made for a claustrophobic and dull way to spend a holiday.  But the atmosphere of the Groundhouse is magical and peaceful and we came back feeling refreshed and indulged.  The house itself is very calming, with the fabulous rotunda and a kitchen that serves the need of the most devoted of cooks.  Great for a break whatever the weather!”  Adrian and Zoe, London

The Brittany Groundhouse is a 3 bedroom solar eco house set in an acre of organic gardens within 6 acres of ancient woodland. Ideal for couples and small families, it is available as a luxury self catering gite:

  • Spacious, light, warm year round
  • Hi tec ecological, ultra energy efficient
  • 10 mins to amenities
  • only 90 minutes to St Malo and Roscoff ferry ports, Rennes International Airport and Dinard Airport (Ryan Air from Stansted)

Each room has a complete opening glazed front face onto the outside terrace.  Set in it’s own acre of organic garden, surrounded by oaks, but open to the south, the Brittany Groundhouse benefits from all rooms being light and warm. Its passive solar design and massive earth walls ensure it keeps a near constant warm temperature all year round without the need for a central heating system. Comfort and style go hand in hand with the state of the art salvage designer kitchen and luxury bath and shower. Ecotechnologies and good design deliver power, hot water, rainwater, and of course a steady comfortable temperature, but the groundhouse mainly functions like any normal house, (just without the bills and the impact).

“In their Howarth and Nortje kept track of the Groundhouse temperature for a year and, with no heating beyond the wood-burning stove, it was between 18.7C in winter and 22C in summer” Bibi Van Der Zee, Guardian, November 2010

The rooms are all light, warm and spacious:

  • the roundroom or rotunda is six metres across with vaulted ceiling rising up to an open skylight in the centre.  It has its own wood stove and thick rugs and provides stunning open living space.  Its also a great creative space, and is good for yoga, meditation, and reading.  It opens onto the kitchen/ living space through a trifold door. Like all the rooms, the front south face opens completely to the terrace.  There are two hand carved Elm work stations and broadband.
  • The heart of the house is the open plan lounge and kitchen, the fire room,  from where the roundroom, as well as the 3 bedrooms can be directly accessed. The designer kitchen combines modern efficiency with salvaged oak work surfaces and is equipped with a stainless steel cooker, double butlers sink and designer eco lighting. At its centre is a large old oak table that can seat up to 8 people. It was designed and built by master craftsmen Dan Clark.  The kitchen & living room living space is 6m across and look out over the gardens.  Seating is also arranged around the glass fronted Hwam Wood stove which provides a beautiful focal point and ambience to the open plan room, as well as back up heat to the house when its chilly.  The kitchen lighting (designed by ecolighting desginers luminair) includes turned walnut drops that run on only 3w.  A beautiful evening light is provided by the bottle wall from the adjacent bathroom.
  • the bathroom has rounded walls and massive fossilised limestone floors.  The bath is a large luxury stone resin bath that is cleverly made with an airspace that keep helps the water warm for hours.  This is complemented by the dual shower mounted over the bath.  The basin is carved from a solid piece of granite and is seated on salvaged oak and granite.  And finally, the state of the art swedish dry toilet ensures no pollution leaves the groundhouse.
  • the blueroom is a double bedroom with lime cob walls and a blue earth cement floor with blue recycled glass inlays.  It has a double bed and small desk.
  • the greenroom is a double bedroom with lime cob walls and a green earth cement floor with green recycled glass inlays.  It has a double bed and small desk.
  • the long room is a very large double room with a contemporary lime washed four poster bed by indigo furniture and an additional glass bottle wall.  Like all the bedrooms, the opening trifold doors are closed off at night by thick velvet cotton/bamboo curtains.