Name:Quentin Gargan and Clare Watson Address:Ardnashee, Bantry, Co Cork Dwelling:Straw-bale house Here since:1999
We were involved in environmental campaigning in Dublin, but we wanted to do something positive rather than being constant objectors. We wanted to create a positive example of comfortable sustainability, so we moved down here in 1999. We were both keen on being able to produce our own food and reduce our energy requirements.
Back then it was an environmental mission, but now rising oil prices and diminishing resources mean that other people are having to look at this. Economics and the environment have more in common now than ever before. We looked mad when we put up a wind generator, but we don't look quite as silly now that oil is getting more expensive.
The house is very unusual - it's a straw-bale house. We put up a post-and-beam frame made of Douglas fir, a gorgeous, orangey wood, and we clad the house externally with straw. We regard ourselves as pioneering, but it's a bit too wet here: straw is an excellent insulator, but it needs external timber cladding to keep moisture out.
The house has a slightly pitched roof, where we put down larch boards, and then a rooftop lawn. The walls are only one part of the story. We designed the house to derive as much passive solar gain as possible; it's got a conservatory on the south side, which warms up the house when there's sunshine. We managed to work it that from the second week in March until November we don't need to put in any heat in the house. The heat that we need comes from two boxes of timber; just two days' work with a chainsaw every year provides our fuel.
The ceilings are lined with wool, and of course we've got double glazing. We've also got heat-exchange ventilation, where you extract dirty air from the bathroom and kitchen and run it through a heat exchanger, taking the heat out of the air. Then hot fresh air is run through the sitting room and bedrooms, so you get your ventilation without any heat loss. Every new house should have it.
People feel very intimidated by the thought that, once energy supplies run down, they might not be able to do everything they can do at the moment. But the things they do at the moment don't give them enormous pleasure. We have two kids, David and Luke, and they have a fantastic quality of life. We have cattle, sheep and goats, a greenhouse and a polytunnel. It's a busy lifestyle - but busy bringing the goats out or feeding the hens.
There's a lot of interest in alternative energies and solar water heaters and wind turbines. So many people were getting in touch we decided to have an open day one Sunday every month. Parents come to look at the wind turbines while the kids want to play with the goats.
People can get a feel for the life. I hope there is an uptake of sustainable living. The earlier you make the transition, the easier it will be.
• In conversation with Davin O'Dwyer. See www.ardnashee.com for more about the house