"Seeing It Made It Feel Possible": How Open Eco Homes Keeps Growing

This autumn, homes and community projects across Devon will open their doors to show that creating a warmer (and cooler in summer), healthier and lower-carbon home is not abstract: it is already happening in homes of every kind.

Open Eco Homes Devon lets visitors see real homes and hear honest stories of change. From modest improvements to ambitious retrofits and new-build Passivhaus homes, visitors can see practical ideas in action and ask: What did it cost? What was difficult? What would you do differently? Where do you start?

Whether you are interested in insulation, solar panels, batteries, heat pumps, ventilation, natural materials, rainwater harvesting, wildlife-friendly gardens or simply a more comfortable, affordable home, they offer something brochures online research cannot: first-hand experience.

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The project began in Totnes, where Transition Town Totnes has run Open Eco Homes weekends for over a decade. Homeowners, builders, renovators and curious visitors come together in a spirit of practical exchange. Rather than presenting a single “perfect eco-home”, the events show many approaches, including ordinary homes still in progress.

For Robin de Carteret, who has coordinated the project since its post-Covid relaunch, the value of seeing homes first-hand is personal. Before he and his wife Hannah built their own home, they visited earlier Open Eco Homes events.

“Seeing that people had simply got on and made these changes made it feel real and possible,” says Robin. “The real benefit was talking to householders: what it was like to live with the changes, the decisions they made and the tips they had afterwards.”

Their Dartington home is a timber-frame Passivhaus built for exceptional efficiency. It has recycled-newspaper and wood-fibre insulation, triple glazing, heat-recovery ventilation and solar panels that generate more electricity over a year than the household uses. Natural and local materials were used where possible, including Sequoia cladding from a mile away.

After completing the build, Robin and Hannah wanted to share what they had learned. When Robin found that the Totnes project was no longer running, he offered to restart it. Three years on, it remains a much-loved local event, with visitors finding it inspiring and confidence-building.

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This summer’s wildfires in British towns, months of drought, failed crops, and weeks of struggling through extreme heat are an urgent reminder of why this work matters. Homes need to help us adapt to a changing climate as well as prevent further damage. Better insulation, shading and ventilation can make homes more comfortable in winter and safer, cooler places during heatwaves. Reducing our reliance on fossil fuels is essential – but it also brings immediate, practical benefits. A well-insulated, draught-proofed home reduces energy bills. Heat pumps and electric vehicles can reduce exposure to volatile fossil-fuel prices. Solar panels, batteries and rainwater harvesting can give households greater resilience and more control over bills.

We rightly talk about affordable homes. But affordability is not only about the price of buying a property: it includes the cost of living in it, month after month, year after year. A Passivhaus has exceptionally low energy demand and, combined with solar PV and battery storage, can have very low, potentially zero, energy bills. Better homes should be affordable to run as well as affordable to buy.

“People want to hear from someone who actually has a heat pump, solar panels or insulation,” Robin says. “Being able to see things for yourself and ask honest questions helps cut through the conflicting information.”

Following interest from communities around the county, Open Eco Homes is now expanding beyond Totnes. With support from Energy Saving Devon, this year’s programme brings the model to six new areas across Devon during September and October.

You do not need to be planning a major renovation to come along. A visit might prompt a small next step – choosing better shading for hotter summers, tackling draughts, improving loft insulation, or finding out whether solar panels could work for your roof. For others, it may provide the confidence to plan a deeper retrofit or build project.

Open Eco Homes Devon is about practical hope: sharing experience generously and helping people imagine what is possible in their own homes and communities.

Visit energysavingdevon.org.uk/open-eco-homes-devon for the interactive map, participating homes and full event details.

Open Eco Homes Events will be happening in these areas:

19–20 September: Open Homes in South Hams and North Devon

26–27 September: Open Homes in Teign Valley & East Dartmoor

3–4 October: Open Homes in Newton Abbot to Dawlish and Sidmouth & Ottery St Mary

10–11 October: Open Homes in Lustleigh to Dawlish

Also on Wednesday 23 September: Open Eco Homes Devon: Real Homes, Real Solutions – an evening of talks, practical advice and Q&A, 7–9pm at Newton Abbot Library. Hear from householders and experts about real-life retrofit, heat pumps, grants, summer cooling and low-carbon homes. Free – booking required here.

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