Visitors Memories

Mrs. K’s 1980’s House


Mr. and Mrs. K’s stucco house was built in the year 1980 and they are the third owners. It is unusual in that it has little stones mixed in with the stucco on the outside. Although the origin of the stones is not known, they probably were obtained locally. Mrs. K. says about the interior of their house, “In the living room and dining room the floors are hardwood, but in the center of the living room there is a rectangle of built-in carpet. The kitchen has linoleum and the rest of the house has carpet including the main bathroom and then the ensuite bathroom has ceramic tile.” There are five rooms upstairs, not counting the bathroom. The windows are double glazed, which means double panes, and they are wooden framed. In the living room, Mrs. K. explains, “There is a cornice or a moulding around the top of the wall that makes it look fancier.” This is a feature that she really likes and feels that it is special.

However, what is really unusual about the K’s house is the fact that the house is heated by a heat pump. Mr. K. explains: “We are on well water and it is an artesian well. There’s a pump at the bottom that brings the water into the house – the heat pump – and the heat pump extracts the heat from the water and then it goes into a compressor which increases the temperature of it. Then it goes through air ducts the way it would in a normal house. So it’s based on electricity, but it basically is free because we’re just getting the heat from the water. After the heat pump is finished getting the heat from the water the heat goes up to the top of the well. It’s called an ‘open loop’ system I think.”

The house has a sizable yard surrounding it -- 75 feet by 285 feet and there’s a double garage. Mrs. K. says that in the garage, “… the eves are wood to match the frames of the windows.” The whole house takes in 1,300 square feet. Regarding the furniture she comments with a bit of humour, “Our furniture is about as old as our marriage – about 38 years old!” She continues, “ In the main bathroom, because it hasn’t been renovated, the tub and toilet are brown, which kind of dates it I think. (Also), the bathroom the walls are all ceramic tile and we have a cultured marble sink. When we bought the house we had (a) green refrigerator and a green stove. We since replaced them. So that dates the house, too.”