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Host rating
65 %
Last replied
5 Feb 2024
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Description
We are looking for some extra hands to help us to demolish and to rebuild our house at an idealistic piece of land in the south of the Netherlands. Next to those hands and hardworking attitude we need your laughs, positive mindset and humour to enjoy this rebuilding journey with.
We are a family of 5 (Julius and Anoek and our three small kids) living on a 3 hectare property. It is a beautiful place with a house, horse stables and a garage, but there is a lot of deferred maintenance. When we bought this house 4 years ago we turned the garage into a loft where we lived for 2 years and with the arrival of our oldest child we decided to rebuild it into a real house. We have done all of this ourselves, next to our job (including plumbing, electricity, masonry, carpentry) and with the help of friends and family. It meant a lot of hard work, a steep learning curve and heaps of fun. We have made some mistakes along the way, there are some things that we would have done differently but we have enjoyed the journey and are very proud of the result. We believe that’s all that counts.
Along the building we of course started our own vegetable garden and apple orchard, build a chicken fence, planted trees and chopped loads of wood (with a log splitter, no worries), but also went on holidays and spend weekends in nature with our 35 year old campervan.
We are now ready for the next challenge: rebuilding the original farmhouse, it is therefore that Julius decided to quit his fulltime job to be able to work and focus on the rebuilding of the house. This means that we can finetune everything that we have learned so far and needless to say, it is wonderful to have him spending so much time around the family and the house. Even though Julius has his full attention and time available for this project, he still only has two hands to use, we therefore are looking for some extra hands to help us out. Extra hands to help demolish the main building, think of of removing rooftiles, window frames, walls, floors coverings etc. Giving a hand when pouring concrete, connecting wires and laying pipes. Basically everything, and more, that comes to your mind when fully renovating a house. Ideally you are skilled in carpentry, but anyone with an eagerness to learn, a hard working attitude and a can do mentality is more than welcome. We do not only look for those extra pair of hands, we also are looking for good companionship! People to exchange experiences and stories with during the work, someone to have a good laugh with while digging the floor and someone to drink a beer with after a day’s hard work. With your help we do not only hope to go twice as fast but also to have someone to enjoy and share the project journey with in a fun and positive atmosphere.
We look forward to share our place with the enthusiastic, openminded and hardworking exchange workers.
Types of help and learning opportunities
DIY and building projects
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
We both speak fluently English. Anoek has spent a year as an exchange worker in New Zealand and Australia so she knows the importance of exchange and learning opportunities very well. We want you to feel welcome at our place and love to share experiences and stories with you. We will pass on the building skills of Julius if you are interested, so you might even become as handy as him after a while.
Projects involving children
This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.
Help
We ask 5 days of work (25 hours) in exchange for food and accommodation for 7 days. We require a minimum stay of 3 weeks.
Tasks can vary along the phase of the restoration but you can think of
- Removing rooftiles
- Tearing off the wood of the walls
- Giving a hand pouring concrete
- Moving window frames
- Helping with laying pipes or wires
Julius will always be around during the workdays, so we do not expect you to work all by yourself for days (we know out of own experience that this quite often happens at other places). The other 3 days you can spend time exploring the area, lending our bike or canoe, or enjoying the peaceful environment.
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Dutch: Fluent
Accommodation
We have a mobile home in the backyard with two bedrooms, a kitchenette, living area and bathroom so depending on the amount of workers you will have to share the mobile home. As an individual or couple you do always have your own room. It is also possible to pitch a tent or campervan if preferred.
We will provide you with good ingredients to cook your meals, depending on your own preferences.
What else ...
Our property is situating at the ridge of the Brabantse Wal, an area known for its rolling hills, woods and polders and close to the National Park Oosterschelde. In other words a great area for hikers, cyclists and waterlovers. All of which we are So whenever you are looking for us and you can’t find us working around the house or garden we are probably walking in the woods, kitesurfing and canoeing on the water or mountainbiking the various elevations. We do have a mountainbike as well as two canoes which you can use if you are a watersport enthusiast.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Space for parking camper vans
This host can provide space for campervans.
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Hours expected
Maximum 5 hours a day, 5 days a week
