What did you indulge in at the house, what did you give up?

I would have liked to have a wall like that too, but we had to choose between a natural stone wall or high-quality carpet for the upper floor. I chose a not quite so cheap velour.
I also find the lighting of the steps very chic. My husband doesn’t. We then agreed on wall lamps.
A cistern is only desired for us, but not mandatory. Next year we will install an above-ground one. It fits behind the garage and is supposed to collect the rainwater from the garage and the carport. I am curious whether we will manage it the way we imagine it.

The cistern thing is, I think, a green attitude, or are you doing it because water might possibly put too much pressure in certain areas?

13 sqm for 400 €, of course self-installed

Maybe not glued perfectly, but we don’t care
I thought of 3 more electric highlights, maybe one or the other is interesting for you:
Built-in radio in the bathroom
Main switch (like for lights) for the socket where the receiver and TV are connected
Two-way switch for the bedside lights, to have mood lighting before going to bed (on at the door, off in bed)
Regards Yvonne

Well, for that price I would do it immediately too, I have to say honestly.

The thing with the cistern is, in my opinion, a green attitude, or are you doing it because the water might press in certain areas?

We do have confined groundwater here. But that only relates to our cistern in that we cannot bury it. When we are done with the garage, carport, and so on, we still have almost 600 sqm of garden area left. That needs to be watered, and on hot days our well alone can't manage it. So it's purely for personal use.

Well - for us, a cistern is not mandatory. But it is mandatory to ensure the drainage of rainwater on the property (soakaway pit, regule, pond, or a cistern). In all the aforementioned variants, corresponding earthworks are necessary. A pond was ruled out because of small children. Otherwise, the same consideration applies as with - how to water the garden most sensibly? Purely via tap / timer? No. Using it for toilet flushing is out of the question because: it’s not cost-effective. There are already a few threads about this - just search for them.

We do have confined groundwater here. But that only affects our cistern in that we cannot bury it. When we are finished with the garage, carport, and so on, we still have nearly 600 sqm of garden area left. That needs to be watered and on hot days our well cannot handle it alone. So purely for our own benefit.

Ok, the question about the well would have been my next one, but that sounds plausible. There is one in my parents' house as well, which has not been used since the well was installed. So you really have to weigh what you need. It certainly costs something, too.

Using it for the toilet flush is out of the question by the way because: it’s not economical. There are already a few threads about this - just search for them.

Depends on how often you flush
For us, it has been over 30 cubic meters in the last 8 months = almost 130 EUR saved (without considering the electricity for the pump). But you also need a large family for that...

Depends on how often you flush
For us, it has been over 30 cubic meters in the last 8 months = nearly 130 EUR saved (without considering the electricity for the pump). But you also need a large family for that...

Without having the water prices in my head right now - but a price of 4.30 euros / cubic meter seems relatively high to me? Or am I mistaken there?
I once posted the results of the conversation with our general contractor under the following thread last year. Since I don’t want to repeat everything, just click in. Post 4