Off-grid island cottage in Sweden

This old-time summer cottage shares a small island with less than a dozen other cottages. The island is in Karlholm bay on the Baltic Sea, a couple hours drive north of Stockholm.

The small cottage dates from 1930, and originally consisted of just the middle portion that is now the living room. The two “wings” were added in 1975, giving the cottage its bird-like roof profile and bringing the floor space to 55 m2 (592 ft2). The expansion made room for a kitchen and dining area on one side and two small bedrooms on the other. They are a step down from the original floor level to allow sufficient headroom under the low-sloped roofs. Even so, the roof barely clears the top of the entry door.

As the island has no services, the cottage is completely off the grid. It didn’t even have electrical wiring until a few years ago, when another renovation saw the installation of a small solar system to power some lights and a compact fridge. Water still has to be brought over from the mainland, although the cottage’s metal roof would be good for rainwater collection. Heat is provided by a wood stove in the living room, and cooking is done on a gas stove.

A guest cabin behind the cottage has an additional bunkroom and the only bathroom, equipped with a Separett composting toilet. If you wanted to move the bathroom into the main cottage, there are a couple of possibilities. The back end of the living room looks underutilized, and there is probably sufficient room to put in a bathroom next to the kitchen. If not, then one of the bedrooms could be converted to a bathroom, although the lower floor might make it more challenging to install the underfloor plumbing.

The cottage is currently for sale with an asking price of 1,650,000 Swedish kroner, roughly US$200,000.

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Photographs courtesy of Mäklarhuset.

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