My Landlady, it would seem, never had the pleasure of living in an Appenzeller farmhouse.
If she had, she would understand why they were built the way they were ...

Remember those romantic pictures you saw, of those Swiss chalets with their shutters?
The Appenzeller were very clever, when they designed their houses – the shutters were designed to be retractable.
They can be lowered or raised, as needed.
The solid wooden blinds can be pulled up to keep out the heat or the cold and can be set to just a slit, to let in fresh air while keeping burglars at bay. They protect the windows against the numerous hail storms we have and, for housewives, there is the interesting fact, that they prevent them from getting dirty when it rains.



As I mentioned, the north side of this house is being renovated. When the old window frames were ripped out, the blinds disappeared with them. I asked why this was the case and was informed that the new windows supply enough insulation to hold the heat during winter ...
When I asked about the fresh air during the summer, I could actually hear the blank stare on the other end of the telephone line!
So now I have windows that keep in the heat, all the year round!



I don't know, but I thought you'd give some thought to a properties construction before starting to renovate, I know I would ...