Self-sufficient and environmentally conscious … is our philosophy!
Eco Awards Namibia
Environmental Award for Best Use of Wind and Solar Energy (2007)
Eco-Flower Award for ecologically sustainable tourism (2013)
Power supply: Over 90% of our electricity is generated by the sun and wind and stored in batteries. Should solar and wind energy be insufficient, a diesel generator is on stand-by. The guest rooms are equipped with customary sockets and at least one Euro socket. Due to the limited capacity of the batteries, power should be used with care.
Water supply: Our potable water comes from a borehole at the foot of the Hakos mountains, 3 km from the house and is pumped up over a height difference of about 300 m. This is done in two stages with solar pumps to prevent the build-up of excessive pressure in the line. At each stage, the water is stored in 60 m³ reservoirs. Should clouds persist for longer periods, a diesel generator is available for pumping.
Water heating: Hot water for showers and kitchen/household operation is also obtained from solar energy. Water is heated by solar collectors and stored in boilers.
Wastewater: Toilet and kitchen water is routed to septic tanks. These consist of two chambers in which the decomposition process takes place with the help of micro-organisms. Cleaned waste water then flows into an underground soak-away, filled with gravel, and spreads in the ground. Shower water is often used for watering the trees.
Camping toilets: Here we switched to dry compost toilets. Stylish and at the same time environmentally friendly!
Waste disposal: Garbage is separated: glass, plastic, paper, metal, batteries and residual wastes are taken to Windhoek for disposal. Kitchen and garden waste lands on the compost pile.
Internet and telephone access: Hakos is connected to Windhoek via a Wimax radio link including both the Namibian and German landlines. The data connection has a bandwidth of 2Mb down and 800Kb up. An additional 20Mb down and 20Mb up connection is available for our remote observatories.
Mobile: Hakos is located in the reception area of the MTC transmission tower on the Gamsberg. Since the beginning of 2019, the mast also transmits in 3G. We can provide you with SIM cards and credit so you can always be reached by phone. On request, we can reserve a telephone number for you ahead of your travels. Local SIM cards are very cheap, vs. roaming with European SIM cards is very expensive, especially data roaming. In order to use Namibian SIM cards, your phone must not have a SIM lock.