Dutch homeowners spell ‘penis’ with solar panels — and the municipality is not amused

We know that Dutch people love to decorate their homes for special occasions — but usually, they stick to the windows. These homeowners in the village of Doorn, Utrecht, however, took the decor on the roof.

In solar panels, the roof displays the letters L, U, L — lul, a.k.a. the Dutch word for penis. 🍆

Neither local residents nor the municipality were amused by this dirty display. But we are.

An accidental…penis display

Contrary to what we would love to think, this grapje (joke) is not the work of a hilarious mastermind. Instead, it’s the (accidental) collaboration of three neighbours, AD writes.

Now, you may be wondering: how do you accidentally spell “penis” across the roofs of three houses? Well, a mistake was made when the solar panels of the middle house were placed on the wrong side — the front of the house instead of the back.

“The solar panels were placed on the other side of the house after the error,” the resident of the middle house tells AD. Both of his neighbours already had panels in the shape of an L. 👀

“Because of the skylight, that was not possible [on our roof]”, he explains, “so they were laid around it — in the shape of a U”. And ta-da: LUL was spelt out neatly, in 24 panels. Each is more than 1.5 metres long and 1 metre wide. Across three roofs.

A work of art, if you ask us. 🤌

“Niet leuk”, say residents and the municipality

Another resident, Peter, says he’s not happy about the accidental “curse word” at all, “and I don’t see the humour in it either.” … Come on now, Peter.

What does the municipality say? They’re not so sure. “We have to decide whether or not this is acceptable,” says council member Rob Jorg. “There are no permits for solar panels, but that doesn’t mean you can just do everything.”

Well, we guess at least they’re sustainable. 🤷‍♀️

How would you feel about having “penis” written across your roof? Tell us in the comments!

Feature image:DutchReview

Accuracy, clarity, and a touch of humour — that’s DutchReview. Read our editorial mission.

Lyna Meyrer 🇱🇺
Lyna Meyrer 🇱🇺
Fueled by a love for writing, social media, and all things Dutch, Lyna joined the DR family in 2022. Since making the Netherlands her home in 2018, she has collected a BA in English Literature & Society (Hons.) and an RMA in Arts, Literature and Media (Hons.). Even though she grew up just a few hours away from the Netherlands, Lyna remains captivated by the guttural language, quirky culture, and questionable foods that make the Netherlands so wonderfully Dutch.

2 COMMENTS

  1. The municipality could give +2 solar panels to the neighbor on the right and the one on the left. This way the result will be “UUU” and more solar energy will be produced. Win-Win 🙂

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