Passive solar windows too hot?
mjtx2
12 years ago
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SpringtimeHomes
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agokymike
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
Passive solar heating
Comments (13)I just heard back some encouraging news from Rgees. They recommend my putting encapsulated PCMs within the heat sink of the SHCS -along with the soil and/or gravel. That way, I can have the dehumidifying benefits of the SHCS along with the extra heat storage of the PCMs. Please note that SHCS is a phase change system -it is just that my high water table has me pursuing this other avenue (if my heat sink was flooded, it would take away my heat and -if this happened enough times- would fill my tubing with dirt). AZjohn -I know what you mean about SHCS! Have you been looking at Sunny John's site? He used to have great forums where people could discuss their plans and challenges. I used to read them all the time when I was renting and could only dream and research. Now that I have a house and could use the forums to ask for feedback on my particular challenges, the forums are gone! However, I have some good news. SHCS is alive and well! Check it out: http://www.roperld.com/science/ymcasolargreenhouse.htm http://www.roperld.com/science/SGHBackyardSHCS.htm http://barrettstudio.wordpress.com/2011/12/22/the-practically-zero-energy-year-round-greenhouse/ http://permaculturenews.org/2010/08/16/clever-rocky-mountain-greenhouses-give-major-season-extension/ KimHat- I know you can store PCMs in other materials such as metal tubes but I am having trouble finding that information right now. I would just go on the greenhouse fashions blog and ask questions in the comments. The blogger, Nina Reinhart, works for Rgees and is interested in getting PCMs into greenhouses. I think primarily because it would help their company expand into a new market but also because PCMs are absolutely perfect for greenhouses. The large temperature swings, the limited space, the high cost of heating and cooling, etc. Anything you can do to reduce temperature swings passively is something that will pay you back every year. I say all this without knowing what they actually cost but I think if you are in the planning stages of your greenhouse then it would make sense to think about how to incorporate them into your design. You can add them later but for me, aesthetics are pretty important so I am working them into the design now. Also, there is another PCM product made by another company called Bio-Based PCM which you can integrate nicely into your house and it actually acts as a moisture seal too: http://www.treehugger.com/green-architecture/bio-based-phase-changing-material-adds-instant-thermal-mass.html Cole Robbie (love the name, by the way!)- where do you live? What are you growing in your greenhouse?...See Morepassive solar home
Comments (40)Wow, I'm very excited I found this thread. I'm working on building a passive solar home. As of right now, we're still in the design stages but we look forward to getting started quite soon. I would love some opinions on our extreme building methods though! Initially, my wife and I had planned on building a Simple Survival Earthship, which is more or less a bare-bones solar home. But we recently came across some information that should accomplish the same thing, yet be way cheaper and quicker. I would love to hear what this group of experts think! The concept is a machine-compacted home. The Earthship design used tires as a form to hold dirt, which you would pack tight with a sledgehammer. The end result is a 3-foot thick thermal mass wall. This requires a good deal of tires, time, and chiropractic treatments. Instead, we would use a bullldozer to accomplish the same ends, in a much faster timeline. The walls will be similar to a pond/dam wall. Heavily compacted clay walls, track-rolled with a 3+ ton machine. Instead of months and months of pounding dirt into tires, it can be accomplished in an afternoon. After the walls have been compacted, the backhoe uses it's bucket to cut a straight vertical wall out of the compacted clay. The end result is a 5 foot thick compacted wall. On the interior and exterior of the wall, we would then plaster with a breathable plaster. This should eliminate any moisture issues. The floor of the structure will be a stained concrete. Also, the house will be aligned on an East/West access, facing south, with an attached solar greenhouse. The house's interior will be bisected lengthwise by some form of brick wall. The north side of the house will be devoted to the "cool" rooms (bedroom, bathroom, laundry) whereas the southern rooms will be devoted to the "hot" rooms (kitchen, living room, lounge). Adjacent to the home is going to be a heavily shaded, mulched, misted area which will act as our shade house. This shade house will provide cool air which we plan to draw into the home through cooling tubes (buried three feet down, running roughly sixty feet long, sloping downward into the home). The roof will be composed of metal (still deciding the details) which will be used to collect rainwater, stored in cisterns located amongst the shadehouse. All greywater will be recycled and divided between the greenhouse and the shadehouse plants. Half of the greenhouse will be devoted to relatively hardy tropical plants (bananas, etc.) and the other half will be used to house aquaponics systems. We plan to generate our electricity via solar panels. Question Time! The home itself is going to be bermed into a hill. Should I be concerned about below-ground water flows? Or should my compacted earth wall be sufficient? I haven't decided upon the materials of the central wall running the length of the home yet. It will most likely be a structural wall which will assist in holding up the roof. Should I go with cheap, concrete blocks filled with cement, and then cover with a brick veneer? Any other suggestions for a cheap, yet effect thermal mass wall? Any other ideas of how to get an effective, yet nice (pretty, non-crappy) wall. We plan on centralizing all of the plumbing along the west wall, located near the cistern set-up. To bring the plumbing to the outside and to transfer the cool air in, we've decided upon burying pipes into our compacted earth wall. Can anyone foresee any issues with that setup? We hope to move water in and out of the home via gravity. Any estimated costs on such a structure? We figure the actual earthworks will be no more expensive then say $3,000. After that's done we'll need to build the central wall and stick a roof on. From there the plaster will follow. The house will be roughly 1200 Square Feet, with enough overhang to shield the house from the summer sun. It will more or less be my experimental starter home. Any idea of a cost estimate to stick a roof on this thing? After the main structure is built, we will invest in the attached greenhouse followed by the shadehouse. I would love to hear everyone's opinions on such a structure. Has anyone heard of such a home being constructed? In theory it should work no different then an Earthship or passive solar home. Yet there is virtually no material out there using this kind of technique. I'm trying my best to foresee any possible traumas. If all goes well what we'll have is a "relatively" cheap, fireproof, tornado proof, self-sufficient, off-grid home. Although the initial investments will be huge, the long view of the houses expenses will be way minor compared to normal home upkeep costs....See MorePassive solar backup heat?
Comments (13)A 100% passive solar home is a very complicated matter. I believe it can be done, but not easily, and perhaps not affordably either. The building would need to be very efficient at capturing solar energy, but it would also have to be very good at storing this energy. Instantly we have a design conflict, all those places that allow heat in during the day will start to leak heat backwards when the sun is gone and the outside air temperature falls. Things can be done to correct this, but the complexity starts to increase dramatically. Also, to store heat you need mass. Concrete or brick are popular, but they're bulky and expensive... Well, expensive is relative, I'll conceed it may just be me who is looking at cubic foot of concrete and wishing it were cheaper! Such a house which collects lots of solar energy, stores it well and has enough thermal mass to remain warm overnight can be designed and built at some expense, but that's not the full selection of problems facing the 100% passive solar house, it also has to perform well throughout the whole season. The traits that make it work so well in winter may cause it to work too well in summer and overheat terribly. Personally, I have discarded the idea of the 100% passive solar house due to it's complexities, expense and design limitations. But I have not given up on the idea of the 100% solar heated house. Passive solar is still a very adaptable technology and can provide a substantial amount of free heating, but it has limitations and should only be used up to the point where it is doing what it should - providing free heat for a sensible cost. Going extreme and trying to squeeze that last 20% or 30% of your heating needs from it by adding vast quantities of expensive glazing, bulky thermal mass and inconveniant manual systems such as heat retaining curtains and solar shades that must be ajusted frequently is irrational. Active solar technology, such as solar air heating pannels can provide the remainder for a much lower cost and avoid most all the design issues. Active solar also has the advantage of being able to turn it off when not needed, a conveniance of fossil fuels that has allowed a lot of badly designed buildings to remain comfortable all year round. It could certainly help compensate for any small design flaws in a passive solar home. I suspect the only way to make something perfect is to design around any faults it has....See MoreGreenhouse addition for growing food and passive solar
Comments (9)Well I hope to some day enclose half of the front porch. I will need to figure a way for cooling. There is no way to plant in front as we are too close to the street. I would like to enclose the right side of the porch, as you face our house, which would cover the front door opening into between our dinning room living room space. This would make an air space in winter to help keep cold air blasting into the house when we enter. Leave the other side open for a landing on raining or snowing days while standing at the door letting us in. Would also create that sunny winter spot you are trying to create at your house for us. :^))). I need to find some sun blocking or heat stopping kind of shades for windows before I even consider enclosing this end. Maybe special insulation in the walls too. It is a project down the road. We always considered when we had the porch built on the house to begin with. Since it is all on a regular foundation like the house and actually is part of the house we just need to close it in. There are no permits needed unless we decide to do some special electrical. There is already a plug and a light. So a some day project. I know I would use it as I am using it now in the evenings. Here is a link that might be useful: Re-Arranged the front porch....See Moremjtx2
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agobevangel_i_h8_h0uzz
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agomjtx2
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agodavid_cary
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoSpringtimeHomes
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoarchson
12 years agolast modified: 9 years agoEpiarch Designs
12 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
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