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Passive Solar Design, definition of
- Passive Solar Design
- Passive Solar Design is undergoing a resurgence as more people not only recognise the comfort benefits and lower energy bills of solar architecture, but now see a way of helping reduce the polluting effects of green house gases through less reliance on fossil fuels for heating and cooling.Basic house design principles include:
- Orientation of the main living areas towards the North (or South if in the Northern hemisphere)
- Glazing used to trap the warmth of the Sun.
- Thermal mass to store the heat from the Sun.
- Insulation to reduce heat loss or heat gain.
- Ventilation to capture cooling breezes.
A well designed solar home should remain within 18 degrees C to 28 degrees C throughout the year and save 60% to 70% in average household heating costs.EcoWho Articles where 'Passive Solar Design' used:- Low Allergen Building Design
Low allergen design is a whole building approach that aims to reduce and avoid all known allergens, and to minimize the conditions in which they occur. This article shows you how. - The importance of building orientation
Building orientation to the Sun is important to reduce energy consumption, keeping comfortable and saving money. This article explains how best to get building orientation correct. Through a combination of benefits and opportunities the correct building orientation could save you thousands. - What is Passive Solar?
Passive solar building design is explained and how passive solar principals are used to design green homes and buildings, and save you money.
- Passive Solar Design advice
Passive Solar design can be applied to existing buildings as well as new buildings. We explain some useful techniques and give links to useful resources. - EarthCare Centre open day
The EarthCare Centre in Western Sydney is having an open day on Sustainable House Day - solar power efficiency
What are the factors that are important in efficiently harvesting solar power - we look at what they are.. - Special Interest Groups
To make it easier to find information on certain important topics we have made a set of SIG's (Special Interest Groups)... - New Rainwater harvesting calculator
This new calculator allows you to work out the practical tank size given average per month rainfall, your roof area and expected monthly water usage. - More Efficient Solar Cells with Selenium
Researchers have discovered that just adding a minuscule quantity of 9% selenium with zinc oxide base radically improved the sun light absorbing efficiency of the material... - Climate Change Policy in Australia
With an election just around the corner the politically sensitive issue of how Labour is to deal with Climate Change has been presented as policy today. - GE Ecomagination Challenge $200m for good ideas
GE Ecomagination contest hopes to gather ideas for improving electrical grid technology.
- Passive Solar Design Eaves Calculator
Works out the ideal Eave depth for a given height of window and world location; so the Sun comes in in Winter but not Summer, maximizing the passive solar effect.
- These bioclimatic student dorms use low-cost, sustainable materials
In the tropical Vietnamese province of Dong Nai, Southeast Asian architecture firm T3 Architects has completed the Hippo Farm Bioclimatic Dormitories, a cost-effective housing structure that uses locally sourced materials and bioclimatic design... - Central Park to undergo $150M LEED Gold-targeted redesign
To cap the Central Park Conservancy’s 40-year renewal of Central Park, the nonprofit has unveiled designs to update the park’s north end with a LEED Gold-targeted recreational facility, a new pool, skating rink and other amenities... - A 1940s cottage is transformed into a solar-powered Hanok-inspired home
Portland-based collaborative design practice Woofter Architecture has recently completed the expansion and renovation of a 1940s cottage in Portland, Oregon... - Near net-zero energy Helsinki Central Library boasts an award-winning, prefab design
Helsinki has entered a “new era of libraries” with the completion of Oodi, the Helsinki Central Library that not only serves as a new central point for the city’s public library network but also an award-winning public space with a movie theater,... - MADs ethereal Yiwu Grand Theater will float on Zhejiang waters
Beijing-based architectural firm MAD Architects has won a competition for Zhejiang’s Yiwu Grand Theater with a proposal that’s stunning, sculptural and site-specific... - Anderson Architecture revamps a dim heritage home into a modern sun-soaked abode
When Sydney-based design studio Anderson Architecture was asked to improve the livability of an old heritage home in the inner western Sydney suburb of Lewisham, the house suffered from a cold and dark indoor environment... - Modern, self-sustaining home blends into a rocky landscape
Zagreb-based architectural office PROARH completed Issa Megaron, a family retreat in Croatia that’s disguised inside a rocky hillside with a zigzagging road... - This breezy, green-roofed home in Singapore embraces nature from all angles
Whereas many modern buildings in Singapore rebel against the country’s tropical climate with air-conditioned, hermetic spaces, international architecture firm Guz Architects decided instead to embrace the natural environment in its design of the Willow... - This beautiful Washington cabin meets net-zero targets even in extreme temperatures
Nestled in a historic mining area in Washington State’s Cascade Mountains, a holiday retreat offers luxurious comfort without compromising sustainability targets...
Related Tags: passive solar, green building, thermal mass, solar homes
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