Passive Solar, definition of

Passive Solar

Carbon is the chemical element with symbol C and atomic number 6. As a member of group 14 on the periodic table, it is nonmetallic and tetravalent—making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds. There are three naturally occurring isotopes, with 12C and 13C being stable, while 14C is radioactive, decaying with a half-life of about 5730 years. Carbon is one of the few elements known since antiquity. The name "carbon" comes from Latin language carbo, coal.

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EcoWho Articles where 'Passive Solar' used:
  • 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.
EcoWho blog posts where 'Passive Solar' used:
  • 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.
  • Passive Solar
    Passive Solar is often banded around as a good thing to do to make your house more green; we look at it in more detail.
Online tools where 'Passive Solar' used:
  • 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.

Related Tags: passive solar, architecture, green building

Search the Web for Passive Solar
What is Passive Solar?
Passive Solar definition.
About Passive Solar.
Passive Solar Design

Carbon is the chemical element with symbol C and atomic number 6. As a member of group 14 on the periodic table, it is nonmetallic and tetravalent—making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds. There are three naturally occurring isotopes, with 12C and 13C being stable, while 14C is radioactive, decaying with a half-life of about 5730 years. Carbon is one of the few elements known since antiquity. The name "carbon" comes from Latin language carbo, coal.

See the full entry on wikipedia

EcoWho blog posts where 'Passive Solar' used:
  • 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.
Online tools where 'Passive Solar' used:
  • 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.
News & Blog articles where 'Passive Solar' used:

Related Tags: passive solar, green building, thermal mass, solar homes

Search the Web for Passive Solar Design
What is Passive Solar?
Passive Solar definition.
About Passive Solar.
Passive Solar Energy

Passive Solar Energy is the energy captured by a building from the Sun and used to either heat or cool a building.


The heating is usually a direct mechanism, where as the cooling is done by using the Sun's energy to help displace heat within a building, for instance by 'sucking' air through a property using a roof ventilation system.

News & Blog articles where 'Passive Solar' used:

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Search the Web for Passive Solar Energy
What is Passive Solar?
Passive Solar definition.
About Passive Solar.
Passive Solar Heating

Passive solar heating is one of several design approaches collectively called passive solar design. When properly combined, these strategies contribute to the heating, cooling, and day lighting of nearly any building. The types of buildings that benefit from the application of passive solar heating range from houses to large office facilities.

Passive solar heating typically involves:
  • Solar energy collection through properly-oriented, south-facing windows.
  • Storage of this energy by "thermal mass," which are building materials with high heat capacity such as concrete slabs, brick walls, or tile floors.
  • Distribution of the stored solar energy back to the living space, as required, via the mechanisms of natural convection and radiation.
  • Window specifications to allow higher solar heat gain coefficient for Solar facing glazing.
Passive solar heating systems do not have a high initial cost or long-term payback periods, both common with many active solar heating systems. 

Another benefit to passive solar heating is increased comfort: if properly designed, passive solar buildings are bright and sunny and in tune with climate and nature. As a result, there are fewer fluctuations in temperature, resulting in a higher degree of temperature stability and thermal comfort.

News & Blog articles where 'Passive Solar' used:

Related Tags: passive solar, thermal mass

Search the Web for Passive Solar Heating
What is Passive Solar?
Passive Solar definition.
About Passive Solar.

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