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Solar Decathlon 2011. Everything Green Under the Sun

Anna@Green Talk — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 18:04:52 +0000

University of Maryland's Winning Solar Decathlon House

Attending the 2011 collegiate Solar Decathlon in Washington DC this year was a dream come true. Nineteen domestic and international college teams competed to design, build, and operate solar-powered houses that were cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive.

The solar decathlon goal was to build a home under 1000 square feet and $350,000. At $350 a square foot, the cost to go green is quite expensive. Some teams I visited were unable to stay within the budget. The following teams vied for the coveted first place honor.

I only had two days to see the above homes. However, given my time constraint, I was only able to see the teams with an asterisk after their names. There were lines to get into the houses, transportation to and from the event wasn’t the most efficient, and they ran out of food necessitating a two hour break to find food. DC isn’t New York City where there is food on every block. The coordination of the event was less than par.

Adding to my delay, was my excitement. In each house, I couldn’t stop asking questions. Is that a surprise? I need a full week to get through these houses.

But was it worth going to? Heck, yeah. The enthusiasm and ingenuity of the teams was so inspiring. These students are our future. Simply put, I was a pig in green mud talking to the teams about the mechanical systems they employed. I love a good solar thermal, passive house story. Throw in phase change materials and I died and gone to heaven. My first green love will always be green building. (Sorry, garden.)

Who Won?

University of Maryland took first place in the competition. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to tour the house. Boy, do I regret this. The team focused on water and energy with their man made wetlands filtering the grey water from the house. In addition, the green roof on the house improved its energy efficiency.

One of my favorite concept in the house was the liquid desiccant waterfall. Not only did it serve as a design feature, it helped to provide humidity control. (Team Florida also had a similar concept.)

Second place went to Purdue. Luckily, I saw this house and gave it a name, Big Box Sustainability Store home. This team bought components that anyone could buy. I don’t want to spoil my upcoming article about this house so I will leave you salivating on how big box meets affordable sustainability.

New Zealand's Solar Decathlon First Light House

Third place went to the New Zealand team. (Again, a house I didn’t get to see.) They incorporated an indoor/outdoor feeling to their vacation house with a deck running around and through the center of the house. In addition, they used recycled sheep insulation and an innovative drying cupboard rather than an electricity hog dryer.

A Couple of Takeaways from the Competition:

Many of the teams employed their own technology to run their homes via smart phones and iPads.
Mitsubishi Mr. Slim split heat pump systems seem to be the “IT” heating and cooling system used by many of the teams.
Many of the teams incorporated vegetable plants surrounding their homes to truly create sustainable homesteads. The competition wasn’t just about energy efficiency.
Outdoor and indoor space were very seamless integrated into the homes.
Streamline and multi-functional spaces were key elements in such small houses. Some teams incorporated multi-functional furniture in their designs as well.
Some of the teams designed and built some of their furniture.
Some of the homes were designed and built by liberal arts colleges. (This concept blew my mind.) Talk about being thrown into the fire.
Passive house design was incorporated in many of the homes I toured which helped to lower the construction costs. Smaller heating and cooling equipment was needed. It’s just smart building, in my opinion.
Many of the teams I spoke to expressed how much they enjoyed working with different disciplines. It was all about team work. Many of the team members had already graduated since the project took two years from conception to decathlon.
An effort was made to incorporate products manufacturered within their home state.
Water seem to be a key element as well. Rainwater collection was a recurring theme in many of the houses.

In the next couple of articles, I will be briefly (yes for me) describe my takeaways from the houses. Hang onto your solar hats.

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RainXchange: Rainwater Harvesting with a Unique Water Feature Twist

Anna@Green Talk — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 16:33:55 +0000

I had the pleasure of podcasting with Dave Kelly, Vice President of Product Developement at Aquascape, Inc., the maker of the RainXchange, explaining the virtues of the Company’s residential and commercial rain harvesting system. To hear the podcast, click the link below.

I have been having a ongoing love affair with rainwater harvesting systems ever since I learned about the concept. My chance came when I was building my house six years ago. My then irrigation specialist discouraged me from installing a system. I looked to him for guidance since I had no idea where to find one.

When we discussed the system, he gave me one of those discouraging looks and told me it would be expensive and ugly. ”Did I really want a big old cistern in my yard?” he responded. But when I explained I wanted an underground cistern attached to my dry wells, again he explained it would be very expensive. The concept of rainwater harvesting for residential was like discussing your family’s dirty secrets. Keep it to yourself, otherwise, everyone will think you are foolish. The cost of water is cheap. Why would I want this?

But for years, I yearned for a rainwater harvesting system, and would constantly search the internet looking for someone in New Jersey who installed them. Perhaps today would be the day some company would pop up on the internet that would fulfill my dream. Buying a big old cistern from Texas seemed silly when I live in New Jersey. I knew that retrofitting at this point would be expensive since it meant excavation. But it did not stop a girl from dreaming.

One day my landscaper handed me a brochure about the RainXchange which illustrated the above residential rainwater harvesting system with a beautiful water feature. I looked at him in disbelief. See, my landscaper is one of those old timers. When I suggest adding compost when you plant, he thinks I am crazy. All you need is good old soil, he would reply. But here he was handing me a very new age concept. (The green age.) I guess he was puzzled by my look and explained , “everyone is going green these day.” That they are.

What I love about the RainXchange is you are not only installing a rain harvesting system, but gaining the added benefit of a bubbling urn water feature. My neighbor has a water feature in her yard and it produces the most amazing soothing sounds. In addition the water features attract wildlife, and keep the water circulating in the below ground modules. No West Nile virus here.

From a design perspective, these 26.5”L x 16”W x 17.5 AquaBlox™ Water Matrix® Tank Storage Modules can be layouted in any configuration. If you want to install a system under a driveway, alongside a driveway or in a limited space, the blocks can be arranged to accommodate your configuration. 85% of the content of the module is made out of recycled polyethylene. For more information about the installation of the system, see here as well as videos of how to install the system, the modules, booster pumps and downspot filters.

Unlike a rain barrel, the Company states the RainXchange system filters the stored water to prevent stagnation and growth of unhealthy bacteria. It can be used for as simple task as a residential rain harvesting system to water your plants with a hose or as complex as a commercial rain water system for storm water management and rain harvesting. Installing a RainXchange system contributes to LEED credits in the area of sustainable sites (storm water management), water efficiency (rainwater harvesting), and material and resources (recycled content of the modules). The Company further states that this system could potentially lead to a LEED credit in innovative and design process given the application.

Pictured above is Aquascape’s patio which features pervious pavers in conjunction with a 3000 gallon system. The bubbling urn on the patio spills water over into the pervious pavers and is captured by the rain harvesting system. The Company uses the rain harvesting system to irrigate their landscape.

How do you determine what size system you need? The Company provides a design calculator that helps you to determine the size of your system. However, if you only wish to water a portion of your landscaping such as your perennials or vegetable garden, you size your system appropriately. The Company can provide you with a list of certified RainXchange installers to help you calculate your needs and install your system.

What about the cost and payback? Right now with the price of water being inexpensive, the payback could be 20 years. Kelly explained the cost of water will be rise due to the need to update antiquated water infrastructures Most people who are installing the systems according to Kelly want to do the right thing for the environment. A 500 gallon system installed will cost about $5000; however, as you increase the size of the system, the cost per gallon decreases.

I would encourage you to listen to the above podcast since Kelly describes in detail the advantages of the RainXchange. I have merely tried to wet your appetite to explore this system for your backyard or at your business. Think bubbling urn, beautiful birds floating about, and rainwater showering your plants from water that you stored. You may never want to leave your backyard.

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