by Cate Ferguson

Created on: April 01, 2009

When I write I like to be able to answer some of the questions people are asking, so when browsing one of my favourite sites looking for inspiration I came across this question from Devyn. "What are some limits of passive solar energy homes?"

So, to begin with I'll list many of the benefits just in case someone out there has yet to be exposed to the concept of solar passive design in homes, apartments, offices and shopping centres.

I watched a recent television program where a builder suggested that merely changing the orientation of your home (almost any design) to make maximum use of the sun's energy would give you around 80% of the benefits of solar passive design.I know this from personal experience of some dear friends who built their dream home. They bought a traditional home plan but made certain that the main living areas faced the northern sun (in Australia), they installed electric in-slab heating and a small wood combustion heater for the winter.

However, they soon discovered that they really didn't need their slab to be heated by electricity because the sun just poured in through their large windows and sliding doors. They had to open their windows on some days because it became too warm inside! They now use just a tiny portion of their infloor heating (bathroom floors being particularly favoured) and if there is a longish period without sunshine they have two backup systems they can rely on.

Solar passive homes work
because they allow sun into the home in the winter and stop it entering in the summer. They have "heat banks"
inside the home to store that winter warmth and re-radiate that back into the rooms of an evening - this can be brick walls, concrete floors or any other innovative method of storing the heat. In the summer, these same things help keep the home cooler (if you stop the sun entering the home) and ensure you have good ventilation.
Understanding the differences in the location and strength of the sun in relation to your house and designing to suit that will ensure you gain all that free, healthy energy available to you from the sun.

So the design of your home is very important but equally important is the design of your garden
in terms of shade and light, structures to offer shade in summer and allow sun to filter through in winter.

Removable or retractable blinds and awnings, deciduous trees and vines, pergolas and verandah's are all things you can consider and reconsider as you make your home more solar passive, more eco-friendly

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