At Dick Campbell LLC we have been refining our passive solar designs for 35 years. We have found that a well-designed home, as a system, becomes the primary heating concept. Complex backup heat is not as necessary and can become a less expensive line item in the construction budget.
We discuss backup heating systems for our most efficient passive solar homes with every client early in the design process. Unlike the designs of past decades where some rooms could only be used half the year, we have incorporated year-round spaces into the basic design of our homes to allow clients the benefit of living in their total building footprint.
We have built 2,500 square foot homes where the only heat source other than the sun was a medium-sized air tight wood stove which burned a cord and a half of wood annually--or about two L.L. Bean wood totes of wood per day. Backup heat was a three-foot strip of electric heat in each bathroom. A Paloma gas, on-demand water heater supplied all the hot water needs and cost about $5.00 per person per month. If homeowners had less interest in burning wood, they would install one or two small direct-vent gas wall heaters to maintain a satisfactory temperature within the home throughout the day. We found the homes maintained temperatures of about 50 degrees when left without heat for about a week in mid winter.
With technology advances in alternative energy systems, people have become excited about the innovative opportunities to separate their home from nonrenewable resources. Duel purpose heat sources such as wood stoves, pellet stoves and Russian fireplaces offer the most efficient heat sources and add to the comfort and atmosphere of passive solar living.
We also stage systems for future installation if owners have an interest in living with the home before purchasing total systems. For instance, the installation of radiant tubing in floors to be hooked up at a future date, chase ways for future wind or solar installations, space for energy storage, chimneys and other provisions can be built at the time of construction.
Decisions to build using on or off public utility grid homes, total self-sufficient buildings using maximum water management and other environmentally-friendly concepts that respect our planet, save money and create energy independence are always up to the homeowner. We also offer our clients solar, wind and geothermal alternative energy systems for space heating and domestic hot water to provide energy sources for their homes. Although the generation component is renewable and has no future cost, the system has a significant initial cost, has ongoing maintenance needs and occasionally becomes more complicated than some clients desire.
Backup heating systems while important don’t have to be complicated and expensive. These decisions are generally defined by the design and determined by the construction budget process. Dick Campbell LLC has a responsibility to offer all these opportunities to clients to guide them in making the best choice based on their interests and needs.
Ultimately the design and budgeting process at Dick Campbell LLC will provide the blueprint which defines the concepts employed in your DCgreen home. Energy efficiency and comfortable living is the goal of all our designs. We provide you with all the necessary information so you can make the decision best suited for your lifestyle.
