Green Building
Article on My House
Passive solar starts with orienting the house to solar south so that lots of windows and one of the large unobstructed roof sections is facing the sun. This ought to be in the zoning regulations for new construction. Solar south is a few degrees off magnetic south. I didn’t have a good compass so I waited for just after noon on a winter day, drove a stake in the ground, put a snap-line along the stake’s shadow and drove several others along the line. Then we built the house with the south-facing roof and lots of windows on the south wall. The roof overhaung the windows so as to shade the windows in the summer. I used a winter day because that was when I wanted as much sun as possible to enter the south windows.
Now you have many large windows and the roof facing solar south at noon in the winter when you want the sun to heat your house. The slope of the roof depends on how far you are north, your latitude. It is complicated but I chose 34 degrees. The angle is a compromise for winter and summer sun angle and the snow slides of the panels easily. The roof is steep but possible for installers to work on it. See Here
Insulate the house as much as you can afford when building. Have an energy audit on an existing house and add insulation if needed. My natural gas company helped pay for additional insulation through Mass Save.
There has been much talk and some financing for replacing old windows. I have many lovely old reclaimed leaded glass windows. I have come to believe in movable insulation on windows as a cheaper and more aesthetic answer. Even the best new windows do not have a great R value. I spent very little to make window quilt covers and bifold insulated panels which hinge to close off windows at night. In some rooms I leave them closed all winter.
Install used doors, windows, fixtures etc. to both save money and add character to the house. There are many stores which now sell used building items. Pine trees cut on site can become board and batten siding.
Insulate but do not heat your garage. The snow will melt off your car. When you get an electric plugin car, the battery will work better in a warmer place.
My experience is that PV is better than solar hot water systems unless you have five or six people in the house. PV has no moving parts and needs no upkeep for years.
The house was built in three sections from west to east in 1983, 1992 and 2002. The first section consisted of a living/dining room, kitchen, mud room, two bedrooms and full basement. The second added a living room, basement room and basement walk out. The third addition added an attached garage with a bedroom and bath. There are decks on the north and south sides. There is a screened porch at the northeast corner. The house sits on an acre of wooded land with a shed, two firewood racks, flower gardens and walled Japanese garden.
The 9.5 kw PV installation provides power for two mini split heat pumps, a heat pump hot water heater, an induction stove, all the houses electricity needs and a Chevy Volt. Two to three cords of fire wood and a wood stove help with heating. The windows are insulated by window quilts or heavy curtains or willets. The house is heated on sunny days by passive solar. There is a back up high efficiency furnace and standby generator.
The PV was installed in seven small operations over ten years starting in 2009. That had the advantage of dollar cast averaging as the price changed. It also accounted for my increased need as I change away from fossil fuels and towards electricity. Additionally I gained experience with different installers, incentives and SRECS. In 2020 several of the inverters and the inverter modem died. The new modem could not talk to the old inverters. Enphase the inverter manufacturer came out with a new inverter that would allow the panels to charge a battery even when the grid was down. All at a low price? All the inverters and the mdem were replaced.
The insulation is vintage 1982-2002 and the weak point. The exterior walls are 2×6 with board and batten trim. There is one inch foam on both sides of the foundation and below the concrete basement floor. The attic has 14″ of cellulose in one section and 12″ of fiberglass in the other. The have been four energy audits adding insulation air sealing, duct sealing, LED light bulbs, and water pipe insulation. The house is tight enough to need and have a HRV ventilation unit.
The floors are wide pine and all the recycled doors are solid oak many with gothic trim. Most rooms have built in bookcases. The half the windows are recycled and leaded glass.
Order of actions to Get a House to Net Zero
(can be adjusted based on units needing replacement or incentives which come and go)
Behavior Change on light usage, vampire loads, fans not AC in summer and sweaters in winter
Free Energy Audits in MA every 2 years
LED lights free from audit
Add insulation Audit pays 75%
Air Seal house with blower door test (HRV heat recovery ventilator)
Window insulation or replacement if truly bad
Change appliances to heat pump water heater and/or clothes dryer, induction hot plate/stove, air source heat pumps (mini splits)
Electric Car or Plug-in Hybrid
Photovoltaic Solar PV (good incentives – state & federal taxes, MA solar loan program and electric utility)
Evaluation of PV Installers
Think long term say 15 years
Warranty on panels and inverters
country of manufacture if you care
Warranty on labor (if an inverter fails how long is replacement free)
Size of the installers (are they likely to be around in twenty years)
How do you feel about them from their site visit (visit their office)
The cost of the project
How will the panels be placed on the roof
How well do they explain the incentives
Have they any plans for recycling