Photovoltaic Systems

Archive for September, 2011

3form makes a resin panel called 100 Percent with 100% post-consumer, recycled, high-density polyethylene. Each panel includes more than 1,000 old milk bottles and can help a project team earn a couple LEED credits.  Well, this year — in time for ICFF, NeoCon, and other design shows — 3form unveiled LineUp, a new 100 Percent collection available in two pattern directions and four colors (beach, husk, stream, and turf).  The collection is suitable for countertops and tabletops, and the panels are 4″ x 8″.

[+] More information about the Lineup design with 100 Percent.

Credits: 3form.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. 3form Unveils New Paper Cut Design
2. Modular Recycled Ditto from 3form
3. Koda Recycled Content Exterior Material

The Solar Decathlon evolved this year with the advent of the Affordability Contest. It replaced the Lighting Design Contest, which was subsumed within other contests in the competition. Pursuant to the rules, teams receive up to 100 points by achieving an estimated construction cost of $250,000 or less. Above that, there’s a sliding scale with no points awarded for homes with a construction cost above $600,000.

You may be wondering how the Department of Energy calculates the construction cost of each of 19 solar-powered homes.

In short, Matt Hansen, a professional cost estimator – aka The Costimator – has been working with SD2011 teams since March 2010 to put a price on everything that went into the competition projects, according to the DOE blog. Hansen used RSMeans to estimate the cost of materials, labor, and heavy equipment used to build the homes on the site.

The DOE today announced the results of this contest and it looks like only two teams met the $250,000 threshold. Both Parsons The New School for Design/Stevens Institute of Technology and Purdue University Team Belgium received full points, although the Parsons/Stevens home was built for nearly $20,000 less than the Belgian home.

Only six teams built their home for an estimated cost of less than $300,000. All of the teams in the competition remained below the $500,000 mark. In other words, none of them suffered the goose egg that comes with a +$600,000 build. Teams that didn’t perform as desired will still have nine other contests to make up some ground.

Update 9/30/11: well, disregard some of the above.  Apparently, there was a mistake in calculating some of these numbers, and the Solar Decathlon announced modified results for the Affordability Contest.  Here are the updated numbers:

Which team do you think will win it all this year?

Credit: Stefano Paltera/U.S. DOE.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. Solar Decathlon: Let The Games Begin!
2. Decathlon Shuffled to West Potomac Park
3. New Venue for Solar Decathlon 2013

zHome is a contemporary, new, townhome development in Issaquah, Washington.  The homes go on sale this month and have received national attention, such as in the video embedded below with the Wall Street Journal.  Homes in this community will use zero net energy — after considering all energy used and produced during a year — and zHome may just be the first townhome project in the country to achieve such a feat.

In order to achieve zero net energy, the project team first sought ways to reduce total energy demand and ended up cutting annual energy use from about 14,000 kWh per year to about 5,000 kWh per year.  Next, the remaining 5,000 kWh is offset with solar PV mounted on the roof.

zHomes have super-insulated walls (2×6 walls with EPS and a 3″ jacket of EPS), double-paned windows, a ground-source heat pump, heat recovery ventilator, hydronic heating, high-efficiency lighting and appliances, and an energy feedback monitor.

Other than energy efficiency and on-site solar energy, zHomes have a rainwater catchment system that reclaims water for use in toilet flushing and clothes washing.  There’s also high-efficiency toilets, clothes washers, dishwashers, showerheads, and bathroom faucet aerators.

zHome is developed by Matt Howland and Ichijo USA with the sponsorship of the City of Issaquah and the assistance of Built Green, King County, Port Blakely Communities, Puget Sound Energy, and the Washington State University Energy Program.

[+] Read the zHome site blog with videos.

Credits: zHome. 

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. Zero Net Energy Homes at Sage Green
2. 12 Platinum Net Zero Energy Homes
3. Platinum Net Zero Energy Yannell House

KB Home, a publicly-traded home builder with its headquarters in Los Angeles, this month announced the nationwide roll out of net-zero energy home designs called ZeroHouse 2.0.  The standard KB Home with Energy Star certification is built to save homeowners about $1,000 in average annual energy costs, while a ZeroHouse 2.0 design is expected to eliminate monthly electricity charges.

Model homes with the ZeroHouse 2.0 package open this month in Tampa (shown), San Antonio, and Austin. Homebuyers in a market with ZeroHouse will be able to customize their purchase using the KB Home Studio to include options like those found in the model.

A key aspect of the ZeroHouse is solar power.  The Tampa home has both a solar thermal and solar PV (5.9 kW) system.  It achieved a minus 5 HERS rating, according to Fine Homebuilding, meaning the model will generate a surplus of solar energy under normal operating conditions.

In addition to solar power, KB Home upgraded the performance of these homes with increased insulation, upgraded HVAC systems, and dual-pane, low-e windows.

In the past, we’ve mentioned another Zerohouse, which is an award-winning prototype for a net-zero, modular, tiny home by Specht Harpman.  Today’s announcement is not to be confused with our prior coverage of the Zerohouse prototype.

Credits: KB Home. 

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. Off-Grid Prefab zeroHouse Now Ready!
2. Energy-Efficient Home Remodel in Seattle
3. Solar Increases Home Property Values