Solar Home Building Plans - Durango Solar Homes

Foundation:
The foundation is an insulated slab on grade utilizing a shallow frost design.
The concrete slab works as solar thermal storage as well as a good medium for placing the tubing of the radiant heating system.

Framing:
The framing has been designed for simple quick cost effective construction.
Wall and roof framing are modeled after Advanced Framing Techniques. Utilizing a stacked 2-foot on center wall studs and roof truss design which minimizes lumber resources and cost while insuring an extremely strong building frame.
All wall heights are set at 9 feet, utilizing 104 5/8 precut studs.
The window and door headers are designed with laminated veneer lumber inner and outer structural members sandwiched around a foam-insulating core, resulting in a sturdy, stable substitute for traditional large dimension lumber.
The roof framing is accomplished by simply stacking prefabricated trusses directly over the wall studs.

Insulation:
2 x 6 exterior walls give a big cavity for a choice of green insulation materials.
The raised energy heal roof truss design also gives a large space for achieving an extremely high ceiling insulation value at a reasonable cost.
All door and window headers are designed for prefabricated insulated headers.
The exterior stucco finish is low maintenance and designed to be constructed with 2” of ridged foam giving the entire wall assembly approximately R-30.

Space Heating and Domestic Hot Water :
The space heating is a radiant infloor system and is accomplished by using a high efficiency closed combustion gas fired boiler circulating hot water through the concrete floor.
Domestic hot water is designed to use a tankless on-demand ultra high efficient boiler.
The utility room is configured to have space for solar equipment and a storage tank.
Active solar assisted heating systems are effective and a very worthwhile investment.
Backup heat and wintertime ambience is supplied by a gas or wood fueled freestanding stove adjacent to the thermal mass wall.
In emergency situations the stove can also be used for cooking.

Summer Cooling:
Summer cooling needs are greatly reduced and in most climates, totally eliminated.
The design incorporates several strategies.
1) Proper site orientation
2) Correctly sized South eve overhangs
3) Many vent able windows.
4) Ceiling fans in living room and bedrooms.
5) Vent able skylights.
6) Whole house attic fan.
7) Thermal mass.
8) West façade porch shading.

Biography STEVE KAWELL DURANGO, COLORADO

Following you’ll find my biography as it relates to the evolution of my understanding of passive solar and green building design strategies

I was born North of the great Midwest City of Chicago. Growing up in a home designed and built by my engineer father and tradesman grandfather, I was able to observe the construction of many projects. Our family home was flooded with winter sunlight. The south orientation was, as my father said, just dumb luck.

It was my first experience with a passive solar home and what a great environment to grow up in. Solar Home Plans

I took college preparatory architecture classes thinking that architecture could be an intriguing profession. I quickly found that I did not have the artistic talent that was necessary for an architecture student of that time. My undergraduate studies at Southern Illinois University were focused on Environmental science and business. After moving to Colorado in the late 70’s, I again pursued studies in architecture and the construction sciences. A night program through Colorado Mountain College fit well with my daytime construction employment.

The late 70’s and early 80’s were a vibrant time for solar designs and energy efficient building strategies, as the gas crisis hit America and our president made a commitment for energy independence. Over the next few years I attended every regional conference and workshop I could find that dealt with cutting edge passive solar design. It was the start of integrating passive solar concepts into my work. Of course the urgency of creating an America that was energy independent was short lived but a small group of designers and builders, of which I am one, has kept up the cause over these many years.

The first passive solar home I built was in 1981 with many more to follow. The early designs had large areas of roof glazing with a tendency to overheat in the summer, lose heat during long winter nights, and incur greater maintenance costs. The evolution to using a direct gain design utilizing only vertical south glazing with proper roof over-hangs created a passive solar structure that is more self regulating. With the dramatic day/night temperature fluctuations of the early designs, the need for an adequate amount of thermal mass became apparent.