How to Create a Passive Solar Home

Join me in this highly informative class on how to create a passive solar home: a home that uses very little active heating and cooling to create comfort.

This workshop is one of my most important workshops, because your home is a forever place.

So few people realise that you can create a beautiful contemporary home using passive solar principles & that these principles never have a use by date.

No one ever wakes up on a winters morning and complains that their house feels warm.

Recently I had a visitor live with us for three weeks (in autumn/winter) who kept saying, “I can’t believe how warm your home is”.

Your renovation or new build has the potential to create not only a beautiful & more opened planned home, but also one that is warm in winter, cool in summer.

• If you are planning to place a large amount of glazing on your west … then… please reconsider
• If you are planning to glaze the entire north facade of your home … then… please reconsider
• If you are hoping to build a rammed earth house in a cool temperate climate … unless you insulate the thermal mass… then… please reconsider
• Those aluminium windows that are double glazed but not thermally broken then… please reconsider

There is no comfort in high electricity costs, but enormous comfort in a home that is warm on a cold winters morning from a fire or heater long ago extinguished.

This event helps people to prioritise what is most important and I can’t emphasise this point enough: the aesthetics you choose will go in and out of fashion, but low energy bills & a home that is thermally comfortable all year never will. 

I will discuss:

• Why an airtight building envelope is very important
• Why high thermal performance windows should be your homes design highlight – U-values and WERS System
• Glazing to wall values
• Why drafts are a huge compromise & what to do about them
• Why doors are more important than you realise
• How a greenhouse can reduce your heating costs
• Straw bale, Lightearth, Rammed Earth: natural material homes breathe & are wonderful to live in
• Why solar orientation is extremely important
• Why simple rectangular homes have better thermal performance
• Why thermal mass is important and why it needs to be used correctly
• Insulation and correct installation
• SIPS (structural insulated panels)
• The role that gardens play in keeping your home cool

This event will unpack what you don’t know you don’t know, and will consolidate your approach.

Refreshments 

Tea (herbal and caffein rich) coffee and cakes provided.

Where

This session will be hosted in our Passive Solar LightEarth (rammed straw) Home in Blampied.

Arrivederci cari amici, e grazie mille from mara