Solar Decathlon: The Competition For The Best Solar-Powered House (PHOTOS)

University teams from around the world are busy constructing sustainable houses at this year's U.S. Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon competition. 20 teams were selected to come to the National Mall in Washington D.C. to compete against one another in designing, building, and operating the best solar-powered, energy-efficient house. The houses are judged based on 10 competitions, which range in point value, from architecture to lighting design to comfort zone. Check out the houses we've featured and vote for which one you want to call home!

Team Cornell's Silo House

As the largest group on the Cornell University campus, with over 150 members, this is Team Cornell's third consecutive year in the competition. According to the Solar Decathlon website, the Silo house is a "modular structure with three interconnecting cylindrical rooms." Each of the rooms is 16 feet in diameter, with about 130 square feet of space. The Silo house is expected to generate more energy than it uses; or at the very least, it'll be a net-zero energy building. Construction costs: $450,000-$650,000.

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Comments

[afgail]

The more I hear of ultra high density development providing, zero carbon, zero waste and zero water consumption the more I think the sustainability movement is the biggest scam since Enron and the creation of derivatives. The movement folks I know are like religious zealots. Don't try to confuse them with facts their minds are made up.

[Philclock]

Could you call a house built underneath an earth berm "solar powered"? Maybe indirectly, since the sun warms the earth covering the house.

Two or three of these were built in Fresno as early models of nature's insulation keeping energy costs down (cool in the summer, warm in the winter).

[Allicia Tek]

There are additional photos and videos posted at:

http://readysetdc.com/2009/10/07/readysetdc-previews-the-solar-decathlon/

For live updates, follow them on twitter:

http://twitter.com/Solar_Decathlon

[JScott]

The Wisconsin/glacial lines one is also known as a Buttefly Roof or Reverse Gable, this style is popular among (midcentury) modern homes in Palm Springs-google (image, web, map/street view) it.-now really that new.

[sheila]

If you watch their commentary, though, the reason they use that shape is because they capture all the rainwater and put it into a natural filtration system for re-use. That is not that new, either, since that's what the earth would do if there was no house there, but it is very progressive for this country (which is sad).

[Roguer]

Actually, many people rural Appalachian home owners capture rain water for drinking. Cisterns are very common in this area due to the difficulties of putting in wells.

My Grandparents lived most of their lives using only rain water. It really teaches one the importance of conserving water. We worked all day on the farm and at the end of the day we got a pan of hot water and a wash cloth. Saturday we got a bath, but everyone had to use the same water (it was important to be first in, if you could) a pan of hot water was added for the next person.

All my buildings, barns, sheds, and house, have a tank or trough that captures water.

Ironic that West Virginia most likely leads the country in numbers of cisterns.

*smiling wryly*

[Greenguy25]

SOLAR MAID spent the first three days of this competition delivering free samples of our Organic PV Cleaning solution to the teams. The opening day was very hot and dry with extensive dust coving the solar panels requiring them to be cleaned by day two.

In addition to the overwhelming response to the cleaning solution we handed out, we had the opportunity to educate the general public about the need to keep panels clean. Solar Maid is the largest and fastest growing solar panel cleaning and maintenance company in the nation.

The Huff pics of the competition are good, but watch for our "nuts and bolts" cleaning and upkeep photos to be posted on our site soon.

http://www.solarmaid.org

[little old lady]

So many negative comments here!

I just got home from D.C. Was able to visit the show Sunday. It's fantastic! Each team has put in tremendous amounts of work and generated many fascinating ideas/products. All the houses were 800 sq.ft. or less, much of the material was produced locally, and the costs stated above were those to produce the original houses shown. Future reproductions could be done at much lower costs.

Touring the models was so inspiring. We came away with many ideas, wondering how we can coordinate with a builder in our area to produce an appropriate local demonstration model to inspire and educate others. Congratulations to all the participants.

Check out the U.S. Dept. of Energy Solar Decathlon website: http://www.solardecathlon.org/

[Tommygun264]

As much as I am for green technology, I have to say that the silo home looks like a prison, and have you ever tried to put traditional furnishings in a round building? A luxury condo was built here in Honolulu a decade ago with the building's footprint being a half circle, each unit radiating out from the center point on the flat side with a footprint shaped like a slice of pie. As a result, every room has two walls that don't match, with one wall wider than the opposite wall. You can hang pictures on the walls and fit traditional furniture into the rooms, but the resulting visual effect makes the furniture and picture frames look lopsided. I am glad to see the most efficient designs, which produce more electricity than they use, are all more traditional shapes with walls at a right angle.

[little old lady]

In person, it didn't feel like a prison. And they weren't rusted out silos.

[Roguer]

So I am guessing that you plan on bulldozing all the already established inefficient homes of suburbia, replace them with these expensive new solar homes, while still wasting even more valuable resources in the process.

This is just knee jerk reaction stu.pid with a capital S.

At least when electricity was developed they put it into existing homes. When homes were converted to furnace heat from coal fireplaces, they did not build new houses. They converted what they had.

Any individual residence, not on a farm, is a waste of land and resources, PERIOD.

*patience wearing thin*

[Tommygun264]

If anyone is being knee-jerk, it's you. You make energy efficiency and green technologies sound like an all or nothing proposition. These houses are the residential equivalent of an auto manufacturer's concept car. Look at the Chevy Volt - the prototype looked like a cross between a 70's muscle car and a spaceship, but then Chevy unveiled the more affordable version that will actually be sold to the public and it looks like a Toyota Camry. Many existing homes could be fitted with the technologies used in these models. Recent developments in flexible, less expensive PV solar cells has made it possible to produce traditional style roofing shingles that can turn sections or the entire roof of a traditional home into a network of miniature solar panels. New homes can be designed to incorporate even more of these energy efficient technologies into traditional, more affordable architectural designs. People didn't all slaughter their horses in favor of automobiles the second they became available - they transitioned over time. That is what's happening with the move toward green technologies.

[Roguer]

We have out built our population growth by 23%. We have more home than we need. Every new home is a waste of resources. Every lawn, every cul-de-sac, every commute is a waste. We have destroyed some of the best farm land in the world to build shopping centers. All in the name of consumerism.

As I mentioned in my post. My patience with this sort of thing is wearing thin.

New anything costs resources.

[little old lady]

I do not believe we should use any farmland for houses. Period.

But walking through these models, I got lots of ideas for retrofitting my own old 1930's house. And if the River washes mine away some day soon, I'll build a house like one of those (or one not mentioned--there are 20 models in all) on this property which is already used both for house and growing food.

[plooger]

Like with the Tesla Roadster, these examples may inspire innovation and be applicable to wealthy folk looking to reduce their footprint (or increase their green rep), they are beyond the economic reach of any average American.

What I'd like to see is a competition to develop a W5 hybrid home (wind, water, warm earth, worms, whatever) that can be build cost-effectively, for the masses. Maybe there's room for a Habitat for Humanity subsidiary to sponsor a similar event, so we can start seeing these technologies rolled-out sooner.

[quiviran]

Right. Until ordinary developers are building subdivisions filled with these ideas, they remain college projects, better and more meaningful than a kegger, but of limited import. It can be done (see this http://www.dlsc.ca/ ), but the US is not there yet, or at least builders are not.

[little old lady]

Well, get busy and kick but*ts of those building houses. Many, many of our most useful ideas come from college products.

And these houses weren't only using solar. They were using geographic orientation, passive AND active solar, heated hot water, heat pumps (involves earth temperatures), plants, material considerations, energy conserving appliances, conservation of water by conversion to gray water, etc.

[sheila]

What we need is much more stringent building codes so that these "sustainable" factors are required instead of "vanity" functions. Since the developers own our legislatures (along with Big Energy), we are having a near-impossible time getting them to be required to do ANYTHING, much less build more sustainably. Innovation will be borne of necessity, which is up to legislation...

[doubtingdavid]

None of these homes are or will be in the immediate future affordable or truly livable.

[Tommygun264]

No, but many of the technologies they use can be incorporated into existing, traditional homes. 30 years ago solar water heaters were expensive and not terribly efficient - a lot of people bought systems too small for their actual usage. Now 25% of new homes where I live are built with solar water heating systems and at least that percentage of existing homes in the working class neighborhood where I live (some of them dating back to the 1930's) have solar water heating systems thanks to state and federal tax credits for people who convert. PV solar cells are becoming lighter, more durable and less expensive every year and smaller, more efficient vertical wind turbines are being produced that take up about as much space as a chimney and be fitted to traditional roofs. There is already a federal that will pay for a reverse metering system to be installed in homes fitted with solar or wind technologies and tax credits to cover part of the cost of installing solar panels and turbines, so you can sell electricity your system produces when you aren't using it back to your power company. A federal program requires public utilities to allow these systems in a minimum percentage of homes they service.

[little old lady]

I read that China is installing solar hot water heaters on houses at a rapid rate.

[jeffrey678]

The problem with solar houses are humidity buildup and lack of sunlight at certain times of the year. Super insulation is the way to go with some passive solar options. Habitat for humanity uses panelized foam core construction with R38 insulation and solar hot water. A good example of this type of construction is Adirondack alternative energy web site. They use 150 tons of stone as a thermal mass to store the heat until needed.

[Roguer]

Where did that stone come from?... River bed?... Quarry?...

Individual residences are wasting resources. If you do not produce anything from the land you should be living in a high rise condo with access to public transportation, or be able to walk or bike to work.

Farmland in this country is destroyed to the tune of 90 acres a minute, yet people complain and wonder why the rain forest is being cut down.

Why?... because Americans think they have to have their 2500 sq ft home in the 'country'. Did you ever think that every suburban home built equates, in direct proportion, to the same amount of rain forest cut down.

BTW... foam insulation is a petroleum product.

[little old lady]

Amendment to your statement: ...RICH "Americans think they have to have their 2500 sq ft home in the 'country'."

I only hope they can wake up.

[little old lady]

The Minnesota house dealt with humidity buildup, specifically with a dehumidifier. The water captured was reused efficiently. Also, most of the houses I visited were clad in an outside coat or shell, to prevent mold and humidity buildup.

Compensation was made for lack of sunlight in the winter, especially by the houses in northern climates. Different regions made allowances for their own particular conditions, such as snow, ice, etc.

[little old lady]

The insulation on these houses ran from R40-R80, with double and triple pane windows and many other amazing features.

[lazercat2008]

If the Obama Administration was serious about energy independence all new houses would have to be made with solar panels and geo-thermal heating or wind power.

[doubtingdavid]

Your right and absolutely no one would be able to afford a new home. A solar installation in an average home is in excess of $45,000. I checked and had acquired a few bids to try it myself. I was shocked. At those prices I would never in my lifetime or my kids recover my costs in terms of energy savings.

Geothermal is not available or workable everywhere and heatpumps have a limited operating temperature range.
Wind power - Besides cost again would you like to see you neighbors 30 foot high wind tower out your back window. Why do you think the Kennedy's fought so hard against it on the end of Cape Cod? Algore is a tool! LOL!!!!!!

[lazercat2008]

I guess you are a coal guy.

[lazercat2008]

Coal plants produce 60 percent of the mercury pollution in Illinois. That pollution ends up in Lake Michigan and the Great Lakes, and in Illinois' inland rivers, lakes and streams. Mercury contamination then works its way up the food chain to poison fish that people eat.

[lazercat2008]

Every year, U.S. coal-fired power plants release 48 tons of the neurotoxin mercury into the environment, poisoning hundreds of square miles of waterways. And mercury doesn't just poison ecosystems; it also poisons pregnant women and their babies. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that one of every six women of childbearing age now has unsafe mercury levels in her blood and, potentially, breast milk, putting more than 410,000 American children born each year at high risk for neurological damage and a grim inventory of illnesses.

[lazercat2008]

* Coal ash is becoming increasingly toxic. Pollution controls designed to keep toxins out of the air means more of these toxins are captured in the ash.
* Minefilling coal ash fast-tracks pollutants to groundwater. The unique geology of abandoned mines means the toxins in coal ash can seep directly into the water table, easily migrating to drinking water supplies.
* Coal ash is severely under-regulated. Most coal ash minefills are subjected to none of the safeguards required of even municipal waste landfills.

"EPA's own scientists admit that exposure to coal combustion waste presents a cancer risk nine times greater than smoking a pack of cigarettes a day," said Ben Dunham, Earthjustice environmental health policy analyst. "This is hazardous waste. The federal government needs to start treating it as such."

[lazercat2008]

Coal-burning plants are some of the worst industrial polluters in the United States, producing approximately one-third of our carbon dioxide (CO2, a major contributor to global warming), 40% of our mercury (highly toxic if ingested or inhaled ), one-quarter of our nitrogen oxide (an ingredient found in smog) and two-thirds of our sulfur dioxide (a component of acid rain). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) contends that sulfur dioxide promotes heart disease and asthma, while nitrogen oxides destroy lung tissue.

[imaclellan]

Team Boston focused their efforts into making an affordable home for this competition, with a price tag of $250,000 for 670 square foot interior and decks of the same size. They already sold their house to Housing Authority of Cape Cod who is going to make it the first in a Green Neighborhood that will help teach environmental design and architecture principles. The reality of the competition is that you need to over-engineer your systems to produce enough excess energy to compete. In future iterations of the Team Boston house they plan on using cheaper systems and could bring the cost of the house down tens of thousands of dollars easily.
http://livecurio.us/ - Team Boston Website

[The Meek]

That house doesn't appeal to me. It's an architectural statement, not a home. A home is shelter a place where you feel safe. You have too much glass, The curtains would have to be closed most of the time. It doesn't look like it will weather well and flat roofs leak. But if people want to buy it, that's cool, I would prefer a cozy place.

[The Meek]

These houses are too expensive and, with the exception of the Penn house, don't look at all homey.

There are probably better designs out there., This sites green section is really weak.

[Zao]

The Rice row house, could be made for $80,000 with a reduced solar system from the one used in the competition. I think that's very reasonable.

Affordable varies, according to what part of the country you live in. In California, $80,000 would be reasonable. In Detroit, it wouldn't.

The houses aren't trying to look homey. Most are in a contemporary style, and everything about them is designed for optimal energy useage. They also needed to be small and transportable, just to get them to the competition, but many offered plans for additions.

I agree with you about too much glass on some of the homes. They are doing that to expand the visual space, and sometimes for solar gain. It would be blinding to try to watch TV or work at a computer in some of these homes, but some do have good window coverings.

[MsCuda]

Having been my own contractor for a house I built in 1990, I'm more or less aware of how much materials can cost (outside of land, septic, well, and etc's.) But please someone clue me in as to why a rusted out (I take it recycled, and that the rusty look wasn't for show) silo house should run at 1/2 million?

I haven't read related articles, but I really don't care how much electricity the house saves--1/2 mill?? Why spend that much to save so little? Someone wake me when the common consumer can be 'green.'

[MsCuda]

I should say that I understand that these are experimental houses, and if reproduced for the consumer they'd probably be somewhat less. I also am aware that the bottom line here is the greening of our societies.

But even so, the technology is far out of the reach of those who would benefit most financially from housing that is less expensive to run. The mainstream of lower middle class humanity simply can't afford to install these technologies. I wish it were otherwise.

[tiredofthesameoldstuff]

Well these houses were built by teams of what 200 people in a competition that lasted how long? I think that would jack up the cost factor some

I think that would jack up the cost a lot plus if they were buying the materials at regular prices instead of wholesale then the price would also be higher.

These are basically prototype houses and a car prototype can often run into the millions or tens of millions. But when it comes time to sell the car when it is on the manufactoring line it just costs 60,000 or less.

[Zao]

Cornell's Silo house is for sale for $200,000, which is a little expensive but it does have a lot of advanced solar things with it. They are saying it cost them $725,000 to build but they are including all the hours of design research etc.

The rusty silo is an architectu­ral/aesthe­tic statement, and departure from the usual box Cornell has done before. I think it is interesting to look at, but ridiculous as a prototype for solar housing. They may have learned something from trying a house that is so different.

Think of these as cutting edge experiments. Some teams go for commercial viability, like Rice, and some don't.

I wish there were more competitions like this...one for best passive solar house. One for best $60,000 house.