SOLAR HOT WATER pre-heat systems fall into two basic categories active and passive types with numerous subcategories. A passive solar DHW pre-heater is also known as a breadbox heater or batch heater.

As I discussed in last week’s column ("Resilience: Dramatically Better Building Envelopes," Jan. 4), a resilient home is extremely well-insulated, so that it can be kept warm with very little ...

Heating houses is a major energy suck. Behind passenger cars and trucking, it’s the largest energy draw in the United States. But it turns out homeowners looking to stay warm don’t need to rely just ...

Over the past two weeks, I’ve written about two relatively obscure passive solar heating strategies: Isolated gain using sunspaces, and; indirect gain using a Trombe walls. This week I’ll cover a far ...

Passive solar heating and cooling was omitted from the interesting article on "Building Green" (C&EN, July 16, page 11). This technique can save 50% of the heating and cooling costs of a home in the ...

Now that the winter solstice, the shortest daylight day of the year, is behind us I’m reminded of how important it is to let the sunshine into our lives. There are many benefits to having large ...

A passive solar house is typically designed from scratch factoring in several considerations to boost the structure’s ability to naturally keep the interior living spaces a comfortable air temperature ...

Solar water heaters work by absorbing sunlight in solar collectors and saving the heated water in a storage tank. Both active and passive solar water heaters are available. Active systems are ...

As a former realtor, general contractor and greenhouse operator, Kristi has touched nearly all aspects of homeownership, from the foundation up. Today, Kristi is a full-time investing and real estate ...

When it comes to renewable energy at home, solar panels are often the first option that comes to mind, leaving homeowners with the choice between monocrystalline or polycrystalline solar panels, and ...