Archive for January 10, 2006

ECOHOUSE BRAZIL

January 10, 2006 at 11:21 pm · Filed under Home building on the Web, Smart Home Building

In the Urca neighborhood near the base of Sugarloaf mountain and the shores of Rio de Janeiro, architect Alexandra Lichtenberg tackled a remodeling project that demonstrates that being green isn’t the exclusive domain of high-cost, luxury residences and backwoods off-grid dwellings. A good green remodel is within reach of the average well-intentioned homeowner in the average urban neighborhood anywhere in the world, and the EcoHouse proves it.

The <a href=”http://www.ecohouse.com.br
“>EcoHouse Project undertook to provide not only a more eco-friendly environment for its inhabitants, but also a tool for evaluating comfort levels within ecologically-enhanced and highly efficient thermal, water and lighting systems. The architect’s goal was to create comparable or better amenities in the home while improving the ecological impact. In the hot, humid climate of Rio, the house served as a case example for similar climates worldwide.

Below is an overview of the various aspects of the remodel. Any one of these is available to homeowners at minimal cost, and most are just as easily implemented in an existing building as in a new home.


Rainwater catchment
Rainwater catchment is one of the most sensible things we can do to increase our home water efficiency as well as to reduce water pollution and store runoff in our neighborhoods. Most rainfall runs over impermeable urban surfaces straight into storm drains without ever being used, which�given the ease and benefits of collecting it�is an unnecessary waste.

In the EcoHouse, a concrete cistern collects rain from the roof and patio, which flows through a gravity-driven mechanical filter. It is then pumped to the recycled water tank located on the highest green roof, and distributed by gravity to toilets, garden irrigation system, and faucets used for non-potable water. In the first year, the system accounted for 28% of the total water use of the house.

Sewage recycling
Even the most hardcore environmentalists sometimes shy away from dealing with gray water and sewage. However, there are a number of well-designed compact sewage treatment systems that make residential water reuse easy and clean. A Brazilian company called Mizumo provided a test system for the Ecohouse Urca Project. Intended for small urban lots, it measures 1.20m x 2.60m x 2.10m. The system is meant to provide water for the same non-potable uses as the rainwater system. Before being pumped to the water tank on the green roof, the water undergoes sand and UV light filtration to eliminate any remaining impurities.

Passive cooling
The best means of achieving passive heating and cooling is through well-planned orientation of a house on its site. With existing buildings, though, there are other ways to make use of passive technologies, such as strategic placement of shade trees, extension of eaves and overhanging roofing, and window glazing. Keeping the walls, windows and roof of the house cool by deflecting or avoiding direct sunlight, the inside stays cooler, as well, without A/C or other high-energy systems.

Green roofs and facades

Green roofs enhance passive cooling capacities, absorb rainwater, and offer another usable outdoor space for residents�a perfect spot for cultivating a garden. The EcoHouse’s old ceramic tile roof was replaced by green roofs, using mostly grass and cooking herbs. All northwest-facing fa�ades were fitted with an aluminum trellis to protect the outside walls from sun exposure. A vigorous vine will climb the trellis and create a shield to absorb most of the direct radiation that would hit the walls.

Natural ventilation
Natural ventilation is another component that is often best installed during the initial building process of the home, when operable skylights and windows can be designed into the building. For the EcoHouse remodel, the architect did a reconfiguration of the internal layout to allow for natural ventilation. Air circulation is vitally important, not only to reduce heating and cooling costs, but for the health of the inhabitants. Keeping a good inflow of fresh air enhances the interior atmosphere so that it never feels stuffy or stagnant.

Renewable energy
Two solar systems heat all the hot water in the house, both working in a passive thermosiphon system, which takes advantage of gravity and eliminates the need to pump liquids around the house. Normally, solar panels mounted on the roof heat water in a tank several floors below, which means that the liquid needs to be pumped to the roof for heating. In a thermosiphon system, the tank is on the roof, placed above the solar collector.

As the temperature of the heat-transfer fluid increases, its density decreases. The fluid rises, causing natural convection, which permits passive circulation in the pipes. In the EcoHouse, one of the two solar systems has an electrical backup source. The other functions completely on solar.

Many thanks to Alexandra Lichtenberg, who provided info and images for this piece. The <a href=”http://www.ecohouse.com.br
“>EcoHouse is a bright example of what’s possible for any one of us, in any location or climate. With some simple changes to a handful of home systems, we can easily reduce our costs, increase our comfort, and enhance our quality of life.

+ www.ecohouse.com.br

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Futaba Convertable Furniture

January 10, 2006 at 11:15 pm · Filed under Green Stories, Interior Design Ideas

Via www.inhabitat.com.

In Japanese, the word “Futaba” means two leaves sprouting from one seed. That sounds like a less violent version of the expression “killing two birds with one stone.” I love the way that just one word in Japanese sums up the whole thought of multi-functionalism in a much more elegant, refined way than the horrible English bird-killing idiom. Futaba is the perfect word to describe Akemi Tanaka’s beautiful, ecofriendly, convertible furniture.

Designed for people who live in small apartments and who like to entertain, Futaba is meant to be used as a coffee table on an everyday basis. When guests come over and additional seating is required, the furniture converts from table into a love seat.

If this sounds like a great idea to you, just wait – it gets better. Futaba was also designed to minimize environmental impact. The wood is all Plyboo, (which we’ve praised before for its ecofriendliess), and the finish is Danish Oil (both from Bettencourt Green Building Supplies). The fabric is from Carnegie, a company committed to sustainability.

Akemi Tanaka is an Industrial Design grad student at Pratt. Futaba is her final furniture studio project.

+ Akemitanaka

(The designer, Akemi Tanaka, sits on the left.)

[tags]futaba, furniture, pratt, inhabitat, ecology, green, renewable, blogs, energy[/tags]

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Roof top farming in London

January 10, 2006 at 11:12 pm · Filed under Green Home Building, Green Stories, Lawn and Garden, Smart Home Building

Via inhabitat.com.

There’s a fabulous article today on BLDGBLOG, about roof-top farming in London.

Being both an avid green-roof fan, and a former London resident myself (and remembering those miserable grey days) – I can’t think of anything more exciting that the possibility of transforming the grizzly bombed out concrete blocks of my old Hackney stomping grounds into lush, green, food-producing gardens.

London-based architecture firm Agents of Change (AOC), proposes that “vacancy in cities” is really “a starting point for a new urban form.” The AOC asks, how could London be adapted “to an agricultural logic � the logic of rotation, seasons, ground and growth?”

From BLDGBLOG:

AOC has proposed a Hackney “New Garden City”, complete with an “Agricultural Action Zone (AAZ).” This would include “a self-sufficient ecology of grass roads, localised rainwater collection, organic solar films and biological compost systems… liberating the ground’s agricultural potential.”

AOC’s Croydon Roof Divercity project which radically rethinks the landscape of Croydon’s roofs (and sounds really, really fun): “Taking the flat roofs of Croydon as our testbed,” they write, “we propose a new roofscape for the city � beaches, ice rinks, golf courses, allotments, skateboard parks and pasture refresh Croydon’s tired concrete.” How about a shooting range?

read more >

[tags]roof-top, garden, london, farming, ecology, green, eco-friendly, stories, blogs[/tags]

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Vertical-axis wind turbines

January 10, 2006 at 10:42 pm · Filed under Green Stories, Heating and Ventilation, Smart Home Building

Via tyler.blogware.com.

I’ve always been curious about vertical-axis wind turbines, or VAWTs, which haven’t received much attention in the wind-energy market because of failed attempts in the past to commercialize them. The smaller versions are generally designed for rooftop use on high- or low-rise office buildings, apartment complexes and homes, but they can be made much larger for use in a wind-farm model.

Many of the companies selling these products — assuming they have product for sale — are either small private companies or publicly traded over the counter. Lacking credibility or a track record, and often failing to provide adquate information on their products, these companies tend to be dismissed and eventually they fade away after trials and tests fail to result in sales. It doesn’t help that many wind experts dismiss the technology as experimental, unproven or disproven after two decades of government testing.

That said, I do think there are many home and building owners in cities who would be curious about the use of small vertical-axis turbines in an urban context, given the fact these products require less space than traditional turbines and are touted as less noisy.

This is why I was pleased to see that McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, is evaluating a 2.5 kilowatt vertical-axis wind turbine from Cleanfield Energy Corp. of Mississauga. The turbine is designed for residential and commercial use, helping homeowners and businesses offset their energy use with wind power without needing the height and pole required for traditional turbines. McMaster’s department of mechanical engineering is studying the performance of the Cleanfield Energy turbine in urban wind conditions.

There’s a vertical-axis turbine from another company called Windaus Energy Inc. in Brantford, Ontario, that McMaster would also be wise to test out. Ditto for a much larger VAWT system from Calgary-based Sustainable Energy Technologies Corp., which is publicly traded on the TSX Venture Exchange. Heck, if you’re going to test one might as well test a few for comparison.

I will be very curious to see the result of the university’s study, given the lack of information about these intriguing but equally suspicious wind-power products. For an interesting history and update on vertical-axis wind turbines check out this June 2004 article in Mechanical Engineering magazine. It’s quite optimistic about the prospects for VAWT systems.

Perhaps this is just a case of good technology, bad marketing. BTW: I welcome any comments from people who have some experience with VAWT systems.

[tags]turbines, power, energy, ecology, renewable, global warming, environment[/tags]

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Canadian cleantech stories

January 10, 2006 at 10:41 pm · Filed under Green Stories, Heating and Ventilation, Smart Home Building

Via tyler.blogware.com.

Geothermal energy to heat standard homes

A few companies that have bleeped on my radar screen over the past couple of weeks. I’ll look at them in more detail at a later date.

Cyrium Technologies Inc. of Ottawa — Pangaea Ventures Fund LP has led a $3 million venture financing in this developer of high-efficiency solar cells for the space and terrestrial markets. “Cyrium uses quantum dot nano-coatings to increase absorption of efficiency and light spectrum on triple junction solar cells,” according to a description on Pangaea’s Web site. “The multi-junction solar cells are the most efficient solar cells at about 29 per cent efficiency. They have been used to power satellites for many years and could enter the terrestrial market with an increase in efficiency. Cyrium’s technology can increase the efficiency level of multi-junction solar cells by 50 per cent.” 

Photon Control Inc. of Burnaby, B.C. — This company makes fibre-optic sensors that remotely monitor the temperature of power lines and are immune to electro-magnetic interference from the lines. Temperature can affect the flow of electricity over power lines so utilities are looking for better diagnostic tools as they transition to a smart grid. The company has begun its first field trails over power lines in a substation in Norway, operated by Protura SA, which plans to buy 500 or more of the sensors if the trial meets expectations. Newfoundland Labrador Hydro is also using the technology.

NextEnergy Inc. of Elmira, Ontario — this company is a designer and provider of low-temperature geothermal or “geoexchange” systems for homes and businesses. The company has formed a partnership with Waterloo North Hydro to market geothermal systems to the utility’s customers, who will be able to spread out the upfront costs of the systems by paying instalments on monthly bills over a 10 to 20 year period. Upfront costs have been identified as the main barrier to consumer acceptance of these highly efficient renewable energy systems. Apparently the Waterloo plan will be launched in January. We need to see more of these “partnerships” develop in Canada to make these systems more attractive.

[tags]cleantech, canada, technology, geo-thermal, heating, ecology, renewable, global warming[/tags]

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Investor love-in with solar continues

January 10, 2006 at 10:41 pm · Filed under Heating and Ventilation, Home building on the Web

Via tyler.blogware.com.

Suntech Power, the first Chinese solar play in the United States, saw its stock soar more than 40 per cent on its first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange — yet another strong sign of high investor interest in solar technology companies. Checked the share price today and it’s holding up: was about $20.85 (U.S.) at noon, compared to its offering price of $15.

Suntech’s IPO raised nearly $400 million for a company expected to have between $30 million to $35 million in profits this year.

SunPower Corp., which had its IPO in November, is still trading nearly 60 per cent above its offering price. Other major solar IPOs include Q-Cells and Conergy, two German solar manufacturers that went public in October and experienced similar success.

Rhone Resch, president of the Washington, D.C.-based Solar Energy Industries Association, told Red Herring that SunTech’s IPO is “consistent with the trend we’ve seen from investors that solar is a smart investment right now.”

Considering the valuations being given to these companies, it makes me wonder about the potential in Canadian plays, such as Carmanah Technologies, which has broadened its entry into the solar market with its purchase earlier of Soltek and remains profitable.

[tags]solar, energy, renewable, ecology, green, home, eco-friendly, technology[/tags]

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FYI: Clean Break column to be podcast

January 10, 2006 at 9:26 pm · Filed under Green Home Building, Home building on the Web

Starting next Monday — Boxing Day — the Toronto Star will begin podcasting my Clean Break column, as well as my tech/telecom-focused Spectrum column. The two columns alternate every week.

I’ll be providing a link to the Star’s site for anybody wants to check it out. Keep in mind it’s just an experiment. I may have a face for radio, but not necessarily a voice. 🙂

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