Comments on: Energy geeks compete for coolest solar home

Upcoming Solar Decathlon contest will judge 20 solar-powered homes built by college students. MIT's entry is already under construction.
Photos: MIT's solar house

[toomchstout]

Energy History

Also need to consider the energy history of the home and all the parts that went into it. How much energy did it take to create each piece. Solar panel production takes a lot of energy. Just something to think about.

[Manhattan2]

Getting off the grid is not what is important. No photovoltaic panels!

Energy efficient glass, high R factor insulation, automatic awnings, are all things that should be looked at.
If you see a Solar Panel go up on any of these homes the competitors need to go back to school. Look at the cost in dollars and CO2 to manufacture your items and track the energy capture from your panels. Cost is critical. We will never get Solar Power off the ground and to any significance if students, professors, and businesses don?t understand the Solar Transfer concept and that putting a photovoltaic panel on a fixed angle on a rooftop in any state in the country is not the way to go. Sure, go solar but plant your panel that you would have put on your roof out in a higher solar constant zone on a dual axis platform where it will capture 2-3 times more power for someone near by. Don't worry you will get credit for your good deeds and smart move in the form of a wire transfer of extra money. That is the trick, make it financially worthwhile to do and you may be on to something. BP, GE, Google, Wal-Mart, and others need to understand this. Please email us if you understand and think you can help get the word out.

[ralfthedog]

Not the point.

The first point of going all solar was for PR. The second and more important was, by limiting your energy budget to what you can get off of commercial solar panels, you force the contestants to be very efficient in energy usage.

The third point is that it makes an interesting engineering problem. Isn't that the point behind school?

[Rick Cavaretti]

Not really cutting edge

I still see wood-based products in the construction. In addition to being an energy misor, this house should also be built for the inhabitants and the planet's long range health. Wood gets mold. Mold spores cause all kinds of lung issues. Wood gets termites. Do you want to live in a building sprayed by toxic materials? Hey, aren't pesticides made from petroleum? Wood also burns easily. How many people die from fires every year? Wood comes from trees. We've just about cut down all of the old growth forests in this country. Not a very ecologically sound practice.

I like the idea of form-poured concrete houses. It takes care of all of the above concerns, except making concrete is a very energy intensive process. That doesn't get us far, does it? Maybe a similar from of construction, but using more natural materials with minimum processing.

[blsith]

RE: Not really cutting edge

Wood comes from trees. We've just about cut down all of the old growth forests in this country.

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As I understand it, much of our new construction comes from "new growth" trees - trees planted and cultivated to grow quickly. Mold, especially the dreaded "Black Mold" comes from constant moisture on the wood, and more commonly the drywall on top of it.

Concrete is still a "natural resource" and isn't the easiest to get, transport or put together. The gravel (is it really gravel?) is generally transported by train (!) to where it is mixed with other compounds to strengthen it. I believe that the wood we use is replenished faster than the materials that make up concrete.

The carbon footprint of the everyday american has so much more to do with our culture than just using our car to drive to work each day. Sure that doesn't help, but all the services that we use on a daily basis are transported around by carbon consuming vehicles from "far away" places.

[Solar Decathlon]

The Solar Decathlon is on MySpace!

Hey Everybody!!

The Solar Decathlon now has a Myspace page, where you can find lots of info about the event, download some cool desktops, and find links to all of the teams' websites. Lots of cool stuff to see! Check it out at:

http://www.myspace.com/solardecathlon07

See you at the competition!

[spothannah]

Energy Geeks

Go Geeks! You will save the world! May God bless you and help you in your quest.