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We've added three pictorial checklists: “Laundry Room Design,” “Kitchen Design,” and “Oops!” These lists are chock-full of insightful information to help design function into your new home. And you know what they say: “A picture is worth a thousand words!” For more information, Click for FREEBIES !
Watch a Green Home
in the Making!
Recently I worked
with those designing
the 2008 Vision Home
to provide a
functional analysis.
This home, now under
construction in the
Orlando area, is a
project of Green
Builder Magazine and
Westmont Homes. For
detailed photos and
additional
information about
this project and the
suppliers who are
working on it, see
http://www.greenhomes.typepad.com.
Position Your Home
for Energy Savings
Some experts
estimate that you
can save between 30
and 40 percent of
your home’s energy
costs by orienting
your home correctly
in relation to the
sun and choosing a
design focused on
retaining the sun’s
heat in winter and
blocking it in
summer.
HOME ORIENTATION:
Cold Climate:
If you live in a
cold section of the
country, you can
take advantage of
the winter sun by
orienting your home
so that the side
containing the most
windows faces south.
(As shown in the
graphic below, the
sun is much lower in
the sky in winter).
You can also gain
protection from
winter winds by
placing evergreen
trees on the north /
northwest side of
your home.
Hot Humid Climate:
If you live in a
humid southern
location, orient
your home so that
the long sides face
north and south.
East-, south-, and
especially
west-facing windows
should be shaded
from spring, summer,
and fall sun.
The graphic below
illustrates how the
arc of the sun is
higher in the summer
than in the winter.
Fortunately this arc
is entirely
predictable, so by
knowing exactly
where the arc falls
in your region at
the hottest and
coldest times of the
year, your architect
can place and size
windows and
overhangs to admit
only the amount of
heat needed for
optimum comfort.
Here’s a great
example
of the energy that
can be saved through
proper home
orientation. Experts
calculating the air
conditioning needs
for a model home in
a development in
Austin, Texas,
determined that if
the home faced west,
it would require a
7-1/2-ton A/C unit.
If the exact same
model, in the exact
same development,
was built facing
south, only a 4-ton
unit would be needed
WINDOWS:
Window sizes,
locations and
overhangs can be
designed to let in
just the amount of
heat needed to make
your home
comfortable. In the
Northern Hemisphere,
the sun is
predominantly in the
southern sky (which,
incidentally, is why
contractors install
solar panels on the
south-facing portion
of the roof). As
mentioned above,
sunlight strikes
south-facing windows
lower in the winter
and higher in the
summer. Overhangs,
deciduous trees,
exterior shades, and
awnings can be used
to shade
south-facing windows
against the summer
sun. North-facing
windows get no
direct sunlight and
do not need shading.
West-facing windows
allow late afternoon
sun to shine in at
the hottest time of
the day. In a hot
climate, a
west-facing window
without shading
would let in too
much solar heat.
However, the same
window in a northern
climate would help
to make the most of
heat gain and lower
winter heating
costs. (East-facing
windows are far less
important in this
scenario, since the
sun is rising at a
much cooler time of
day.)
A properly sized
overhang will
outperform
double-pane, Low E
windows.
The overhang of the
house shown below
will shade the
windows on the south
side in summer but
not in winter, when
the sun is lower in
the sky and the heat
is needed in the
house. (Note that
although
approximately 40 to
60 percent of solar
radiation is stopped
by Low E windows,
they are not a
substitute for
overhangs, which
stop the sun from
hitting the windows
in the first place.)
Overhangs perform
another useful
service: they reduce
potential damage
from moisture. No
house is 100-percent
watertight, but
water can’t seep
into your home or
rot its windows or
doors if it can’t
reach them. As
Martha would say
“overhangs are a
good thing.”
Some people are
concerned that
overhangs will make
a house dark, but
it’s not so. Because
the underside of an
overhang is painted
white, it actually
reflects light into
the house, providing
the benefits of
sunlight with no
solar gain!
If you have
already selected a
lot that
won’t allow for the
best orientation of
your home, all is
not lost. The house
design can still
make a big
difference. For
example: In Dallas,
Texas, two homes
were built in the
same neighborhood at
the same time in
2004. The home built
without regard for
energy efficiency
had a poor layout
and included many
unshaded,
west-facing windows.
In order to keep
this home cool, one
ton of A/C was
required for every
500 to 550 square
feet. And because
the homeowner had to
keep the blinds
closed to reduce
glare and solar
gain, additional
energy charges were
generated from
keeping on the
lights.
The second home was
designed for energy
efficiency and
included features
such as the proper
size and shading of
windows, a minimum
number of windows on
the west side, and
placement of the
garage and pool bath
as a buffer against
the hot afternoon
sun. Although both
homes had an east /
west orientation,
the energy efficient
design reduced the
A/C load by nearly
half.
In addition to
creating an
advantageous home
design, an architect
versed in the
science of building
energy-efficient or
“Green” homes will
be able to advise
you as to the best
was to orient your
home in your part of
the country. If
you’d like to try it
yourself, a Sun
Angle Calculator is
available through
Ball State
University (Center
for Energy Research,
Education and
Service), at
http://www.sbse.org/resources/sac/index.htm.
They also provide a
chart of the path of
the sun by zip code
or latitude /
longitude.
http://solardat.uoregon.edu/SunChartProgram.html
Is there a subject
you’d like me to
cover? Let me know
by sending an email
to
tracy@tracystips.net.
All past issues of this ezine are in the Ezine Archives on our web site. Click here for Ezine Archives !
Graphics courtesy of
Austin Energy
References:
Green
Builder Magazine,
October 2006, Page
27, “Solar Gain”
Austin Energy "Green
by Design - 7 Steps
to Green building"
“Green by Design -
You Don’t Have to be
Weird to go Green”
by Barley & Pfeiffer
Architects,
International
Builders Show,
Orlando, FL 2007
Copyright © 2007 Tracy DeCarlo - All Right Reserved
WANT A CHECK LIST OF HUNDREDS OF TIPS
AND IDEAS FOR DESIGNING A FUNCTIONAL HOME?
If you liked today’s tips you’ll love the book “Don’t Forget the Linen Closets!” It’s packed with over 240 ideas and reminders to help you incorporate function, organization, and efficiency into your home without breaking the bank.
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To us, it [“Don’t Forget the Linen Closets”] is the most thorough guide to building a house, regardless of size, in the industry. Most importantly, it is geared toward the folks who will actually live in the house.
By following your guidelines, we are confident that we will have a far more functional home than if we had been on our own. Also, we know that we and the builder have saved thousands of dollars by avoiding rework and non-functional design flaws. In fact we have dubbed the book, “The Home Buyers’ Essential Handbook for Design and Construction in Less Than 50 Pages.”
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences in such a concise and useful way.
Bill and Yvonne Dunbar
Homeowners building a custom home
Orlando, FL – February 2006
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If you’d like more personalized help, Tracy’s plan-review service will walk you through the process in detail. In either case, planning the details in the beginning can save thousands in the end! To see more testimonials and/or to place your order, visit Detailed Solutions WEB site now.
WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR ON YOUR WEB SITE?
You can, as long as you include the following blurb in its entirety:
Tracy DeCarlo, author of “Don’t Forget the Linen Closets!” publishes the idea-packed, monthly e-zine “Tips for Designing a Functional Home.” If you’re ready to learn how to incorporate organization, function, and efficiency into your new home or remodeling project without breaking the bank, get your FR*EE tips now at www.BuildingTips.net.
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