ottawa-solar-fair / Green Building & Sustainable Home Renovation Information & Advice

What is a solar thermal collector? A photovoltaic (PV) solar collector converts solar radiation into electricity, but a solar thermal collector is much simpler than that. It refers to a device that collects heat directly from solar radiation. That can be as simple and rudimentary as water being pumped through a black t...

  Solar thermal panels in cold climates are at risk of freezing in winter, so in the North, we use a glycol mix as a heat transfer fluid. This prevents panels from freezing but introduces new problems in the summer months when they are at risk of overheating.  There are two main types of residential solar thermal heate...

How solar air heaters work: Solar air heater diagram © Ecohome The above diagram indicates the basic concept of a solar air heater, and while there are many designs, the basic principle is the same - a small fan feeds interior air into a south-facing wall-mounted panel. Air is heated as it passes behind a black surfa...

A solar igloo at first sounds counterintuitive, but contrast is at the heart of this design concept created by the L. McComber architectural team for Montreal's Igloofest. The solar igloo known as 'Celsius' can be visited free of charge until February 19th at the now famous Igloofest in the Old Port of Montreal. We wer...

Developer Luc Bélisle will be partnering with Matthew Smith of Mapleridge Homes to build the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified housing project in the Gatineau Hills of Quebec. Phase 1 will have 12 lots available, but the developer has 470 acres total on which he hopes to build about 1...

The continuing drop in cost for home solar power generation has led to a dramatic increase in the rate of installations, for both residential and commercial use. Increasing the yield through reflection could make that an even more affordable energy supply option. Most of the advances in solar power production come from...

What is a thermal battery? Thermal mass of any kind can by definition be called a thermal battery, as it has the ability to store heat. In the context of a house, that means dense materials like bricks, masonry and concrete. Even a jug of water sitting in a sunny window is a thermal battery of sorts as it captures and ...

In the fall of 2015, the City of Ottawa conducted a public-consultation survey to gauge interest in a change of bylaws to allow secondary dwellings (Coach Houses or Tiny Houses) to be constructed on existing residential properties when space allows for it. The result was positive, with 60% of respondents in favour. Thi...

Vancouver has been fighting the good fight in a battle against urban sprawl that arguably started in the 1960's when citizens stopped a major highway from being built through the city, which would have been similar in scale to the Gardner Expressway in Toronto. Instead of a major artery allowing cars a quick exit from ...

There is a lot you can do in home construction to take advantage of the free energy provided by the sun. That can be passive solar, which is about home orientation and window design to passively heat your home, or active solar which involves mechanical solar panel systems. Solar panels can be either thermal (which tran...

Going solar at home is more straightforward and affordable now than ever before, with areas throughout Canada experiencing a jump in residential solar power installations in the past few years. If you’re thinking about taking the leap into renewable energy in your own home but don’t feel you have enough information abo...