Passive heat gain / Guides

...heat out of the solarium. In short, heat accumulated during the day will be lost at night, and the overall energy balance will often amount to a net heat loss rather than the commonly advertised net heat gain. Durability is also a serious concern, as warm, humid air condenses on the cold interior surfaces and leaves ...

...passive heat gain and reduce energy demand during operation. Choosing higher quality windows on all sides of your home will mean reduced heat loss over a poorer quality window, and with the right windows on the south side you can gain more heat in the daytime than they will lose at night. For how to choose the best win...

...heater that offers you only a 1 to 1 ratio. The Voltex water heater from AO Smith is an air-to-water heat pump which extracts heat from the air to generate hot water, so in the winter that 3 to 1 heating ratio of the first heat pump is transferred to the water heater. And the more 'free' heat you have in winter (sola...

...heat, and if you plan your shading properly with overhangs and window layout, you can help keep it naturally cool in the summer. If you then add high performance triple glazed Passive House certified windows , then they will be optimized to gain and retain the sun's heat. In Optimized Passive Solar House Design, pr...

...passive solar heat gain and the heat normally generated though human occupancy. This will be the first winter for the Kenogami House, and its performance will be closely monitored. Should it be necessary to take measures to avoid overheating during mild periods, Alain is considering an air-to-water heat pump to extra...

...heat comes in and how much goes out. Low E coatings on windows will reduce heat loss by reflecting infrared heat back into your home in winter while also reflecting heat back out in summer. On the down side, they can also reduce heat gain when you want it, during the heating season. So a little thought should go into c...

...passively-heated home. See post 1 of the off-grid homes blog here . or post 3 in the off-grid homes blog here . This off-grid home design began with the basic principles of passive heating and cooling - invest in really good windows, face as many of them south as you can to gain heat, and install heavy duty insulatio...

...heaters is that you only get heat when the sun is shining. Short winter days and unpredictable cloud coverage make it difficult to rely on solar air heaters as a primary heat source because you will gain all your heat during sunny hours but then have to go an easy 16 hours at times with no heat input. And shorter day...

...Passive House Institute) and PHIUS (Passive House Institute US) and for Canada there is Passive House Canada and the Canadian Passive House Institute . This guide aims to describe the origins of Passive House certification , which can be accredited to a very futuristic Passive Solar heating design home built in the 197...

...passive heat gains, where on a 24 hour cycle they end up providing a net heat gain in winter. Sun shades were designed into the south elevation, but enough deciduous trees were preserved in close proximity to the south wall that they may not be necessary. The health of the trees will be considered in the spring, and ...

...passive heating and cooling. It is exposed to the sun in winter and shaded in the summer. Image via nationalparks.org In reviving the ancient building technique of passive heating and cooling, the Saskatchewan Conservation House showed us what was possible in terms of solar heat collection and retention with mod...