THE $15,000 SOLAR ARCADE
(Page 2 of 3)
TAKING THE HEAT
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Angus decided that a south-facing, directgain passive solar
system would be the simplest and least expensive way of
heating his dwellings. The combination of concrete and
reinforced masonry acts as a heat sink, and the material's
mass is balanced against the size of the collector area
(which consists of sloping fiberglass installed above the
windows) to provide optimum performance throughout much of
North America. The roof angle permits maximum exposure of
the dark-colored interior rear wall in winter and less in
spring and fall . . . since an overhang and projecting fins
protect the glazing against summer sunlight (in fact, the
summer sun's rays will strike the collector area only in
early morning and late afternoon hours).
"Through the basic geometry of the plan and the shape of
the dwelling, we've devised a house that responds to all
seasons . . . without requiring moving parts, complicated
machinery, or expensive and unusual building materials,"
Macdonald points out.
Earth sheltering, of course, plays a large role in helping
the Solar Arcade maintain a stable year-round temperature.
And, in the part of Virginia where the model home is
located, summer cooling is just as important as is winter
heat.
Happily, then, the flywheel effect of the earth's crust
works throughout the year upon the buried portions of the
walls and subgrade floors: The soil takes all summer to
warm up and all winter to cool down ... hence, subgrade
temperatures are remarkably stable throughout the seasons.
At Orange, Virginia's latitude, the ground temperature
fluctuates, on the average, only between 58° and
65°F.
Angus has had a chance to evaluate his earth-sheltering
theories, too. The house that he designed for the Bresee
family, for example (it was featured in MOTHER NO. 67), has
maintained a nearly constant 70° interior temperature
through the winter . . . without the aid of a woodstove,
backup electric heat, or even the acrylic solar greenhouse
panels that the builder originally intended to install on
the south facfade. Likewise, the house has proved to be
comfortably cool during the summer.
The Arcade is designed to incorporate a woodstove for
auxiliary warmth, but Angus recommends that homeowners who
face building code restrictions install electric baseboard
heat as a backup system ... since it's inexpensive,
satisfies the regulations, and lends itself well to
zoneheating. To facilitate the flow of warm air from room
to room, Macdonald has left openings, at ceiling level,
between the exposed beams. Furthermore, the home's
south-facing exposure all but begs for a solar domestic
water heater . . . and Angus's plans make provision for
such an installation.
