Yes, Virginia, There is Free lunch: It's Called the Solar Greenhouse!

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Bill and I, in fact, both believe that most of the fuss and bother over solar collectors is a waste of money and time. Government and industry are spending millions of dollars in an effort to come up with the perfect solar panel, yet it seems to us that-in terms of the cost/benefit ratio-the Yanda greenhouse meets all the requirements for such a device . . . and then some. After all, you can't raise vegetables in a flat-plate collector!

"Fine," you say, "but what happens in summer, when the last thing I want in the house is extra heat?" No problem! From late spring through early autumn the greenhouse is closed off from the main living quarters, and ventilation is accomplished by auxiliary vents which release unwanted wannth to the outside air. Shading is also an important part of temperature control, but need be nothing more complicated than an awning or bamboo curtain which is adjusted each day to keep out excess solar radiation. (Actually, I've never resorted to shading my ecosystem growhole in the summer . . . mainly because I haven't been able to afford an awning that big. The plants do sometimes wilt during the hottest part of the day, but always recover by evening and certainly continue to grow and thrive.)

In most of the greenhouses constructed for Bill's project, shading is an integral part of the structure. The photo of the growing area built by Rick and Lisa Fisher of El Valle, New Mexico shows a type of roof which allows all the winter solar radiation to enter, yet blocks part of the intense summer sun (an arrangement which does away with the need for an exhaust fan). Fig. 2 illustrates the principle behind this design.

Readers of my "ecosystem" series are perhaps wondering how such a greenhouse would adapt to the integrated systems (hydroponics, aquaculture, wind power, etc.) with which I've been working for over two years. Well, I see no reason why such projects shouldn't work perfectly in a Yanda greenhouse. In fact, Bill's design should be even more efficient than the one I'm using now, since-in addition to being cheaper and easier to build-it adds the dimension of supplementary heat to the home. I fully intend to combine most of the ecosystem concepts with my new solar greenhouse, and expect that the results will equal or surpass those of the growhole I already have in operation.

Finally, a word on the use of Bill's design outside this geographical area: Yanda takes pains to stress that his design was intended for the climate of northern New Mexico . . . and, in fact, he often refers to the unit as "the Rocky Mountain attached greenhouse". The basic idea, however, is simple enough to be adapted to a wide range of conditions. Naturally, certain modifications might be required to operate the device successfully in Minnesota or Hawaii, but anyone with gumption enough to build one of these easily erected structures should be able to modify it to his own needs and surroundings. One thing is for sure: With inflation and the energy crisis getting worse by the day, installations like Bill's could provide us all with some real security for the hard times ahead.

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