Zero Energy HomeRob, Alex, Karen, Iman

Project OverviewProject Goals:-Creating a Zero Energy Home that is still our dream home where we would all desire to live.-Designing in a way that is energy efficient and aesthetically pleasing

Important Features:-2 story arched windows on South wall-Spiral staircase-2 story sunroom with mass floor-Solar water heater-Open kitchen -TV / media room -Best for family of 4-6 people

House Size 2852 sq. ft.

Number of floors 2

Number of bedrooms 4

Heating System High Efficiency heat pump

Size of PV system 7.3

R-value for ceiling 60

Wall Construction Double 2x4 with 10” foam

Research Summary

Typical Characteristics of ZEH based on team research:

-All homes researched under 2000 sq. ft.

-Ventilation air heat recovery and solar water heater systems

-Most common heating system – heat pumps

-Photovoltaic systems range from 4.2-8.2 kW in size

Research Summary- 1152 sq. ft.- 1949 kWh used and 4892 kWh

produced annually -light skirt glows red when using energy from grid and green when producing more than it uses

2000 sq.ft. home with only a 4.2 PV system

- ZEH can be simple, unique, unusual or anywhere in between

Envelope- 473 sq. ft. of windows main cause

of air leakage

- Ceiling R value of 60

- Double 2x4 wall construction with 10” insulation

- Double low e windows-chose cheaper model because triple low e let out less heat but also let in less passive solar heat.

-about the same efficiency

- Air tight with heat recovery-utilizing this option allowed us to decrease size of PV system

AppliancesSony 46” LCD Television -213 kWh/year-$989.99 -Yearly opp costs $21.30-Not most energy efficient-Best choice economically

Amana 24.9 Cu. Ft. French Door Refrigerator

-683 kWh/year-$1708.20-Yearly opp costs $73-Not Energy Star -Most cost efficient

AppliancesGE 24 In. Built-In Dishwasher-324 kWh/year-$299.99-Yearly opp costs $28-Energy Star -Most efficient for economic value

Whirlpool Lunar Silver Duet HE 4.4 cu

- 183 kWh/year-$980.99-Yearly opp costs $25-Energy Star -More expensive – ten years to pay back cost difference

HVAC Electric High Efficiency Heat

Pump

-More than 100% efficient

-Only small system necessary due to passive solar

-Delivers both heating and cooling

-Utilizing high efficiency dropped pv system size by .5 kW

-Saved $86 in utilities

Duct Location: Inside thermal envelope

Solar Technologies

- 7.3 kW PV System

- 30 panels needed

- SolarWorld Sunmodule+

- 245 watt panels

- $661.81 per panel

- Cheap model with correct dimensions to support our energy needs

Solar Water Heater Utilized

Passive Solar- 3’ Overhang shades

2nd story windows on South walls in summer

- 383 sqft of windows on South wall

- 2 story bay windows

- Mass floor

- Smaller windows for bedrooms

- Open spaces for air circulation

Behavior- Frequent use of clothes line (save

energy on dryer use)

- Water Conservation- air drying dishes- short showers- low water settings on clothes washer

- Very few extra appliances

- Regulating home temperatures Summer above 76°Winter 68-70°

- Recycling Practices

- Compost pile

Key DecisionsRealized necessity to use heat recovery based on number of air changes/ hour

- Very few extra appliances to utilize less energy- Change practices (air drying) to control energy use

SketchUp Model

North Wall – Front of House

2nd Floor

1st Floor

Shadow in November at noon

Shadow in June at noon

Physical Model

2nd Floor

Bedroom

Bath

BedroomMasterBedroom

Bath

Closet

Spiral Staircase

1st Floor

TV room

Bath

Bedroom SunroomKitchen

Spiral Staircase

SummaryLessons Learned

-Teamwork – task distribution

-Solving design complications with the size and dimensions of our home

-Understanding our environmental impact (Footprint calculator)

-Interrelation of classroom lessons and their applicability to real design

Important Aspects:-2 story arched windows for passive solar

-383 sqft windows on mass wall

-Open spaces on 1st floor for air circulation and large windows

-Tight with heat recovery-High efficiency heat pump-Solar Water Heater

-7.3 kW PV System

-Combination of both ordinary and energy efficient appliances

Greatest Challenges:

-Cutting down on size while maintaining all desired features

-Understanding the real life size of our 2852 sqft. home

-Choosing between energy efficiency and cost efficiency

Favorite Features:

-Alexandra loves the 2 story arched windows and the way the light shines in on our open sunroom.-Karen likes the openness of the house.-Rob likes the spiral staircase and how it can be viewed through the large back windows-Iman loves the aesthetic look of the house from the back (South wall view).

ReflectionAfter completing our ZEH project, we can now understand… - how parts of a system interrelate especially those dealing with

energy - how to utilize SketchUp and SolidWorks to bring our ideas to life- that solar energy can be used in combination with energy from the grid but greatly contributes to reducing nonrenewable energy resources

Zero Energy Homes…- Do not have to be ugly or bizarre to be efficient and effective- Can still have the qualities of you dream home while lessening your ecological footprint- Are still connected to the grid but create as much

energy as they use- Work best when combined with sustainable

practices and behavior

ReflectionWorking as a team could be improved by…

- more efficient and assertive task delegation - having better and more open communication- a more equal distribution of individuals work loads

On the next project…- we will start earlier and spread the work out over a longer period of time- we will improve at delegating tasks and making

sure everyone participates fully- our team will try to better visualize the end

product from the beginning of our design process

We remember most about using SketchUp…- that layers are very helpful in the design process- that after becoming more comfortable with the software we created a more intricate model- that precision from the earliest stages is important because imperfections cannot be easily fixed and can slow results later