This is part of my solar electric array at home. It provides power to both a wood shop and house. This is an “off the grid” application also known as a stand alone system.

The major components of a stand alone system are-

1. Power source-  solar panels, wind generator from Southwest Wind Power

2. Power input fuse box- provides a fuse and switch for each individual solar panel and the wind generator

3. Charge controller- keeps batteries from over charging, and diverts excess energy

4. Fused shut off- Isolates and protects each energy producing element

5. Inverter- Outback brand changes stored energy in the batteries to household current, or AC 120v

6. Battery bank- Large deep cell type by Surrette-Rolls stores energy in the form of DC 12v

7. Secondary hot water- uses waste energy to heat domestic water

Most systems now use a power panel that combines the many components together at a factory.

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A solar array was designed to power a radio activated motorized community gate. Far from any power sources this system coupled with a custom gate can handle 200+ operations a day, and should not need any servicing for a minimum of 10 years. Twin solar panels for redundancy power AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) type batteries. These batteries work in low temperature condition without freezing. A charge controller with temp compensation protects the batteries from overcharging. This set up saved the homeowner’s association many thousands of dollars on bringing in power, and the monthly electrical bill.

The participles of stand alone solar electric systems are simple, but the implementation of them are not. A system needs to be designed with a “balance of power” approach where the total load draw over time is less than what power is produced. While the solar panel and inverter will last decades, the batteries can quickly be ruined from poor management. In my view, while very useful, being reliant on generator power is dubious. Both in fuel cost and the environment, a generator should be for back-up and large electrical loads only.

1. Track lighting with reflective CFL flood lights provides efficient directed lighting
2. Single, reused low-e round window provides even light from north east wall
3. 50´s office metal chair with a seat from a new chair that was going to be disposed of. Reused office file used in desk.
4. Railing made from "Kee-klamp", pine and metal rod.
5. Bamboo flooring also used for built-in desk
6. Tongue and groove pine reused from remodeling tear-out
7. Slate tile staircase is 2 tons of rock and concrete. Floor is 12 inches concrete and gravel on top or 4 inches of foam. This thermal mass is heated by south-west facing windows and wood stove. Concrete was mixed on-site and has a low proportion of cement.
8. Upper room feels much larger than it´s 100 sq ft as it is open to the great room.

What do you do when you need a 500 sq. ft. shop, but you only have a credit card? Build with used tires. Using 250 tires as a foundation and retaining wall, I built a wood shop for 1/3 the price of a conventional structure.

Made famous by the good folks in Taos, New Mexico, "earthships" have found their way all over the world. This example is a hybrid of one as some walls and the roof were built with conventional materials. See tour for a larger example. You don´t come much closer to sweat equity.

Perhaps the simplest way to make a house feel bigger is creating a outdoor room. In the form of a deck, patio, or other space, you can gain real living area without using a lot of materials, or money. This may seem like a simple solution, but opening a home more to the outdoors can greatly improve both the functionality and appeal of the building. A slab of concrete just doesn't’t do it.

These are several decks made from the Trex brand decking. A proven deck product made from both recycled wood and plastic. The manufacturer of Trex claims to be the largest recycler of plastic bags in the world.

Photos are of decks built in 2006-2007

A gray water system designed and built using only standard parts purchased at a local home center. This system is designed to handle a tub, shower, and laundry. If kept aerobic, water from these sources are often referred to as “gray water” and can be reused in gardens. Maintenance for this system is to periodically remove debris from the distribution box. There are no pumps or specialized filters. Greywater systems essentially are a great way to reuse water. It both relieves the strain on septic, sewer systems and potable water systems.

Sunflowers last year, tomatoes next?

Water from a sink or toilet is septic and is referred to as “black water”. These water sources needs to be treated before the water is reintroduced into the environment. This water should never be used for food crops.

 

 

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Why a toilet? This toilet uses only rain water from a work shop roof. The buried storage tank, at 1500 gallons, is large enough to handle storm surge and keep water for dry periods. Being gravity fed, there are no moving parts in the system except the flush valve.

The resulting “black water” goes into a conventional septic system. The system itself is composed of a 1000 gallon 2 stage digestion tank and a field of chambers to distribute the water. The distribution system is produced by the company Infiltrator, that uses a substantial proportion of recycled plastic.

The capture of rain water will have a tremendous potential for us in the future. As global warming has the potential to drastically change precipitation, being less reliant on massive water projects to feed our lawns, gardens and everything else seems more obvious.

Sadly, in Colorado the capture of rain water is still unlawful. This seems counter intuitive to our modern needs and clearly needs to be amended if we are to successfully build into the future. Society some times takes a long time to catch up to the environment we live in.

This shed was made from 85% reclaimed material. It was created from a cedar fence that, being replaced, left enough material to build a small shed. Windows and doors are also salvaged.

The owners of this house also resided the entire exterior giving us a chance to create a thermal envelope with 3/4 inch foam around the entire exterior. This provides and extra r-4 to the walls as well as greatly reducing thermal bridging. New low-e Milguard windows, blown-in recycled paper attic insulation, engineered cork flooring through out, and a converted garage to living space, brought a mediocre circa 1940s ranch in to the 21st century. Forced attic ventilation switched on during summer helps cool without AC. This is a good example of how to renew space without being heavily materials dependent.

Many reclaimed building material stores are cropping up. Rather than replacing the traditional hardware store these resources strongly complement them. A good reused sink, tile, door, etc, can greatly reduce the resources it takes to mine or harvest, produce, and ship the products they replace.

This bathroom uses over 900 4x4 inch of mixed, reused white tile. These tiles were purchased at the Habitat Home store. Since none of the tiles match the design became a lot more interesting.

This 1000 sq ft bamboo floor from Lumber Liquidators was installed in the Ft Collins Shambhala Meditation Center. It is a high quality engineered floating design that is intended not only to be beautiful, but because this is a commercial application in a rental space, the floor can be lifted when the Center moves and used again. The same is true for the recycled content carpet tile from Interface Flooring used in the rest of the space. There was little added cost to take this approach.

When building it is important to consider not just where the materials come from but where they will eventually go. Renewables need to be durable, and many materials can be reusable or recyclable.

No need for a cookie cutter- although these kitchens were designed and built on very tight budgets they were not done cheap. By creating a smart design and building what was needed, installing high quality cabinets, counters and appliances could be incorporated into the projects. The footprint in these kitchens are designed to increase storage and ergonomics, bringing the work zones within reach but not become cluttered. Sustainable building is very much dependent on good design. A smart, ergonomic footprint makes small spaces do more than larger awkward spaces. Even better you can save money for the goodies rather than spend money on unused square footage.