When it comes to heating costs, most of us are not lucky enough to live in a temperate area with a constant year-round climate, and instead have to contend with winter heating bills that can be exceptionally high. When evaluating alternative home heating, an option that is often overlooked is passive solar heating. You not only save money, but energy as well.
Even on those truly frigid days in the dead of winter, the sun still emits a noticeable amount of heat. The only factor that precludes the accumulated snow from melting is the long night and short daylight period. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could use the sun’s heat when it’s available without needing to significantly modify your house?
Now we have the Trombe wall. It is made of some sort of material (concrete or rock, for instance) which is utilized because of its thermal mass. This means that it holds in the heat of the warmest part of the daytime and releases it gradually throughout the following hours. It has exterior insulation by means of a sheet of glass and also has an airspace which means it avoids losing warmth during the nighttime. Over the glass there is a shade which lets the lower wintertime sunshine in but keeps the higher summertime sunshine out. That results in smaller air conditioning costs also.
Many of us are interested in pursuing more energy efficient heating alternatives such as passive solar heating. Whatever alternative you choose the cost of installation may be expensive. Whether you are seeking a custom designed home or renovating an existing structure you have options. One advantage of passive solar heating is that once installed continued use expenses are nominal.
You should also think about how the Trombe wall was invented in the 19th century, and became popular in the 1960’s. This wall has been installed in many existing homes. If you want a new, energy efficient home, you can still consider older designs because they can be green as well.
The commonly presented traditional views are viable, but we have all been searching for a long time for ways to economize. Finally nowadays, we have become more ecologically aware and, given the high prices of our usual heat sources, we have begun to think about clever answers found by our forefathers, such as passive solar heating. That allows us to preserve precious, dwindling resources and utilize them alternatively in our struggle to save our beleaguered planet.
One thing people seldom consider when it comes to alternative home heating is the use of passive solar heating. Enter the Trombe wall. It’s a wall of material used for thermal mass (concrete or stone, for example) to store the heat of the day and release it slowly through the day and night. It’s insulated on the outside by a pane of glass and airspace to prevent heat loss to outside at night. This wall has been installed in many existing homes. If you want a new, energy efficient home, you can still consider installing a green Trombe wall.
- Ryan McCall