What is a Passive Solar House? Please use this information to create your own paper model of a passive solar house. When you get older, you’ll be able to use this information when building or buying a house or renting an apartment.

What is a Passive Solar House? A house designed to use less fossil fuels without special equipment.

How does a Passive Solar House Conserve Fossil Fuels? Window Placement Building Orientation (roof arrangement) Landscaping (where trees are planted)

Where should the windows go to save energy? Windows capture solar energy. If the light shines in the window, the building will warm up (greenhouse effect). Light is transformed to heat when it shines on a dark object.

Where should windows go to capture the sun? Most windows should go on the South side of the house “catch” the sun in the winter. Some windows should go on the East and West of the house catch the sun in the morning and afternoon.

What about windows on the North side of the house? No windows (or very few) should go on the North side of the house. The sun will never shine directly into a North facing window. Windows lose a lot of heat when the sun is not shining in.

How should we orient the house on the property? When figuring out how to “orient” the house, decide which direction the roof should overhang. Roof Overhang: The roof overhang is the part of the roof that hangs out over the wall.

How should we orient the house on the property? The roof should over hang to the South and North. The roof overhang will shade the windows in the summer and let the light shine in during the winter.

Where should we plant the trees on the property? What trees should we plant?

Deciduous Trees Deciduous trees lose their leaves in the winter. They make great shade trees in the summer. They let the sun shine through in the winter.

Evergreen Trees Evergreen trees do not lose their leaves in the winter. They make great barriers against chilling winter winds (wind break). Because they produce their seeds in cones, they are also called Coniferous Trees.

http://mdc.mo.gov/conmag/1998/03/50.htm

http://mdc.mo.gov/conmag/1998/03/50.htm

Where should we plant the trees on the property? Deciduous trees should be planted on the southeast and southwest corners of the house to shade the windows in the summer. Evergreens (conifers) should be planted on the northwest corner of the house and property to protect against chilling winter winds.