Masonry efficient on Kimberly Knoll: this efficient solar house is just what the doctor ordered."I've always wanted a house that combined the needs and living patterns of a modern family with the efficiencies of new building materials Building materials used in the construction industry to create . These categories of materials and products are used by and construction project managers to specify the materials and methods used for . ," says Dr. Bill Chapman, a pathologist at the VA Hospital in Asheville, NC. "Knowing the limits of energy production, I wanted a structure that would use either solar or geothermal sources of energy in a radiant floor heating system. This building site provided excellent potential for solar heat, but little room for a geothermal field." His new house on Kimberly Knoll Road in Asheville, NC fits the bill. Dr. Chapman highly recommends the in-floor heat throughout the house for its exceptional comfort, and the solar water heating Water heating is a thermodynamic process using an energy source to heat water above its initial temperature. Typical domestic uses of hot water are for cooking, cleaning, bathing, and space heating. In industry both hot water and water heated to steam have many uses. system has met all of his expectations. If he had it to do over again, however, he would choose a different option than the floating wood floor system. The architect and owner had debated remodeling remodeling /re·mod·el·ing/ (re-mod´el-ing) reorganization or renovation of an old structure. bone remodeling the original house on the site, which needed some work. It was moldy moldy animal feed overgrown with fungus; the feed may be harvested and stored or be still in the ground. moldy corn disease see leukoencephalomalacia, fusariummoniliforme. and uninsulated and built on an unheated slab on grade. They finally settled on building a new house, but they reused some of the original structure's materials like structural steel beams. They're happy with their decision, mainly because the new house has better solar orientation and driveway access. The orientation follows the movement of the sun with passive solar
Passive solar technologies convert sunlight into usable heat, cause air-movement for ventilation or cooling, or store heat for future use, without exposure and solar panels on the roof. The driveway access, which was very steep and shady before, is now from a cul-de-sac providing a more convenient entry to the property. Dodson is an enthusiastic proponent of the "insulated masonry envelope," a highly energy, efficient building method: "Our experience has shown us that a solar house's performance Is maximized by the 'masonry envelope' and slab in-floor heat because of the extra energy efficiency provided by the thermal mass Thermal mass, in the most general sense, is any mass that absorbs and holds heat. In the architectural sense, it is any mass that absorbs and stores heat during sunny periods when the heat is not desirable in the living space of a building, and then releases the heat during ." For this house, she used the Durisol[R] exterior wall system. Durisol[R] is a wall form made out of mineralized min·er·al·ize v. min·er·al·ized, min·er·al·iz·ing, min·er·al·iz·es v.tr. 1. To convert to a mineral substance; petrify. 2. To transform a metal into a mineral by oxidation. 3. woodchips and cement with mineral wool mineral wool n. An inorganic fibrous substance that is produced by steam blasting and cooling molten glass or a similar substance and is used as an insulator and a filtering material. Also called rock wool. Noun 1. insulation inside the wall form. After the forms are stacked, and horizontal and vertical steel bars are placed, the cavities are filled with concrete. The walls are ten- to twelve inches thick and provide good insulation, thermal mass, great sound-proofing and an eight-hour fire rating. This masonry wall system is non-toxic and uses recycled materials. Chapman likes the masonry system for reasons other than just efficiency: "I sleep very well in my sound-proof house." During this project, Dodson modified the house design several times in order to meet the owner's changing personal needs. "What brings a project alive is blending the building site's distinct characteristics with the needs and expectations of the occupants," says Dodson. "Orientation to maximize the views and light conditions in relation to the function of space is an important consideration in addition to the technology of the house. As the owner's needs and circumstances change, so too will the house design throughout the design stage." Top Green Points Efficiency masonry wall system offers higher insulation value and thermal mass; solar hot water Solar hot water refers to water heated by solar energy. Solar heating systems are generally composed of solar thermal collectors, a fluid system to move the heat from the collector to its point of usage, and a reservoir or tank for heat storage and subsequent use. heat and domestic hot water Low Toxicity wall system is non-toxic; natural stucco outside; gypsum gypsum (jĭp`səm), mineral composed of calcium sulfate (calcium, sulfur, and oxygen) with two molecules of water, CaSO4·2H2O. It is the most common sulfate mineral, occurring in many places in a variety of forms. wallboard with low toxicity paint Environmental wall system made with sustainable, recycled components; reuse of original structure's materials: native plant landscaping SPECIFICATIONS Location Kimberly Knoll Road in Asheville, NC Designer Alice Dodson, Architect Builder Scott Pillar Size 3,400 square feet plus two-car garage Price tag just under $200/square foot Completed 2006 Construction type Durisol[R] exterior wall system |
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