Observations (Part 02)

December 17th, 2009 by Conrad in Blogs - Mill Creek Net Zero Home, Energy, Energy Conservation, Green Building + Design, Green Building Blogs, Green Homes, Renewable Energy, Solar

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Mill Creek NetZero Home, December 15, 2009, 14:00.

As we approach the winter solstice and the three-month anniversary of our moving in, we continue to learn about our new house. These observations are mostly qualitative, because we don’t have the rest of our solar modules up, and we haven’t set up monitoring equipment yet. We are tentatively planning to remove the door of our wood stove on July 1st, 2010  and then monitor the house’s energy use for a year. Read the rest of this entry »

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MCNZ – Progress (part 7)

October 12th, 2009 by Conrad in Blogs - Mill Creek Net Zero Home, Green Building + Design, Green Building Blogs, Green Homes, Products + Materials, Reclaimed + Recycled Materials, Renewable Energy, Solar

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The Mill Creek NetZero Home is substantially completed.

The stucco is finished on the outside. We went with a cement-based stucco because of its looks and durability.

Peter Amerongen built a brick wall behind the wood burner. We used the bricks from the foundation of the house that used to be standing on the property. This wall adds more thermal mass (to capture both solar and wood heat) to the house, as well as a bit of history. Read the rest of this entry »

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Solar Hot Water (Part 2)

May 12th, 2009 by Conrad in Blogs - Mill Creek Net Zero Home, Energy, Green Building Blogs, Insulation, Renewable Energy, Solar, Water

The lessons that I learned from the computer model of our solar hot water system are as follows:

  • insulate the pipes leading from the basement to the collectors to at least R6, preferably R10
  • insulate the storage tank to R50
  • install a 1000 liter storage tank
  • install 3 collectors
  • there is extra heat – install a system to harvest it

Read the rest of this entry »

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Attention New Home Buyers: Now it’s Easy to be Green

April 6th, 2009 by andrea in Energy Conservation, Green Homes, Solar

Green living just got easier for people who are looking for an affordable, environmentally friendly and energy efficient home.

Ecological Homes recently launched its new ready-to-assemble green home packages at the Edmonton Home and Garden Show and the Go Green Eco Expo.  The Edmonton-based company wants to put green living within reach of the average home buyer.

According to Ecological’s co-owner Les Hagen, a green home shouldn’t put consumers in the red.  “Ecological Homes wants to place quality green homes within reach of the average home buyer.  This innovative home package will help to meet the increasing consumer demand for affordable green housing.”

The green home package includes various solar energy design features, Read the rest of this entry »

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MCNZH – Progress (part 5)

February 12th, 2009 by Conrad in Blogs - Mill Creek Net Zero Home, Energy, Energy Conservation, Green Building Blogs, Green Homes, Insulation, Renewable Energy, Solar

Photovoltaic modules about to be installed on the MCNZH roof

Things are progressing nicely on the Mill Creek NetZero Home. The exterior is almost complete, not including the stucco that will be applied in the spring. Read the rest of this entry »

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