Archives

June 30, 2010

What Would You Change About Your Home?

Last week we ran a poll survey asking readers what they would change about their homes.  Most readers chose, what we feel is the most important room in the home, the kitchen.  Followed by the kitchen were:   outside additions, windows and bathrooms.  To supplement the poll, we visited The Mall in Columbia to ask homeowners in Maryland the same question in person.  Filming on location was a lot of fun and thank you to everyone who participated.

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June 28, 2010

Eawag: The Future in Renewable Energy

Companies are preparing for the future by creating innovation and renewable energy.  Eawag, a Switzerland water research institute, demonstrates energy efficiency to the fullest with its innovative building design.

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June 26, 2010

My House Makes Me Money

The Meier family house may be the most energy efficient home we know today.  Everything from insulation to a heat exchanger was installed to save the Meier’s around 60 percent on energy.

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June 24, 2010

Maryland Takes A Step Towards Wind Energy

If there is any silver lining in the recent Gulf oil spill, it’s that it has given alternative energy research a significant boost.  Spirits may be dampened with yesterday’s reported blocking of Obama’s proposed moratorium on oil drilling.  However, drilling for oil in the mid-Atlantic is not the only energy option available.  In regards to alternative energy, solar’s popularity for both commercial and residential use makes it the most popular alternative.  Despite this fact, the shores of Maryland are ideal conditions for two other alternative energy resources – tidal and wind.

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June 21, 2010

Lumenhaus: The Next Generation Of Homes

Is it possible to have a home that is completely energy free?  Virginia Tech has recently answered that question by implementing a zero-energy home that is completely powered by the sun.

Lumenhaus is unique in aspects of reducing energy by using bifacial photovoltaic solar-array panels.  These panels reduce energy costs to practically nothing by generating about 15-30 percent more energy than a typical solar panel.

Additionally, Lumenhaus doesn’t only look nice and save energy, it incorporates a fully-automated Eclipses System.  Powered by the sun, the house actually responds to different weather conditions; closing and opening side layers according to desired light and temperature.

The Lumenhaus is also known to have “a mind of its own”.  However, everything from turning on the dishwasher to opening a garage door can be manually controlled using an iPhone application.  The application, designed by the Computer Science Department at Virginia Tech, controls the entire home and can be used from any location as long as there is a phone signal.

The Lumenhaus’s purpose is to provide smart, responsive and comfortable living all within 800 square feet.  The key idea behind designers and architects is less but more comfortable space.  Chip Clark, Virginia Tech graduate student, believes, “it’s more about the quality of space than the quantity of it.”

With organizations and companies becoming more green-friendly, the Lumenhaus is an excellent example of how homes can be fully operational by using natural energy from the sun.  Not only is the Lumenhaus extremely energy efficient, but it represents an entirely new concept of how a house can operate.