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Windows and Glass: What Is Passive Solar Heating? From "Blueprint for Home Building" episode DBHB-112

Figure A

In this final segment host Jeff Wilson explains how windows can help warm your home with passive solar heating.

What Is Passive Solar Heating?

Passive solar heating occurs when sunlight enters your home via the windows (figure A). It's a simple method and when properly used, can be an efficient way to lower heating costs. This form of heating can be especially effective in severe cold areas, such as Minnesota. To use your windows for passive solar heating, you'll need to consider two things:

1. The first is the orientation of your house, which means in order to take advantage of the solar gain, you've got to have the sun. In a passive solar design, you are typically orientating the building with the most amount of glass facing to the south -- where the sun will be.

   This basically means the building should be situated with the most glass facing the south exposure, but you have to consider how much sun your home will receive in the summer months as well.

2. The second factor you'll need for passive solar heating is to purchase windows that are energy efficient, but still let in a large amount of passive heat or sunlight. How much passive heat will be allowed by a window is measured by what are called SHGC Ratings.

   SHGC stands for solar heat gain co-efficient. Windows will have SHGC ratings from 0 to 1, and the higher rating, the more sunlight that window will allow to pass through it. When the rating is down to 1, none comes through. When it's at 1, 100 percent comes through.

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While purchasing the right window can be done late in the process, arranging the orientation of your house is another thing.

Constructive Advice: If passive solar heating is something you want to take advantage of, make sure to discuss this with your architect early on in the building process. The orientation of your home will be determined in planning stages. And because passive solar heating requires windows that face south, your architect will need to incorporate a passive heating design into your initial house plan.

Remember, it's easier and much less expensive to change a house plan than it is to add windows to a pre-existing wall.

In the next episode of Blueprint for Home Building your home's electrical system will be the focus.

GUESTS :

John Broniek
Buildings Programs Manager
Ibacos
Website: www.ibacos.com

John Holton
Senior Architect
Ibacos
Website: www.ibacos.com

Patrick Janes
Andersen Windows
Website: www.andersenwindows.com

Jack Tucker
Building Wisdom
Frankford, DE 19945
Toll-free: 800-844-6275
E-mail: tucker@buildingwisdom.com
Website: www.buildingwisdom.com

Larry Shapiro
Director of Marketing
Grace Company
62 Whittemore Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02140
Phone: 617-498-4888
E-mail: Lawrence.s.Shapiro@grace.com

Paul Ostrowski
National Account Manager
Simonton Windows
E-mail: paul_ostrowski@simonton.com

Joe Biss
Regional Sales Manager
Typar House Wrap
105 S. Ridge Rd.
Boiling Springs, PA 17007
Phone: 717-241-2986
E-mail: tricojoe@earthlink.net