Sharing the Ascension Experience
Dee Williams decided to downsize from a 1,500 square foot home to a 84 square foot home after a trip to Guatemala. She built her current home, “The Little House,” herself for about $10,000. With a propane tank for heat and electricity coming from solar panels, Williams cost of living runs extremely low. Consider the … Read more
Dan Louche built this tiny retirement house for his mother who was in need of a home. Consider the Source
The house itself has been designed to be airtight and well insulated to cut energy costs and produce net zero carbon emissions. It has also been designed with its eventual sustainable deconstruction in mind. An ‘off-site modular construction method’ will be used to build the house, which will see parts being built offsite and then … Read more
Over winter break, Cornell students began building an affordable and environmentally sustainable model house in Nicaragua. The students, who are part of Cornell University Sustainable Design — an organization that promotes sustainability through design — traveled to Nagarote, Nicaragua to build the house. The house will serve not only as a home for a family, … Read more
The Optical Cavity Furnace is a relatively new type of furnace that uses light and optics rather than other sources to create silicon-based photovoltaic (PV) cells. The new process uses only half the amount of energy to make conventional PVs. The recent innovation uses a series of lamps in a reflective chamber to create temperature … Read more
The lamps of yesteryear, incandescents, produce light when electricity heats a thin filament. This causes it to glow. The quality of light is pleasing to many. But the lamps only last about 1,500 hours at best. They’re also inefficient. Roughly 90 percent of the energy is emitted as heat rather than light. Full, partial, or … Read more
One of the green concept homes showcased at the Department of Energy’s 2011 Solar Decathlon now has a permanent address in Washington, DC. The design is based on several net-zero energy systems that reach peak efficiency when they are joined together. A rainwater harvesting system captures water from the roof and adjacent land, minimizing the … Read more
Wouter Kalis and Corinne de Korver are two Dutch designers who have long been aware of the overall importance of sustainable accommodations throughout the world. Based in Amsterdam, the duo are dedicated to socially-conscious designs that incorporate simple and often recyclable elements, such as their most recent piece, “Social Unit.” Devised as a solution for … Read more
A Michigan man moves massive blocks in his backyard using simple contraptions. Visit W. T. Wallington’s website at: http://www.theforgottentechnology.com/
Deciding to live in a tiny house involves making some big lifestyle choices. You’ll need to be happy with minimal belongings — hoarders need not apply. But cozy quarters also offer huge advantages. Tiny houses are far more affordable than standard-size houses. Most owners of tiny homes live mortgage-free. The lower building costs allow many … Read more