City Cabins in Seattle are Designed for both Passive and Active Solar Heating

There are two different systems for solar heating in Seattle.  The first one is the passive type of heating system and the second is the active type. Here is a brief explanation of both kinds of systems.

Passive solar systems

Heating your home with a passive solar system involves capturing the warmth of the sun and then keeping this heat inside the house. This system can reduce or even eliminate the need for gas, electric or oil heating, depending on the structure of the house and the insulation used. The architectural of City Cabins on Queen Anne Hill is indended to capture as much sun as possible.

Special suspended film windows with an insulated fiberglass frame are used to control heat gains and losses. In the winter you want a window that gains heat and keeps it warm indoors while in the summer you want the window to prevent the heat from entering your home. City Cabins are using suspended film windows made by Serious Materials that do both.

Passive solar heating in Seattle can also include the use of trombes. This is a wall with a glass pane in the front. The space between the wall and the glass absorbs and contains heat to keep the house warm.

Active solar systems

This is a more active form of solar heating in Seattle.  Solar heat panels are used to dispense the heat around the home. In most situations the solar panels are placed on the roof for maximum efficiency.

The solar panels collect heat by using either a liquid or gas heat capturing method or a heat capturing method using air. The two green built City Cabins homes are plumbed and wired for solar equipment. Once thought as expense the prices on solar equipment have been coming down and with available tax incentives they’ve become a nice option for home buyers.

City Cabins are now under construction and are available for pre-sale, completion will be in October-November of 2011. For more information contact Adrian Willanger 206 909-7536.