Super savings and environmental benefits convinced this homeowner to
choose solar heating concepts for his custom-designed home.
Windows play
a very important role in a passive solar house, Kosmer notes. To facilitate
maximum solar gain, the Kosmer solar house had to be oriented so its long side,
the side with most of the home’s windows, faced due south. South-facing windows
are net gainers, absorbing more energy during the day due to their direct
exposure to the sun than they will release at night.
The
south windows also act as a switch to turn on and off maximum solar gain,
Kosmer says. In the winter, the sun is low and shines directly through the
glass, providing maximum solar gain. In the spring, the sun’s height increases
and reaches a high enough angle on the glass that much of the sun’s energy is
refracted off the glass back outside, limiting solar gain. In the fall, the
sun’s angle falls again, turning on maximum solar gain by directly passing
through the glass again.