A home without electricity, Why?
Economics
Electricity costs money, as most of us know. The average U.S. house uses about 110$ a month on electricity alone. Over the whole year, that's around 1,320$. This is only the average however, and many households are starting to cut back on thier electricity use, such as leaving the lights off, using less water, and using power strips. This means that the avergae cost varies greatly from house to house, but is generally expensive.
Environmental impact
Our electricity is about 63% fossil fuels. The upside of fossil fuels is that they are easy to access, they are relatively cheap to start using, and we have known how to use them since the ninetheenth century. The downside to them is that they are the main force of global warming and release carbon dioxide when burned for our electricity. There are other ways to generate electricity such as nucleur. The upside to nucleur is that it does not produce greenhouse gases, however, the downside is the danger of a meltdown and the dangerous waste that comes from it. Hydro-electric power is when a dam harnesses the flow of a river and generates electricity from it. This is very clean, but it disrupts the aquatic environment. Renewable energy includes solar and wind, with no carbon emmisions whatsoever. The only bringdown is that the technology is still developing, and the start-up cost is between 10k and 20k dollars.
A passive solar home
A passive solar home is desinged to be comfortable in various temputures without the use of electricity. This sounds nearly impossible, but with proper shape, matirials, and alingment, it is possible to build.
We are in the northern hemisphere, so the windows and door should face south towards the sun. Rafters over the porch can be drawn back or pulled down to let in winter sunlight, and keep out summer sunlight. Seen on the left, it is a good idea to have the floor matirial to attract thermal energy and distribute it throughout the interior. Whether you want the house to face east or west depends on when you will normally be in the house. Because most students at San Marin are around during noon or afternoon, it would serve best to be facing southwest at the afternoon sun with rafters to pull down during the summer.
We are in the northern hemisphere, so the windows and door should face south towards the sun. Rafters over the porch can be drawn back or pulled down to let in winter sunlight, and keep out summer sunlight. Seen on the left, it is a good idea to have the floor matirial to attract thermal energy and distribute it throughout the interior. Whether you want the house to face east or west depends on when you will normally be in the house. Because most students at San Marin are around during noon or afternoon, it would serve best to be facing southwest at the afternoon sun with rafters to pull down during the summer.