[Greenbuilding] [BULK] Re: Trying to maximize passive solar gain...

[Shawna Henderson]

Hypocausts were built by Romans and Koreans for homes without  
airtight envelopes. There is no way to clean the hollow areas. This  
could so easily spell unmitigated mold disaster in an airtight home,  
or even one that is reasonably tight.

Not only that but the spaces below become chimneys if there were ever  
a fire. Talk about hot feet!

What about if there was a flood (happens -- kitchen sink overflow,  
washing machine blow out). How would you ever dry it effectively?

FYI - We conducted some field research a few years ago, looking at  
the efficacy of duct cleaning apparatus. Guess what? The only areas  
to be cleaned in any discernible fashion were the duct surfaces where  
the vacuum nozzle actually made contact. The rest of the time (we had  
a little video camera down the duct too, v. groovy, I felt like a  
serious tekky), the stuff just stayed in the duct. And that's on  
smooth metal. Imagine rough, holey concrete...

Shawna Henderson
principal
Abri Sustainable Design & Consulting
Nova Scotia, Canada
www.abridesign.com