[Strawbale] Low-Cost Solar Assisted Heat Pump System littlehouses cross post

[Michele O'Malley]

I think I am on the right track. The house is planned to be strawbale. South facing windows, concrete floor, Trembley wall, woodstove with cob or stone surround for thermal storage short term, maybe a greenhouse attached to the main living space. I can't do wind due to HMA covenants. The Annualized  Ground solar system that Don Stephens talks about might heat the basement. I hope to only need minimal back-up (and I think the building code may require back-up). I will check out the systems you mentioned.  Thanks for the input. 

Michele O



> Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2007 13:34:44 -0800
> From: qi4u at yahoo.com
> Subject: Re: [Strawbale] Low-Cost Solar Assisted Heat Pump System littlehouses cross post
> To: michomd at hotmail.com
> CC: strawbale at listserv.repp.org
> 
> > What is the consensous
> > with eco minded people about using electricity as
> > back-up heat vs natural gas/propane.  Even now in my
> > W. Pa home I tend to use an electric space heater
> > (that looks like a woodstove) to take the chill off
> > the main living space and not have the natural gas
> > kick on. Any opinions on which is best both
> > economically and environmentally?
> 
> Perhaps a solar assisted heat pump:
> 
> This portable AC Amcor Nanomax A12000E is supposed to
> be efficient and is one that Laren wrote about. I
> think it is like those little roll a round elec
> radiators, but would need to be used in conjunction
> with a glassed in porch with plastic water bottles as
> thermal storage.
> 
> > I guess it is unrealistic to expect any solar
> > design, passive or active to keep a house
> > comfortable in that climate during the winter.
> 
> A super insulated house (including roof, floor,
> penetrations) doesn't need a lot of energy input for
> heating. The frigerator and water heater give off some
> heat.
> 
> It might be a good idea to have a 2 heating system.
> Perhaps a wood pellet stove, a woodgas stove or cast
> iron jodel wood stove as back up, or an oil burner,
> which likely can run on waste veg oil from the local
> deep fry restaurant, A biodiesel Lister electrical
> generator has a radiator as part of the cooling
> system. The radiator could be in the living space
> giving off "waste" heat.
> 
> It sounds like you are giving up. Were is the fighting
> Irish spirit? An electric heater could be a third
> system, or a PV and batteries or air compressor system
> for energy storage or a wind generator, and the
> electric heater could be a primary system.
> 
> 
> 
>       ____________________________________________________________________________________
> Be a better pen pal. 
> Text or chat with friends inside Yahoo! Mail. See how.  http://overview.mail.yahoo.com/

_________________________________________________________________
Put your friends on the big screen with Windows Vista® + Windows Live™.
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/shop/specialoffers.mspx?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_CPC_MediaCtr_bigscreen_102007