With the rising popularity of solar powered-homes and buildings comes the fear of many that the solar energy system will cost them a lot. According to Lucy Wang of Inhabitat, solar-powered homes are no longer reserved for the rich. The 2015 Solar Decathlon of the U.S. Department of Energy held on Irvine, California between 14 college student teams who designed, built and operated houses powered by the sun, is a clear proof that solar housing will be affordable in the future. Wang gives a description of the eight favorites from this competition.
1. Grow Home by University of Buffalo
This ultra-efficient house is part greenhouse and part solarium. It runs on solar and thermal energy for almost total self-sufficiency. It also has an all-weather vegetable garden at its center.
2. Nest Home by Missouri University of Science and Technology
The house is made out of reclaimed materials. It is a net-zero house built out of three disused shipping containers and was inspired by the shape of a bird's nest. It uses several energy efficient systems, such as greywater reuse, a hydroponic garden, and a photovoltaic array.
3. Inhouse by California Polytechnic State University
The Inhouse is another net-zero shelter which lets you keep your garden intact even during drought as it drains all of its greywater into a constructed wetland system that filters and redirects the water into landscape irrigation. It is covered by a solar panel-topped structure.
4. Indigo Pine by Clemson University
This is a solar-powered home made from CNC-milled interlocking pieces which can be easily put together by hand, without any tool or nail. As plywood can be milled using any local CNC machine, Indigo Pine could be built almost anywhere where its digital blueprints are received.
5. Shelter3 by Crowder College and Drury University
This elegant, disaster- proof Shelter3 (pronounced shelter cubed) is an ultra-strong home which protects its residents from big storms. Its photovoltaic system supplies more electricity than it needs and ensures self-sufficiency even when the grid is destroyed.
6. Sure House by Stevens Institute of Technology
This solar-powered home was inspired by Hurricane Sandy and was specifically created for the coastal areas of New York and New Jersey. It uses 90% less energy than a standard home and will stay running even after the power grid has been shut down.
7. Nexus Haus by Technische Universität München (TUM) and the University of Texas at Austin (UTA)
This plus-energy, modular home was built to LEED Platinum standards. It is topped by a 7kW photovoltaic array, covered in certified green wood and even grows its own food with an "all-food residential landscape."
8. Aggie Sol by UC Davis
This solar home was specifically created for low-income agricultural farm workers on the west coast. It has a rooftop sprinkler cooling system that collects and reuses rainwater to naturally cool the home.