How to Get the Best Out of Passive Solar Energy

While most people think solar energy involves putting large solar panels onto their roofs, you can actually get solar energy just by positioning your house correctly in order to get passive solar energy. Passive solar energy is just like it sounds - energy that’s naturally obtained from the sunlight, without the use of any technology. This type of energy has been gained from the sun since the Aztecs aligned their buildings in the most optimal way to receive energy. And you can still utilize these strategies today. Even if you already have solar installed on your home, the position of your home can help increase the power you’re generating.

The Perfect Home

Obviously, if you already own your home, the way it’s facing is set in stone. However, if you are currently looking for a home and don’t own one yet, you can try to find a house facing the perfect direction. You can also consider remodeling the home you currently live in. Things, like making the size of your windows larger or removing a wall all together to allow more sunlight in, are great ways of changing the home you already own around in order to get the most sunlight possible.

How Do I Know Which Direction is Optimal?

While this all sounds great, you probably still have a lot of questions about how exactly to optimize your home to get the most out of the sun’s energy. Unfortunately, you will have a lot of things to think about when you start your journey into passive energy. Obviously, you probably know that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, but there are a lot more factors than just that when it comes to going towards passive solar energy. One of these factors is the tilt of the Earth, which actually causes the sun to rise and set more towards the south in the winter and more towards the north in the summer. With that in mind, here are the factors you need to consider:

• If your home is shaped like a rectangle, you should have its long sides facing north and south.
• If any side of your house needs large windows and glass doors, it’s the south side. Make sure no trees or overhangs are blocking it, either. This will allow it more exposure to the outside world, and thus, in the winter, the sun will be able to heat your home without you ever touching the heater’s dial. You can also get window film for your windows that will stop glare and block out UV rays.
• The north side, on the other hand, will benefit from more shade, trees, overhangs, and small windows, as it will allow less heat to escape.
• During the summer, you’ll, of course, want your home to stay cool, so you should position your driveways - which contain hot gravel and asphalt - towards the south or east side of your home.
• Using masonry floors and walls will allow your home to absorb the heat, plus store it!

How Passive Solar Benefits You

Many people know that their utility bills rise whenever they need to use the A/C or the heater. However, they don’t realize that just by using passive solar, they can keep their homes warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer and won’t need to use these systems hopefully at all. This means cheaper cost, benefiting the environment, and being able to sell your home for more money in the future.

Want to learn more about how to utilize solar? Check out the HahaSmart blog!

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