INC NEWS - seriously affordable housing

[RW Pickle]

We're all the time looking for ways to help make housing affordable. This
came via a newsletter and tells about the first 0 energy house in the
State. I thought some might find it interesting. Owning a home is one
thing, keeping up with the escalating utility bills is another.
RWP
27 Beverly

New homeowner moves into North Carolina’s first Zero Energy Home

North Carolina’s first Zero Energy Home (ZEH), constructed by Catawba
Valley Habitat for Humanity with the help of the Appalachian State
University Energy Center and N.C. State Energy Office, recently become
occupied. New homeowner Frances Thompson celebrated on October 6 with all
the people who helped make this milestone in affordable housing possible.

Completed in the Fall of 2005, the home has served as both a research
facility and as the local office for Habitat for Humanity. Appalachian
students regularly conduct research on the home to monitor its energy
usage, and its system’s performance.

The home combines state-of-the-art, energy-efficient construction and
appliances with commercially available renewable energy systems. With its
reduced energy needs and solar electricity generation, a ZEH can return as
much energy as it takes from the utility grid on an annual basis. Like
many homeowners, Thompson will immediately see the difference a ZEH can
make to her power bills. She currently pays around $200 a month for
electricity.

“The ZEH in Hickory could run for over half a year on that amount,” says
Jeff Tiller, coordinator of Building Sciences at Appalachian’s Department
of Technology and technical director of the Energy Center. Tiller has been
monitoring the energy usage and production of the ZEH as part of the
university’s ongoing research into high performance homes. The home is
currently selling power produced by its solar panels back to the North
Carolina GreenPower program, a statewide incentive program that pays a
premium for energy produced from renewable sources.

The home boasts some impressive features, including a photovoltaic array
that produces electricity directly from the sun’s energy, a solar water
heating system, and a fresh air ventilation system. This home includes
energy efficient construction practices such as advanced framing and spray
foam insulation in the walls. The ZEH utilizes passive solar design to
take advantage of the sun’s warmth in the winter as well as shade from
trees and other design features in the summer.

Another feature of the home is a geothermal heat pump which exchanges the
air temperature with the constant-temperature air from underground in
order to heat and cool the home. In addition to the state-of-the-art
features, the home also has recycled tile, high performance windows and
the most energy-efficient appliances available. All of these energy
efficiency measures and renewable energy technologies add up to a house
that can produce more energy than it uses.

The NC State Energy Office funded the project through the Appalachian
State University Energy Center. This special project shows the potential
for a variety of technologies in the affordable housing industry in North
Carolina.