A new side-by-side condominium duplex in the downtown Riverdale
neighborhood of Edmonton, Alberta boasts one of the first residential
building-integrated solar heating systems in Canada. The Riverdale Net-Zero
Project was designed as part of the CMHC EQuilibrium demonstration home program.
Its highly efficient solar system integrates the collectors directly into the
building membrane, just like a window or a skylight, offering more flexibility
in home design than more conventional solar panels.
“Building integrated solar heating is the newest and most
advanced solar heating technology available in Canada,” says Joe Thwaites,
president of Taylor Munro Energy Systems of Vancouver, which is responsible for
the building’s mechanical and solar thermal systems.
The solar technologies (including direct-gain south-facing
windows), combined with an ultra-low energy consumption building envelope
(including high thermal mass 16-inch-thick walls), play a major role in the
home’s capacity for meeting Net-Zero requirements, meaning the home will, on an
annual basis, produce as much energy as it consumes. That is not an easy
technical and economic challenge in Edmonton’s cold northern climate, but the
developers claim that the building can be heated by four four-slice toasters
when the outside temperature is -32 degrees C (-26 F).
Developer Peter Amerongen of Edmonton’s Habitat Studio &
Workshop Ltd. says that their approach to designing the home has been very
conservative. “In spite of a temptation to consider spending almost whatever it
took to achieve Net-Zero, we have been very frugal and practical with resources.
A good example is our wall system, which has a very low incremental cost, very
little embodied energy and low environmental impact. It uses only regionally
produced lumber and recycled newspaper and has cut the wall component of heat
loss by approximately 70 percent compared to a standard 2x6 wall.”
The insulation value of the walls is R-56 (typical new
energy-efficient house is R-30); the ceiling is R100...
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