» Ideal Homes has built a zero-energy house, which produces as much energy in a year as it consumes, for less than $200,000. The house incorporates solar panels, a geothermal heating system, low-e vinyl windows, and a tankless hot water system. Specs are available from the US Department of Energy. "Every time they do a demonstration site...they build this one-off amazing house that...costs a million dollars. Everybody looks at that and says, 'That's interesting. With enough money, you can do anything.' We wanted to show that you can take any house out of a builder's product line and make it a zero energy house."
rebecca's pocket
.: May 2006 --> An affordable Zero-energy home in Oklahoma
An affordable Zero-energy home in Oklahoma
[ 05.16.06 ]
I wish the McMansion-land developers in my state would get a clue from this group.
My only tiny gripe is with the sod landscaping (which requires chemicals and lots of water to keep green and weed free). If they could replace that with some native vegetation, they'd be on to something even better.