Tips for Designing a Net Zero Energy Home

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In , we wrote about the Iowa Nest, a net-zero energy single-family home in rural Iowa. The project, designed by Carl Sterner of Sterner Design, now with Sol Design + Consulting, combined a streamlined form with passive and active to achieve net zero energy status and an extraordinary annual utility bill of just $! Tips for Designing a Net-Zero Energy Home In , we wrote about the Iowa Nest, a net-zero energy single-family home in rural Iowa. The project, designed by Carl Sterner of Sterner Design, now with Sol Design + Consulting, combined a streamlined form with passive and active to achieve net zero energy status and an extraordinary annual utility bill of just $! Where most designers simply dream, Sterner and his clients have rigorously tracked and compared the performance of their as-built project to their proposals. We'll recap some high-level design moves and share five learnings from your post-occupancy evaluation.

Project statistics Project type: single-family residential, net zero energy goal Location: Iowa, USA Type of buildings: single-family home Surface/Occupancy: two floors, square meters of living space (plus unfurnished warehouse and garage) Project phase and completion date: completed in Initial performance: IECC Performance goal: net zero energy, energy efficient, good natural lighting Indonesia Phone Number List The house, after construction The house, after construction. Image courtesy of Sterner Design. The design process The company tested a few different designs to achieve its goals of net zero energy and natural lighting in a home. Six shapes were modeled in SketchUp and analyzed in Sefaira with the aim of maintaining at least lux of natural lighting for % of the year in the main living areas. modeled in SketchUp and analyzed in Sefaira Daylight Analysis plugin Building shape studies modeled in SketchUp and analyzed in the Sefaira daylight analysis plugin. Image courtesy of Sterner.



Design. In the final design, a narrow landing area, a compact shape, taller windows and an interior “light well” were incorporated. Once the ideal conceptual design was found, the challenge of maintaining a constant temperature in a mixed climate with very cold winters and hot, humid summers was addressed. Eleven design strategies were analyzed using Sefaira, leading to the decision to specify an Insulated Concrete Formwork (ICF) element and a combination of small fixed overhangs and operable panels over the south-facing windows. . Analysis of natural light with SketchUp and Sefaira Analysis of natural light with SketchUp and Sefaira. Image courtesy of Sterner Design. All of the above design decisions, plus passive strategies (natural ventilation, optimized building fabric, shading devices) and efficient mechanical systems, resulted in a projected % reduction in energy use from code reference. The south-facing, roof-mounted photovoltaic solar panels were designed to meet the family's energy demand and bring the project to net zero energy and passive house status. Comparison of energy use showing a conventional home design versus the Iowa Nest design.