solar passive

A Perfect Cabbage

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So, the Dacha is working on its new garden, which is still not fully fenced in (I hope no deer are reading this). Meanwhile, the veggies are still growing and feeding us. The other day I harvested my first cabbage and couldn’t help but notice how perfectly perfect it was. Fresh cabbage is a delight, confirmed our friend Dounan who loves to cook more than most people I know.

We made a stir fry with some freshly picked zucchini and off we went to a potluck. It’s nice having these south facing windows with garden beds right outside. We notice that the plants right out there do very well, possibly because the house is bouncing back extra heat and sun. We did learn recently that it is best, for moisture issues, to keep 20 feet from the house dry and seeded with short grass or clover. we have been having some issues with all the humidity and rain, but aren’t ready to give up these primo growing areas up just yet. Choices, choices…more on that later. For now, here is Dounan being himself with zucchini.

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First Snow Meets Shining Orb in the Sky

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Our very first snow stuck, until midday the next day, when the shining orb in the sky worked it out that it turn back into water. The sunny day heated up the house to 70 degrees. At this time of year the direct sunlight comes more than half way in, heating up the floor, and making it unnecessary to fire up the wood stove.And, all praise the large orb in the sky! By February, it will come out like once a week, and we’ll all turn South and say things like, My God Woman, what in the? Over there! Ahh, it’s burning my eyes. Could it be, that the tales hold truth? And so on… For now though, the sun is still shining and the passive-solar, earth-bermed design of this house is winning.

 
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Earth-bermed, passive solar Common House .vs. Snowmaggedon 2010

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Before we forget how awesome the Dacha Haus Part One preformed in Winter ’10 here are a couple of photos of February.   They are also to remind this summer’s building crew that as we build  Dacha Haus Part Deux  a winter in the Southern Tier is no joke, but that we got it on lock down!

-LSF

All photos by Joe Fisher.

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The key to solar passive is full frontage windows facing the south. They are placed at such a height that the house gets direct sunlight in the winter and indirect sunlight in the summer. This technique works around the sun's busy but well-established and much preferred primordial travel schedule- that is low in the sky during winter and high as a pie in the summer. The placement and size of the windows optimizes for maximum comfort, while minimizing energy use.

Danila and I are in shock that the Common House is so warm (see below) when outside it is like 18 degrees F! The snowbank behind us is caused by snowmagedden falling off the hell roof and onto the front field. I'm just back from Mexico, and feeling like this is warm enuf but where's the coconut tree?

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