"Home of the Future" Is Sacramento's First LEED Platinum Home
by Jaymi Heimbuch, Central Coast, California on 10. 2.08
Photo via SMUD
The "Home of the Future" is the goal of BP Solar and OCR Solar & Roofing. They’ve teamed up to create a home that is the most state-of-the-art in energy efficiency.
Their design and construction hopes to encapsulate everything a homeowner could want in terms of energy production, storage and consumption. And they've put together quite the home to show off the potential of future dwellings.
The home will be built in Sacramento, California, and will be the first LEED Platinum home in the area (but not in the nation). The home will feature a very cool solar system, using BP’s low profile solar modules to avoid that pesky NIMBY effect so many people still feel.
With the solar system’s inclusion of a hybrid grid interaction ability and a back-up battery system, the creators expect that a homeowner can expect as much as 83% savings on monthly electric and gas bills. That is some big chunk of money. Other elements of the home will also help out with saving money on energy costs:
In addition to solar energy, SMUD's "Home of the Future" will feature a wide-range of energy- efficiency features. These will include advanced framing and insulation, specially coated dual pane windows that will reduce radiant heat gain and loss, solar-assisted hot water and space heating, energy-efficient lighting and appliances. R.J. Walter Homes has also incorporated an advanced home automation system which allows the homeowner to monitor and control lighting, heating, air conditioning and irrigation systems.
The question on everyone’s mind in addition to savings is cost, of course.
"As part of our Department of Energy Solar America Initiative (SAI) grant, BP Solar has been working closely with OCR and other partners to make solar energy more affordable to homeowners across the US," said Paul Garvison, director of business development for BP Solar.
With the rising cost of gas and lowering cost of solar, the expense of installation could be ever more quickly offset by savings. Of course, the house under discussion is a LEED Platinum home, so we can figure it is costing a pretty penny.
Catch videos of the construction of the Home of the Future here.
More on LEED Homes:
First LEED-H house certified in Western US
5IVE: Diary of a LEED Platinum Home
LEED For Houses: Prada Label or Prickly Hair Shirt?
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"The home will feature a very cool solar system, using BP’s low profile solar modules that pesky NIMBY effect so many people still feel. "
am i missing something, or is there a word missing here?
The home of the future has asphalt shingles?
That sucks.
Nice! Wondering however how the home can be Platinum when it has a black roof? A black roof in a hot climate like Sac fosters heat retention.
@ Martin & Brian,
Doesn't matter what you use for shingles or what color they are if the whole roof is covered in solar panels. And that looks exactly like what they are doing in the picture.
geothermal power? thinfilm solar on the windows?
Concerning the roof, I think a better option would be building integrated photovoltaics, where solar panels are the roof. This would reduce materials and cost by eliminating the need for shingles and other conventional roofing materials.
@ Jim,
Aren't shingle photovoltaics lower efficiency than standard panels?