Solar Decathlon Shines on the National Mall
Guest Blogger: Alice Antunes, SolarTown Intern and Senior at Georgetown University
Waking up to the Solar Decathlon yesterday (Friday) on the first day of the solar event left me with the feeling that this year, the event would be special. And it was.
The Solar Decathlon is an event sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, in which students from around the world design, build and operate solar-powered and energy-efficient houses. Besides teams from the U.S., at this year’s Decathlon, there is representation from Belgium, New Zealand, Canada and China.
The team with the solar house that best incorporates elements such as design excellence, affordability, customer appeal and maximum energy efficiency, wins the competition. The event is meant to educate both the public and the students involved in the project of energy and energy efficiency.
Each solar home is restricted to a certain size (between 600 sq. ft and 1000 sq. ft) and all houses have home solar panels on them. The house has to be affordable and energy efficient. Teams build their houses on the National Mall, leave them on display for the week of the event, and then either dismantle the solar homes or bring them back to their hometowns with a bigger plan in mind.
The Ohio State University Team, for example, plans on bringing its solar home back to Columbus in order to donate the house to a low-income family. It is not the only team with such humanitarian considerations—one team is working directly with Habitat For Humanity and others have similar ideas in mind.
As I walked through the houses, the one from Ohiocaught my eye because of the simplicity of the design. Walking into it was like walking into an Ikea store—it was perfectly set up, and was clearly meant to be lived in. Rainwater was caught by pipe systems, which formed a pretty pebble pond by the entrance.
Another solar home that stuck out was the Southern California Institute of Architecture and California Institute of Technlogy house, because it was completely “outsulated,” which means that a vinyl-coated fabric mesh helps the house maintain its temperature. The elevated northern side of the house, meant to create a parking area, makes efficient use of space and is another marking feature.
While it would be easy to boast of all the solar homes’ ingenious designs, it was clear to me that all were built with a goal in mind: distinguish it from all the others. The inventiveness and creativity that went into the houses impresses when I think that these were designed and built by students.
The first day of the Solar Decathlon was rainy, which did not deter the visitors as they waited in line to visit each house and discover what made it so special. Fortunately, the rain did not dampen the spirits of the crowds and was no deterrent to this solar event.