Masonry Magazine July 1980 Page. 5
This wall-a composite of 4-inch dark brick and 8-inch concrete masonry, all solid units extends 48 feet across both the first and second floors of the home. The solar gallery-the space between the glass and masonry walls-is floored with flagstone over an insulated concrete slab. "It's the masonry that makes the system work," said Toby Holtzman, partner in the building firm. "The idea is to let as much sunlight as possible strike the brick and block inner wall, then slowly radiate its stored heat into the home."
The glass outer wall is equipped with special fabric insulating shades. These are pulled down at night to retain heat in the gallry area. In summer, they help to reduce heat gain.
"Overall, we expect the solar design to cut fuel consumption by about 40 per cent," Holtzman said. (A workshop study by HUD shows a potential 50 per cent benefit from systems that utilize the thermal storage properties of masonry walls.)
As to the design details of the Trombe wall, all units are solid, no cores. Horizontal reinforcement is used every third course and all voids are completely filled. A dark-hued brick was selected for maximum absorption.
Builder Toby Holtzman displays a model of the passive solar home designed by Vermont architect Turner Brooks and built in Ypsilanti Township, Mich.
Interior concrete masonry units are finished with stucco. The mason contractor was Stanley Kapulak of Taylor. "The system is here, and it works," Holtzman said. "In one respect, this is like any model home in any subdivision, and we're ready to build more of them. We feel the time is right for passive solar homes, if they're well designed, to make it in the marketplace."
Appropriately enough, this is one of the Detroit area's 1980 Idea Homes. It's located on Huron River Drive, west of Rawsonville Road and east of Whitaker Road on the south shore of Ford Lake, off Interstate 94.
Flint architect Yurk designs earth-sheltered solar home
The home designed by Flint architect Gerald J. Yurk, AIA, for his own family combines earth shelter with passive solar principles in "a contemporary expression of an energy-saving residence." The design utilizes earth berms to insulate the walls from cold weather and to assist in the cooling process during the summer months.
To take advantage of the sun's energy, the home's
Flint architect Gerald J. Yurk designed this energy-conserving home in Michigan for his own family. Earth berms insulate the walls from the cold weather and assist in the cooling process during the summer.
South elevation is skylighted. Beneath the skylight is a small indoor swimming pool that acts as a heat sink and a masonry Trombe wall that serves to store and radiate heat. The Trombe wall is built of scored, groundface concrete masonry units. These are 8-inch for the first floor and 6-inch for the second. They have their cores filled with sand for additional mass.
Here's how Yurk, a principal of Tomblinson, Harburn. Yurk and Associates, Flint, describes his passive-solar design:
"Solar energy is absorbed by the water and re-radiated into the high-volume space of the solarium over an extended period of time. Warmth radiating from the pool and from the absorbent masonry mass walls is drawn off and pulled into the return air system of a conventional furnace for re-circulation to the rest of the house."
According to Yurk, the swimming pool solarium also was designed to replace "the typical American family room which, when included in a home along with a conventional living room, results in at least one redundant space." The home's cooling cycle takes advantage of the constant ground temperatures in the Flint area (approximately 50 to 55 degrees) to cool fresh air entering the house. Outside air is pulled into the return air plenum and distributed to the living spaces through the use of an underground cooling tube around the perimeter.
The home is located on a small, heavily wooded site in a prominent residential neighborhood of Flint. The site was carefully selected to offer shading in the summer by deciduous trees to the east and south and shielding from winter winds by dense growth of conifers on the west and north. The earth berms are planted with juniper to provide dense ground cover.
The four-bedroom home provides 2,700 square feet of living space. Its exterior uses the same block units as in the solarium. The mason contractor was Masonry Decor of Flint.
"Since we moved in last December, public interest has been overwhelming." Yurk said. "Our goal was to use readily available and affordable technology and materials to reduce our dependence on non-renewable fossil fuels in heating and cooling the home. We anticipate a 30 to 40 per cent savings in energy costs."
Given the high and rising prices of natural gas and electricity, passive solar thus represents a tremendous opportunity and challenge for the masonry industry. An opportunity to regain work in the residential market. A challenge to learn passive solar technology and to communicate its advantages to builders and developers.
MASONRY/JULY, 1980 5