Innovative Solar House Techstyle Haus

Techstyle Haus – Solar-powered energy-efficient home

The 2014 Solar Decathlon Europe competition is just around the corner, and you will soon be able to see the wonderful eco-houses that students will be presenting this year. Today, we're going to take a look at the Techstyle Haus that the Rhode Island School of Design has already started packing into containers to send to France for the competition.

Techstyle Haus – Solar-powered energy-efficient home



The roof of the Techstyle Haus is covered with Sheerfill’s futuristic and energy-efficient membranes, resulting in this innovative home consuming 90% less energy than a conventional home and meeting virtually all energy needs solely from the sun. According to experts, the project of the Rhode Island School of Design is likely to be the main contender for victory in the eco-contest of solar-powered homes.



Techstyle Haus – Solar-powered energy-efficient home



2014 Solar Decathlon Europe is an international competition in which 20 collegiate teams participate with their solar-powered projects. During 10 rounds of the competition, the environmental friendliness, economic efficiency and attractiveness for the consumer of the houses that students have designed are evaluated. After two years of planning and design, students from the Rhode Island School of Design, together with Brown University and the German University of Applied Sciences Erfurt, recently completed the construction of Techstyle Haus. After final construction, the house was neatly packed in containers and shipped to France, where it will debut in late June. The 800-square-foot home is based on wood, but the entire structure is covered with Sheerfill, a flexible fiberglass fabric that will keep the house warm as much as possible.



Techstyle Haus – Solar-powered energy-efficient home



“With this first ever cloth-covered house, we hope to change the way people think about building materials.” Maybe by looking at Techstyle Haus, people will be inspired not to be constrained in architecture, design and engineering, said Kim Dupont-Madner, RISD architecture student. To give the structure stiffness and stability, students mounted five structural steel ribs that hold Sheerfill fabric layers. Before being used in a Techstyle Haus home, Sheerfill fabric had never before been used in residential construction.



Techstyle Haus – Solar-powered energy-efficient home



Inside, Techstyle Haus is an open-plan one-room structure. In the center there is a compact technical unit, which houses mechanical, plumbing and electrical devices. Behind this node are a bathroom, kitchen, a small attic and an additional storage room. The solar house will virtually fully meet its energy needs thanks to flexible solar panels attached to the cloth-covered roof.

Source: www.ecobyt.ru/