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Inspired by the pioneering spirit of Appalachia’s first settlers, the Solar Homestead features cutting-edge solar technology and world-class design. Form and function meet to reduce home energy and increase building efficiency, all while keeping material costs at a minimum. Every square foot of the Homestead is designed and built to live sustainably, harnessing the energy of the sun.

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4 Responses to “Inside and Out of the Solar Homestead”


  1. On September 18th, 2011 at 10:17 am Crissy von Hargrove Said:

    This is completely amazing, I love the dual purpose skylight/solar thermal panel. It leaves both the sun and the panels to harmoniously do their jobs instead of wasting energy trying to move panels in coordination with the sun’s path.

    A couple of personal inquiries into the functionality if you will: 1. How well do the solar panels work if inhibited by extreme weather elements, ie would heavy hail cause severe damage? If heavy snow collected on the roof would the entire system not work ie, could rain leak in the circuit and blow the system? Is there a way to remove snow without physically sweeping the roof? 2. How do you account for interior heat loss with the amount of glass panels comprising a large portion of your building’s structure? and 3. If the stove vent hood is part of the whole house air vent system, what keeps possible amounts of stored grease clogged in the filters from being blown back into the house when you use it to recycle the air?

    I apologize for the ignorance, I hate that this small video clip is all I can see of this innovative homestead. Obviously a monumental amount of planning and innovative capacity has gone into this project. I hope it will be set up as a ‘visitable’ site for others to see how the ‘energy rich’ can live. I vote for you guys all the way! Go mountaineers!!


  2. On September 19th, 2011 at 3:32 pm John Liparelli Said:

    I love it. So, how much does one home cost?


  3. On September 28th, 2011 at 3:08 pm Victoria Riess Said:

    Planet Forward’s Expert Bill Worthen from the American Institute of Architects commented on this video:

    See more from Bill and the other Planet Forward experts on our Ask an Expert Page.


  4. On September 28th, 2011 at 3:09 pm Victoria Riess Said:

    Planet Forward’s Expert Bill Worthen from the American Institute of Architects commented on this video:

    See more from Bill and the other Planet Forward experts on our Ask an Expert Page.

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