Nick's New House

Can You Help?

Questions I still need an answer to

A house relying on passive solar energy for its main source of heating, must have a mass of material in which the solar energy is stored. In the case of the 'Zero Heat' design, the thermal mass is provided by the concrete floor. I read somewhere that this concrete floor must be left uncovered to be effective. So what type of floor covering can be used, if any? Presuamably, it should have a dark finish so as not to relect the solar energy.

Laurence Steijger has answered this one (he uses the same system in his house). The answer is to use floor tiles (ceramic, slate etc). Laurence added "we have a tiled floor, and no problem with cold feet, because the insulation is under the concrete."

The concrete floor in the 'Zero Heat' house rests on 200mm of polystyrene insulation. Again, I read somewhere that this is guaranteed against decomposing for about 50 years. But what happens after that? Does it disintegrate with the floor subsiding into the resultant void?

Laurence Steijger also provides the answer (he uses the same system in his house). He says "Polystyrene main enemy is UV light (desintegration of the molecules). So if you keep it in the dark, it will hold on forever. And because we used a "tile" it is possible to reuse it, once this houselive is expired (which I hope will take a lot of years) and the polystyrene lays straight on the soil. "

What is the best floor covering for wet bathrooms?

Can I use an instant hot water heater with a solar hot water system?

In the house where I currently live, I pay £120 a year for gas for heating, hot water and cooking. I pay £170 a year for electricity. Should I forget the investment in solar hot water and use the money saved to generate some of my electricity requirements?

At present, the answer seems to be that for single occupancy (hence low hot water usage) a solar hot water heating system is not the best investment.