WHY EARTH TUBES?

Why Earth Tubes? When I first stumbled upon earth tubes, I was searching for a natural and passive means of air conditioning for homes. I remember seeing a photo of such a system in an arabic country in one of the many green architecture books I have read. I couldn't find that system, but was very pleased with what I had found. Earth tubes are a method to precondition the air for your home or building. The system is very simple, .tubes are buried under the ground where the temperature stays relativelly constant. There is an inlet for the ambient air to enter the system. As it travels through the tubes, it is conditioned by the temperature under ground. In the winter the air is warmed, in the summer it is cooled. The air then enters your building by an outlet using a small fan to keep the air flowing. Thus your air is pre conditioned.



Who am I? My name is Chris Carrier. I am a husband, a father, a student at Thompson Rivers University, an employee with the city of Kamloops, and have been a number of different things at different times and stages of my life. I am not a typical student, since I am in my early forties. I have been interested in green buildings and architecture since my days as a tree house dweller in Uclulet, BC. I am also a budding writer. My published works include "Dragon Problem's" by Hur publishing and an article entitled "Of Kids and Hobbits" published in Kamloops Momma, a local parenting magazine.



What is the goal of the research? The main goal of my research is to determine if earth tubes are a viable option for Kamloops, BC. In addition to this, I would like to find low impact technologies that could be used in the construction industry that could be used to lessen the environmental impacts of the way we do things in the construction industry. As the planet continues to warm, a leaner, meaner, way of constructing homes and buildings can be achieved, today. The technology exists to change course. I have taken my LEED Green Associate course and hope to incorporate some of the technologies into my research.



As part of my research, I have been building a small cabin on a relatives property. I have built an earth tube system and have been testing it throughout the summer. The cabin will become a sort of testing ground for different systems I am interested in. The cabin has been built old school, using a hand saw, a cordless drill, and a hammer and nails. I have been posting pictures on the blog to keep people updated with my project.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Reading break on Galiano Island


Just got back from my little camping sojourn on Galiano Island. What an amazing place it is. It certainly got my brain churning and gave me some ideas to incorporate in my research. It was a little cold from the wind, but the sun was shinning. If you haven`t had the opportunity to visit, I would highly recommend it. The photo above is from the BC parks website.
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JUst received an email from Larry Larson

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to post that I got an email back from Larry Larson. I didn't have a lot of questions since I have not had tons of time to do research, but his system works and I now know that the best material to use for this project is black corrugated drain pipe. I hope everyone is enjoying their reading break

Chris
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Saturday, February 12, 2011

Contacted an earth tube installer.

Hi everybody,

I just sent an email to an earth tube installer, Mr. Larry Larson, based out of Fairfield Iowa. He seems to be one of the leaders in the development and design of this technology. He has written an article titled "Earth Air Tubes" linked here:

http://www.earthairtubes.com/Earth_Air_Tubes_2007-07-02.pdf
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Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Sustainable architecture that is biomimetic

Thanks for the link Michael,

I was examining the Eastgate building in Zimbabwe, whose cooling system was modelled after a termite mound. It has a  passive cooling system. Here is a link http://inhabitat.com/building-modelled-on-termites-eastgate-centre-in-zimbabwe/ .Very interesting. The initial savings on the 35 million dollar project was $3.5 million, and some of the other benefits include lower rent, and the building only uses 10% of the energy other buildings the same size use. I'm looking forward to seeing what results my research will bring.
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Sunday, February 6, 2011

Welcome to my Blog!

My name is Chris Carrier and I am a second year student at Thompson Rivers University in the Architectural and Engineering Technology (ARET) program. I am interested in alternative and sustainable design. The purpose of this blog is to look at Earth tubes and their potential in passive cooling thus eliminating the need for mechanical air conditioning. Any comments or input is appreciated  and welcome.
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