ZEN AND THE ART OF BUILDING A CABIN

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.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Photo recap part 3!

Photo recap part 2.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Great article I read on Common Dreams!

Here is a link to a great article I read on Common Dreams.ORG. http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/09/06-3

It is called;

Less Work, More Living

Working fewer hours could save our economy, save our sanity, and help save our planet.

by Juliet Schor

This type of writing always gives me lots to think about. Good stuff pertaining to green building as well.

I was going through some photos and thought I would post a little pictoral recap.

Heat for the winter months!

Now that the cabin is just about closed up, I am looking at passive systems to heat the cabin in the winter. I will be using the cabin as a getaway, and writers space. I will be able to find a small wood stove, but want to look at passive heating systems as well. The windows are south facing and will provide good solar gain during the day. The earth tubes will also provide conditioned air. I found this on you tube to supplement my heating needs. Here is the link. Simple, and cheap. When I have some time, I'd like to try it out to see if it works. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=is5yd4PPdpI&feature=related.

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Journal pages coming soon!

I have been meaning to post some of my writing. I haven't had a chance to create a journal page yet. Not sure if anyone would be interested in the writing, but I have been wanting to get it out there. I have been writing all summer, not only fiction but views on a variety of topics such as life, politics, world events, green building, sociology, family, etc.. I don't have dates for my journal entries since I write on one big file, but I did leave spaces on the different days. I will be getting that figured out in the next week or so so look for the page.

Be daring, be different, be impractical, be anything that will assert integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers, the creatures of the commonplace, the slaves of the ordinary.” ~ Cecil Beaton

Monday, August 29, 2011

I did a quick graph to show the temperature differences!

So her is a quick graph showing the temp. differences. The blue line is the air temperature. My data logger is situated inside the cabin in a shady area. The green line is the air temperature as it enters the cabin. The data logger is behind the fan. The pink line is the air temperature in the tubes just below the fresh air inlet. It is about 1-2 feet below the ground.

RESEARCH MATERIAL

Dennis J. Hall, Nina M. Giglio,(2010) Architectural Graphic Standards for Residential Construction By American Institute of Architects. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley.
Lechner, N. (2001). Heating, cooling, lighting design methods for architects (2nd ed.). New York: J. Wiley.
Amjad Almusaed (2010). Biophilic and Bioclimatic Architecture . London: Springer-Verlag.
Chiras, D. D. (2002). The solar house: passive heating and cooling. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green Pub.
F. Al-Ajmi, D.L. Loveday and V.I. Hanby. The cooling potential of earth–air heat exchangers for domestic buildings in a desert climate. Building and Environment, Volume 41. Issue 3 March 2006, pages 235-244.
G. Mihalakakou, M. Santamouris and D. Asimakopoulos, Modelling the thermal performance of earth-to-air heat exchangers, Solar Energy, Issue 3, pages 301-305, September 1994
John Hait, Umbrella homes, Popular Science, pg 64-66, Aug 1986
Stein, B. (2006). Mechanical and electrical equipment for buildings (10th ed.). Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley.
Carmody, J., & Sterling, R. (1985). Earth sheltered housing design (2nd ed.). New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.