Comments on: When Creativity Meets Cool

By: Kent Griswold

Kent Griswold — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 23:44:11 +0000

Hi Grahame – that is the The Taliesin Mod.FabTM you can read my post on it here http://tinyhouseblog.com/pre-fab/the-taliesin-modfabtm/ and go to their website from that post…Kent

By: Grahame

Grahame — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 22:36:33 +0000

Can anyone tell me more about the house pictured at the top of this article, please. It looks great and I woudl really like to find out more about it. Thanks

By: Simple Living News Update: Week of July 20th

Simple Living News Update: Week of July 20th — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 13:02:54 +0000

[...] When Creativity Meets Cool [...]

By: Tiny House Living , Archive » Creative Cooling

Tiny House Living , Archive » Creative Cooling — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 07:05:41 +0000

[...] gardening but it’s sure nice to find ways of beating the heat. Here’s an article about when creativity meets cool. You can also find it on Coming [...]

By: Eric

Eric — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 14:56:41 +0000

Metal roofs (at least light colored/silver ones) can reflect sunlight, but they also very easily absorb and transfer heat from the surrounding air. If you’re living in a hot climate something like tile is far more appropriate. If you do go with a metal roof, it needs to be designed differently than usual. Making it a ‘floating’ roof is usually the best bet, so that it provides shading weather protection for the house, but isn’t directly connected to it and transferring heat inside.

By: Grant Wagner

Grant Wagner — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 14:30:38 +0000

Eric makes a good point, except for the roof.

Be aware of your enviroment and always plan accordingly. A mobile home means you have to design for the average case instead of the best case, and can mean a world of difference in energy used for climate control. A well designed passive solar home, can meet all of your climate control needs with very very little (if any) energy consumption.

As for the roof, I honestly believe that metal is always the best option, perhaps except living. The much more common asphalt, felt shingles are only that much worst at collecting heat in thee summer. At least the metal is reflective and will allow for a good rain catchment system.

By: Eric

Eric — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 05:46:14 +0000

When talking about heating/cooling tiny houses, I think it’s worth noting a major issue with many of the ‘mobile’ tiny homes featured here regularly- and that is that many heating and cooling systems are wildly innapropriate for certain climates.

A passive solar heating system for example, is going to suck huge amounts of heat from your home in some climates, overheat you in others. Appropriate awning/overhang sizes and angles depend greatly on your latitude. Something that shades your windows in Texas, will leave them totally exposed in Minnesota. Metal roofing is great… unless it’s 120 degrees out and your roof is 190 degrees and sitting 2 feet from your bedroom loft. Porches, dogtrot style homes, and breezeways that keep you cool on a super humid summer day in the south, will leave your house frozen solid in a New York winter.

Most of these technologies are geographically specific, and not at all appropriate for people intending to move their homes.

By: sophie munns

sophie munns — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 22:29:06 +0000

I love this blog I have to say!
I think people in a position to create homes on this planet…and lets face it- a massive percentage are at a loss to achieve this…could well do to be inspired to think about some of the ideas presented here. A house can be so much more than a status symbol or a refuge against the world. Security doesn’t just arrive if I keep myself safe….it is a “WE” thing!
Anthems like ‘We are one” and “we are family” make many teary…but really…we have to design more like we are One planet I think!