BLOOMhouse Systems

Photovoltaics and Electrical

The photovoltaic array generates not only the power to run all of the appliances, lighting, and systems requiring electricity within our home, but also the energy needed to operate an electric vehicle on a daily commute. All of the appliances have been chosen for their efficiency as well as their dependability.

HVAC - Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning

Our design goal is to build a sealed house with minimum infiltration, and to use a ventilation system to control the supply of fresh air. This system has several advantages. First, energy consumption would decrease as large infiltration would be avoided during windy weather conditions. Also, mechanical ventilation provides better moisture transport control. Finally, mechanical ventilation supplies constant level of fresh air that enables filtration and provides higher level of air quality control in the house. An efficient multi-zone split system was selected to provide the greatest level of temperature control within the house. Additionally, a heat recovery unit helps reduce the total amount of energy being used to condition the interior space.

Solar Thermal

Solar thermal collectors absorb and store the sun's energy to provides warmth and hot water for the house. A hydronic radiant floor heating system will be installed in the BLOOM House to provide responsive and comfortable heating, while efficiently utilizing extra energy stored in the hot water system. A household heating system can be powered by electricity or natural gas, but since thermal energy is already being collected to provide hot water for the plumbing system, it is more efficient to utilize that energy to heat the house than to use PV array and heat pump due to electric conversion losses. A radiant floor system provides heat and comfort by radiant heat transfer through the floor, which distributes heat evenly to the occupied space, unlike a typical convection system. The system consists of three zones of circulating hot water in pex-al-pex tubing (Figure. 1) embedded in Warmboard Radiant flooring, a composite subfloor of plywood and an aluminum sheet for heat distribution, which sits beneath the hard wood floor. The heat from the water is conducted to the aluminum and up through the floor providing a comfortable, sustainable heating experience powered by the sun.