The world is facing an energy crisis and scientists are busy in working out solutions for this problem and to raise general awareness about this crisis. United States Department of Energy has come up with a solution to this crisis and it involves inviting bright minds to come up with house models that are energy efficient while being attractive enough for people to live.
This was the sixth time that this event was held and had designers from all over the world gather for the exhibition to present their ideas. The event is known as Solar Decathlon and is a sight to look at with unique home designs presented by designers from all over the world. This year Solar Decathlon was organized at Irvine, California with Vienna University of Technology, Austria winning the competition.
The winning team’s design is known as LISI which stands for Living Inspired by Sustainable Innovation. The house is solar powered and panels have been placed on rooftop. These panels are capable of generating more than energy than the house will consume in a year. Although this is not the decisive factor in determining the winner, as has already been mentioned, it surely counts as a big plus. Other than that the house has to be affordable and must constitute a good design so that it gains popularity among the consumers.
LISI includes a number of features which rendered it as the winner of the competition. Some of them include; a quick and efficient construction method by employing frames made of wood, capability of keeping living spaces cool, outdoor herb garden watering done by a rainwater reservoir, same rainwater is used for heating and cooling purposes too, indoor air is kept fresh by employing an energy-recovery ventilation system, hot water demand is reduced to two-third by making use of heat-recovering shower tray. These are a few of the technologies this house incorporates to make it the most energy efficient home of the world.
