Another Example of the technOrganic Future - C2C Home Winner

Speaking of the technOrganic future in my post yesterday, I'm reminded of another brilliant example - the C2C Home Winner, which I blogged about before. That was six months ago (have I been doing this that long???) so I don't think there's any harm in showing it again. Anyway, it's that awesome. Anyone who hasn't seen it should. For those of you who have, tell me is this not the coolest of cool. Personally, I can never get enough of it.

The most exciting element of the house is the organic skin used to generate electricity:

"Energy is neither created nor destroyed. It is collected and returned. This design utilizes timeless passive solar strategies by shielding unwanted summer sun and absorbing heat from low winter sun through its thermal mass. Active solar collection provides the main source of necessary electrical energy. The core extends vertically, clad with a super-conductive photosynthetic plasma cell skin that is able to generate 200% more electrical voltage per area than contemporary photovoltaics. Building on current research involving extracted spinach protein, this living skin is photosynthetic and phototropic it grows and follows the path of the sun, generating electricity in excess of single family needs. excess power is distributed to neighboring homes and street lighting infrastructure."

Incredible. But why? Plants generate energy from sunlight. Surely we can understand and apply photosynthesis in human structures. Check out the house's other systems, and how they harmonize with nature, here.

Some pics:







Without question, this is one of my favorite homes, ever, period. Amazing.

Image credits C2C Home Winner site

Joel Karr Wants You! Group 41's Unique Offer to Design Your Sea Container Home

So I have to ask you, dear reader, are you up to the challenge? Because Architect Joel Karr is, and he's throwing down the gauntlet. The principle of the San Fran based firm Group 41, Inc., Karr is making a very unique offer. He's looking for an enthusiastic client, with land and ready to build, and he's willing to chip in the design for free. The catch? He wants to do a sea container home.


When I got the PR statement on the offer I was more than a little intrigued by Joel's bold bid to attract a client, so I spoke with him on the phone today to find out more. We had a great chat. Like so many architects, Karr is really excited about building with sea containers. He likes the green aspect, the reuse of something discarded. "So many of them are just designed and built for a single use," Karr said, and "you see yards full of derelict boxes." He called building with shipping containers "a solution to a blight." Well said. I couldn't agree more.

Karr is also fascinated with the design possibilities afforded by the unique nature of sea containers. He likened working with sea containers to playing with kids' building blocks, and talked about "creating an architectural language that is truly scalable, but modular." "You really can think limitlessly," Karr said. Listening to him, I got a great sense of his passion for design and his desire to challenge himself, and challenge paradigms, with the unique possibilities that sea container building affords.

Much to my surprise, Karr's unique offer is born out of frustration. He's been trying to find a client to do a shipping container project with, but although many people are interested, none have been willing to go that route. And to make matters worse, Karr sees far more enthusiasm being turned in to action outside the U.S., and he wants to change that. "When the rubber meets the road the vast majority just don't have the guts." He said his offer is "a challenge, a call to arms."

I'm with him! We talked about how hard it is in the U.S. to really do something different. Everyone wants to, but at the end of the day our culture just doesn't support it. In my opinion (John Commoner talking here, not Joel Karr) we still have too much of a Puritan conformist streak to really let ourselves go for it. The so called Silent Majority, for lack of a better term, has a way of quietly discouraging that. We all know we're supposed to cut our grass, and keep our house looking the right way. Nobody wants to be that character in the neighborhood that everyone is whispering about. I think a lot of architects, like Joel, want to see that change. It's in their nature. I hope they succeed.

I asked Joel what his ideal client would be. "Do they have the imagination?" was his response. He's looking for someone who is willing to do something really different. He remarked that lots of architects do concept sketches to satisfy their need to build. Karr prefers not to do that, so as not to limit his clients' imaginations. "My outlet is to shake people out of their complacency."

This is not a contest where Karr will select just one winner. "I'm willing to do as many as come my way if people are serious." Karr is looking for people who have land, and who can show a financial commitment (he isn't going to do a design for free, then not see it built). And he really wants a site in a rural area, where it is easier to work through the permit process for something so unique as a container house, and where the site and surroundings will provide him with more freedom to explore the design possibilities of such a unique system of building.

Karr is ready to go green to, very green. So all comers, be ready to talk about alternative energy. "I'd love to do one completely off the grid," said Karr. Of course, he noted that whatever he does will be in the best interests of the site and the client's desires. But he wants someone with an open mind who is willing to explore green design with him.

I'd love to take him up on his challenge. I want something as different as Joel is describing, but my wife and I are still a few years away from starting our dream home. But I'm sure some of my readers must be ready, and for those of you who are I really encourage you to get in touch with Joel and talk to him about it. It was a great pleasure speaking with him today. I could hear his enthusiasm and I got really excited listening to him talk about sea container homes. It could be a unique way to get a great design at a bargain rate. It's worth checking out.

You can e-mail him at joel@group41inc.com (please, serious inquiries only) or follow the general contact info listed on the Group 41 website.

Green in the UK - ZEDFactory Ltd.

The UK is one country that's really, really caught the bug when it comes to green building. The nation appears poised to take a real leadership role, and there's a lot of great stuff happening there. It tends to be a little groovier, and usually a whole lot greener, than what's coming out of the USA. Not that we don't have great stuff here - we do - but I like what I see the Brits doing.

Here's a great example of the UK's finest: ZEDfactory Ltd. ZED stands for Zero (fossil) Energy Development. The firm does everything from urban design and master planning to multi-family residences to individual homes to eco-refurb to landscaping. Everything is low energy / low impact.

In the HomeZED, timberframe construction is combined with high thermal mass and heavy insulation. Passive strategies compliment the construction methods for simple, natural heating and cooling. The home has ample daylighting, and produces more than its own energy needs via renewable energy sources and sells the excess back to the grid. Prototypes are already being built. I think a HomeZED would be well suited to our climate here in southeast Michigan , and I could definitely see myself living in one.






Here are two other examples of ZED's great green homes:

The stunning, earth sheltered "Bath Springs" house (I'd move in here in a heartbeat).




The RuralZED Carbon Neutral Kit Home - a timberframe kit house with "fully integrated renewable micro-generation technology." These houses are highly flexible and can be built by the DIY types, or by developers who choose to combine them into multi-family units.






Shouldn't every neighborhood look more like that? I really like what ZED is doing. Their homes look very practical. I think this is what the future of green design really looks like - affordable and realistic, yet not sacrificing in sustainability. Something that is adaptable to differing development scenarios. I hope to see more work like theirs here in the United States.

Image credits - ZEDfactory Ltd. site

Lori Ryker's Excellent Off the Grid Books

I just picked up a copy of Lori Ryker's recent book, Off the Grid Homes: Case Studies for Sustainable Living. It's a follow up to the earlier book of the same theme, Off the Grid: Modern Homes + Alternative Energy, which I bought last summer and have really enjoyed. The new book is just as good, maybe even better.

Both texts take an in-depth look at a half dozen or so houses that all employ a variety of green strategies both in design/construction and power generation. You'll see examples of passive and active strategies, PV and wind power, solar hot water systems, rainwater catchment, graywater, geothermal, and natural cooling. Featured homes range from city, to suburbs, to rural locations. Some are big, some are small. They're all really nice homes. Very inspiring.





Ryker is an architect, and the latest book features her own home, the RN House or Outside/In House (pictured on the new book's cover). It's a green, off the grid marvel that lives very large for its modest 2,200 square feet. You can read a little about it at this post on treehugger, and you can see a slide show of the house on Outside Magazine's website.

Other architects' works featured include Pugh+Scarpa, Arkin-Tilt, and Lake/Flato. Color pictures throughout will make you drool, and keep you coming back to pull these books from your bookcase again and again.

The Off the Grid books are really great. You'll learn a lot about how truly green homes are built, and how varying strategies work together to compliment the site's location and characteristics, and the needs of the homeowners. Highly recommended for your green home library.

Image credits - Amazon.com listings

Soliant Energy's Heliotube PV Panels - Solar Power at Half the Cost

Green energy is finally starting to hit the mainstream. We're literally on the cusp of a revolution in technology that will bring affordable, clean power to the masses. Case in point, Soliant Energy, Inc. has introduced a roof mounted solar panel called the Heliotube that tracks the sun throughout the day and concentrates light onto a small area, reducing the number of photovoltaic cells needed to generate electricity. In fact, Heliotube panels use 88 percent less silicon than regular PV panels. Silicon is the expensive material that keeps the cost of PV high, and more costly than grid power. So here's the best part: because the Heliotube is very efficient, and thus uses far less silicon, it costs only about half as much as a regular PV panel that produces the same power.

The result is solar power at about half the cost of traditional PV panels - a cost that makes it very competitive with grid power. Folks, this is not a pipedream. The Heliotube panels are set to begin production and start shipping to customers this year. Pretty exciting, isn't it!






Read a great article on the panels here: Technology Review.

Via World Changing

Image credits - Soliant Energy site

Learn How Your Household Consumes Resources - and What to Do About It - at LowImpactLiving.com

If you want to learn more about your household energy consumption, and how to reduce it, look no further than Low Impact Living.




This great site has an "impact calculator" that can give you general reports on how much energy your household consumes (your home plus transportation) and offers green projects to reduce consumption, room by room. Here's one report on a typical American home:






The listings of potential improvement projects that accompany these reports show you how much money it will cost, how much savings it generates in terms of both dollars and environmental impact (energy, water, waste, CO2), as well as how long the payback period is. Links take you to product listings to help with the project, or let you search for contractors in your area to help you out. In fact, Low Impact Living has an extensive Products and Services page to help you make your green project a success. Low Impact Living shows you real ways to save energy and money, and tells you how to get it done.

There are also great pages that help you learn more about your impacts - both the resources you consume and the resulting wastes you generate. There are also guides to green alternatives like solar and wind power, hybrid cars, carbon offsets and green insulation. Overall I'm finding it extremely informative.

The Low Impact Living site is very well done, easy to navigate, and absolutely loaded with useful information. It's probably the most practical green resource for your home that I've come across yet. It's a straightforward guide to how households consume resources, what happens when they do, and what to do about it. Give it a click!

Image credits - Low Impact Living site

For a Better Abode - Check out Your Abode

I'm having a banner week finding great new blogs dedicated to modern, green housing. Today I came across a great blog called Your Abode .... Environmentality. It's done by the Australian duo of Sharon Hamilton and Darryn Parkinson who have a residential design firm with a "practical environmental focus." Their practice is called, you guessed it, your abode.

I like the team's emphasis on residential work. They have a unique and appealing niche:

"We’re the middle ground between an architect and a builder. Our clients get an integrated and complete residential design service including interior design plus project management and construction. We are here to take the pain out of the process by making
it easier for you, ensuring that you have an enjoyable experience along the way.

We will ensure all of your space works for you, optimising your enjoyment of living in your home. The magic comes when the space you live in actually feels right, just because every part of the space is used to its optimum.
The basis of all our designs is to build upon YOUR needs and wants – using our experience and expertise to ask the right questions and find the best design solutions.
All our designs are unique and individual, we’ll never do exactly the same thing twice
– how could we? every site and every lifestyle is as different as the next. That’s why we view each project as it comes and start from scratch – with a fresh and energetic outlook.

We bring a practical environmental focus to all of our work. Good environmental design is all about creating spaces that are healthy for you to live in, as well as being good for the environment. We do this by designing spaces to be comfortable all year round and by making use of environmentally friendly materials, finishes and fittings."

Sounds great! You'll like what you see on their site, so do click over. The blog is great too. It covers architecture, green design and building products, green energy, books, and more. Definitely give it a look!

Cool Rammed Earth House Wins Design Contest

A long while back, when natural homes first sparked my interest, one genre in particular that I was fascinated with was rammed earth. I spent a lot of time searching for articles on builder David Easton and the elegant earthen houses constructed by his firm, Rammed Earth Works. As far as sustainable and natural building methods go, I still find rammed earth highly appealing. If you live in an hot, arid climate I cannot really think of any better construction method. Unfortunately, though I've always wanted to live somewhere like that, I don't - I live in Michigan. Rammed earth isn't quite right for our wet and cold winters (though some form of earth construction could be), so I had filed rammed earth away for that "someday maybe" scenario.

Not too long ago, however, my interest in earth building was renewed when I came across a great blog called Earth Architecture. Dedicated to earthen construction, the site's title block proclaims "One half of the world's population, approximately three billion people on six continents, lives or works in buildings constructed of earth." It's a great blog, well done and packed with interesting examples of earth buildings of all types.

A recent post on Earth Architecture highlights a housing competition won by UNC Charlotte students who utilized rammed earth construction, solar panels, and great outdoor living spaces all wrapped up in a very elegant modern design. I really like the house. Definitely check out the original post on Earth Architecture for more details and links to the competition's site and info on UNCC's entry.

Here's the UNCC entry board:




My love of rammed earth construction is renewed!


Image credit - Casas del Quinto Sol competition site

Luis de Garrido's R4 House - Via treehugger.com

Oh, be still my heart. Every once in a while I find a house that is just sooo cool and sooo me. The R4 house by Luis de Garrido is one of those projects (the four Rs stand for Reuse, Recover, Recycle and Reasoning). Let's see ... shipping container construction (or as Greg La Vardera likes to say, IBU). Check! Green roof. Check! Renewable energy sources. Check! Modest size. Check! Low impact construction. Check! Flexible and affordable approach. Check! And hip, fresh design. Check!

This house has it all!

Via treehugger.com



Image credit - treehugger post

More Green Homes Planned for UK - What Makes them Green?

In light of soon-to-be British PM Gordon Brown's announcement today of plans to be unveiled that will bring as many as 100,000 new green homes to the UK in the coming years, here's a great BBC News article about what makes a home green. The piece highlights building on brownfield sites and employing good solar orientation, as well as the use of natural or recycled materials in construction. It also talks about taking advantage of renewable energy sources like wind and solar, as well as ways you can cut your water use in half.




The article also talks about how an "eco-home has to fit into an eco-community." It suggests ways to make communities carbon-neutral through use of public transit and cycle-friendly design to help citizens cut their automobile use, and related CO2 emissions. Brown's plans are centered on the development of up to five such "eco-towns." The article points out the successful BedZED zero energy development in Surrey (pictured below). You can get more info on BedZED at the Bioregional Development Group website. There is a lot of great info on the site. It definitely encourages you to see something like this, already built with people living there. Better communities really are attainable.




I'll also say how inspired I am to see the UK taking such a proactive path towards green development and renewable energy. If you follow the news in this area, you'll have seen lots of announcements like this over the last year. I wish the USA would follow. We're getting there, but much more slowly. While Americans' attitudes have changed a lot in the last year (finally accepting that climate change is actually real, that it has consequences, and that we might want to make some changes) we still have a long way to go. Our leaders aren't exactly racing in the right direction, and we all need to start "voting with our dollars."

Probably what is different about the UK and the USA is that Britain is a good bit further along in their nation's loss of manufacturing jobs and manufacturing as the absolute basis of the national economy. Incomes are down, they aren't making any more land, the pollution from the industrialized past is still there. They see that they need a better way. They see green communities and renewable energy as a real part of the equation for a better future. I think the same is very true for the USA, we just don't want to believe that yet. But our time is coming.

Image credits - BBC article & Bioregional Development Group site

The Zero Carbon House Project

My friend Justin pointed out a great Sundance/treehugger post on the Zero Energy House over on his great blog, materialicio.us (see his post). It's so on topic for Future House Now that I feel I must also encourage my readers to get on over to treehugger to check this out.

What's great about the project is how many different building strategies are being employed to make this house green. There really is no simple answer. A total re-think of how we build our homes is required to truly make them green. It also shows you how a mix of smart design, natural materials, and new technology - all three in working in concert - is required to make a whole system that works.




I also like that the project includes transportation in the equation. In the past, unsightly garages were the only link between car and house. Now the house and the car, our two biggest sources of energy consumption, will have to start working together in integrated energy systems.

This isn't just a conceptual project - the house is being built. Please visit the Zero Carbon House site.

Image credit - zerocarbonhouse.com

Open Architecture Network and the ecoMOD Projects

If you haven't seen the news, Cameron Sinclair's Open Architecture Network launched the other day (you can get the full scoop on this post at Inhabitat). Needless to say, this is something really cool. I've had a blast browsing the many exciting projects already up on the site, and I'm really looking forward to seeing this project grow.

Here's a project I saw that I really liked right away - the ecoMOD Project. A design/build/evaluate project from the University of Virginia, ecoMOD is focused on building affordable, green housing. Their first project, the OUTin house is listed on the Open Architecture Network site. Take a minute to read their compelling mission statement for the OUTin House project. Here's an excerpt

"... creatively questions conventional building practices - incorporating sustainable design strategies while enhancing comfort and marketability."

Sounds good, doesn't it! The team for this project really delivered. The OUTin House is an impressive work, incorporating abundant green building strategies: rainwater collection, solar water heater, passive solar design, daylighting, natural ventilation, SIPs and modular construction, Energy Star appliances, low/no VOC finishes, sustainably harvested wood floors and energy monitoring. Whew!

Check out the design - a really beautiful and effective home. Nicely done!





You can see a lot more images on ecoMOD's exhibition page. The house is now complete, and was built for under $100 per square foot.

The ecoMod project has also completed its second work, the preHAB. The mission for preHAB was to deliver a modular, affordable home to a family on the gulf coast displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Here's a excerpt from this project's mission statement:

"Our goal is to create a house that is adjustable to the climate and weather conditions of southern Mississippi. Contained, exterior spaces are an integral element of the design, expanding the apparent size of the house, while simultaneously helping to passively cool it. These spaces will incorporate elements that are able to both shade harsh sunlight and adapt to become hurricane protection devices."

Like the first project, the preHAB project delivered an inspiring design:




See more images of this project on its exhibition page.

I'm definitely looking forward to the next ecoMOD project. It's really wonderful to see this kind of work. And it's great that projects like the Open Architecture Network are coming alive to help foster the sharing of ideas.

Image credits - ecoMOD site

Building Green with Independence Energy Homes

I found an interesting company the other day. Independence Energy Homes is an architectural firm that specializes in energy efficient, green building. They offer design and consulting services to both individual homeowners as well as developers and builders.

They stand apart from many traditional firms by employing a three-pronged approach that includes applying the cross-functional knowledge of architects, engineers and financial analysts. Independence Energy Homes makes use of advanced modeling techniques as well as detailed cost vs. benefit analysis to help clients make the best decisions. The combination of smart design and powerful analytical resources is used to deliver cutting edge, highly efficient structures. And they have a green focus, offering low VOC building products and healthy air solutions, as well as alternative energy solutions that are appropriate for your specific site.

They have a great website with lots of good info. Check out the FAQ page to get the flavor for Independence's work and philosophy. Also, take a look at their Fact or Fiction page to see how renewable energy for your home can make good economic sense in the short term, with a faster payback than you might think.

Independence is affiliated with all the right groups, like the U.S. Green Building Council and Energy Star. But can a big firm, focused on technology and analysis, produce great designs? Yes! Take a look at a few images from their site.

Here's two shots of Independence's very nice-looking entry into the 2005 Solar Decathalon, done in cooperation with Cornell University. The house is flush with green building products and came in second overall in the competition.











And here's shots of two other interesting projects. On the left is an simple, yet interesting house using sea containers for structural elements under the main house, creating interesting parking and storage space. On the right is a 1200 sq-ft prototype for a prefab home Independence is developing.












I like what I see. Cool stuff. And I like the fact that they bring a strong analytical element to their work. I don't think it is as easy as it looks to design for energy efficiency, solar gain, to get the most out of your investment in PV or wind power. I'm an engineer by education, and now I deal with financial issues. I'm comfortable with numbers. I'd like to work with someone who will show me a great design, and the numbers behind why it works.

Image credits - Independence Energy Homes site

Michael McDonough's e-House

Here's another great modern, green house. It's the "e-House" by famed architect Michael McDonough. McDonough made extensive use traditional green design features like plentiful application of natural local materials, high efficiency Rumford fireplaces, daylighting, a passive solar shell and lots of thermal mass. But the house is also packed with cutting-edge technology. Some examples include digital site mapping and photogrametric surveying, self-healing corrosion resistant stainless steel roofing, designed for deconstruction building systems, future-proofed removable wire chase baseboards, and demand-response distributed intelligence systems controls. Renewable energy sources include wind, PV, geothermal and thermal reservoir with water-to-water heat exchanger technology. And that's just some highlights. There's actually a lot more than I can list here.



I don't think I have ever seen a single home so completely packed with green design elements. Take a look at the e-Home site for yourself to get a full picture of the many different building techniques and materials utilized to create this stunning home. It's truly an extraordinary example of the maximum potential in building an eco-friendly house. But for all the technology the house doesn't just look like a giant computer chip - it has a groovy style that feels like pure fun. I really like the light-catchers protruding from the main structure. They turn an otherwise simple box into a eye-catching form that looks extremely original.

Perhaps more importantly, the technology and concept of the home are geared towards the way people really live today. The house is configured for both e-commuting and to be controlled remotely from afar by people on the move. As you know from reading my posts, to me that's the key - the home as a solution to how we live. And how we live is changing, so our homes need to change too. Here's yet another great house that's doing that - meeting the challenge of a changing world.

One other thing, don't skip the site's press section. It has links to a lot of articles on the house where you can read even more about it and McDonough.

Image credits - e-House site

Get Help Finding Alternative Energy Contractors From Verde Energy

If you're building a new green home, or just thinking about adding a few PV panels or a windmill to your house, but you don't know where to start, consider working with Verde Energy. Verde Energy matches people with pre-screened renewable energy contractors in their area. You just fill out a simple survey online to tell Verde what kind of project you're thinking of. They provide an analysis of government rebates and tax incentives in your particular state to help you see how that could contribute to reducing the cost of a project. And then they deliver you competitive bids from Verde approved contractors in your areas.



I think this is a great idea. Frankly, for most of us, even if we've read a lot, we just don't know where to start or who to trust when it comes to actually installing alternative energy products in our homes. Verde takes some of the fear and confusion out of it by helping to connect buyers with qualified contractors. And now that alternative energy has become very competitive in the market (and more important than ever) services like this can help this important industry grow, and as it does it will become even more competitive and more accessible to lots of people.

Even if you're still just in the looking/learning stage, check out Verde's site. They have a great resources page with lots of links and .pdf guides to help you learn about alternative energy. Titles include "Estimating Solar PV System Size and Cost," "Wind Power Basics," and "Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings." They also recently started their own blog with renewable energy news and info.

Verde plants a tree for every customer that requests bids through their service too. This is the kind of company that's exciting to see - building a business model around an important cause, doing business to help do good.

Image Credit - Verde Site

Loblolly House and More on Wired Home for 2007 Feature

Be sure and check out Wired Magazine's Wired Home for 2007 feature. This is a great series of articles about cutting edge new home technology. The Lobblolly House by architect Steve Kieran of Kieran Timberlake Associates is featured or its innovative prefab construction techniques. Wired dubs the house "a manifesto for a new way of construction," referring to its efficient factory built nature as well as its unique approach to managing the home's mechanical systems.



There's also an article on a Anson Fogel's hip and high-tech home in the Colorado Rockies. Fogel is a home technology whiz - an electronics architect and COO/CTO of the company Electronic Systems Consultants. His house features loads of leading efficient technologies including a design driven by sophisticated climate analysis, solar power, radiant floor heating, insulated panels, computer monitoring, and long distance Wi-Fi.

One aspect of both homes I really like is their modest size - each is only about 2,200 square feet. I love seeing this trend of high quality yet modestly sized homes growing. I actually live in a 2,200 square foot home with my family of four, and it's a little too big, yet somehow is not what we want in a home. The design doesn't quite fit how we really live, so a lot of the space we have is wasted. We could get more use out of less space with a better design.

Other articles in the Wired feature include a healthy and green urban renewal project in Brooklyn, a cool and environmentally friendly house in hot Texas, a piece on geothermal heating, and others. Each of the articles has focus on efficient and clean technologies that make a better home, and that are available now. It's a really nice feature and I do think you'll find a lot of neat ideas and good information, so check it out.

Image Credits: Wired Articles

Solar Orientation Means Finding True South

Orienting a house for maximum solar efficiency is an obvious and easy green feature to incorporate into your home design. But did you know that maximum efficiency depends on orienting to true south, not to magnetic south. Read this enlightening post on Jetson Green to find out more!

Mitigating Up Front Costs of Renewable Energy

Installing alternative energy technologies in your home can be really expensive in the short term, even though in the long run it can mean real savings. The up front investment is a significant obstacle to getting more people to adopt wind, solar and other green power sources. Fortunately, in the U.S. there are many government incentives in place to help. I found a great website that summarizes the various tax and other monetary incentives available in each of the fifty states, as well as from the Federal Government. Visit the Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency (DSIRE.org). DSIRE is a joint project of the North Carolina Solar Center and the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC) that is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. It has information on the various incentives available in each of the fifty U.S. states, as well as from the Federal Government. The site is simple and easy to use, has comprehensive information, and is constantly updated. It has downloadable summary maps and tables too, and a nice list of links. If you're planning to install alternative energy in your home, or just curious what your state does as an incentive, this is a great place to get information.

There is another way to work around the high up front cost of alternative energy technologies. The REnU program from the Citizenre Corporation allows homeowners to simply lease solar panels on multi-year contracts with only a $500 deposit. You can read more about it and find links at these posts on Inhabitat and Grassroots Modern.

Alternative energy is a key element of the modern green home of the future. Up front costs and efficiencies continue to improve, increasing the viability of green power. With government incentives and innovative programs like REnU more and more of us can make green power a part of our lives. It is only a matter of time before enough of us do, and renewable energy reaches a critical mass and becomes the significant source of clean and sustainable energy that powers the prosperity of future generations.