Project Details
- Project Name
- 2015 Solar Decathlon: Casa Del Sol
- Client/Owner
- U.S. Department of Energy
- Project Types
- Single Family
- Project Scope
- New Construction
- Shared by
- Selin Ashaboglu
- Team
- Team Leaders: Alex McDonald, Conrad Corral, Moritz Limpinsel, Camy Jun, Andy Truong, Paige Svehlak, Teagan Barnes, David Kincade, Josie Truong, Keefe Carrillo, Heather Greene, Mary Chen, Lotus Thai, JB Wagoner, Kristina Lamb, Reem Habib
- Project Status
- Student Work
Project Description
FROM TEAM ORANGE COUNTY:
“Seeing
the passion in the students and knowing they are going to make a difference in
the world” was Richard King’s response to what was most rewarding about the
Solar Decathlon.”
Teaming up for their first
U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon, a coalition of students from the
University of California, Irvine, Chapman University, Irvine Valley College,
and Saddleback College are uniting as one: Team Orange County. Comprised of a
research institution, a private university, and two prominent community
colleges, Team OC embodies a broad range of educational backgrounds and
perspectives.
Saddleback College
President Dr. Tod Burnett is, “looking forward to demonstrating the remarkable
creativity and talent of our students.”
Not only is Team OC serving
as a catalyst for clean energy, “we are inspiring the next generation of
innovators,” stated Team OC member Clayton Heard. “People, especially
students, think that they can’t make a difference,” added Team OC member Mario
Maldonado says. “But this has a chance to inspire a sustainable
outlook, and if that snowballs, more kids might feel like they can have an
impact.”
The Solar Decathlon
challenges collegiate students from all around the world to design and build a
solar powered home. Not only does it encourage architectural and engineering
advancements, judges also score the team on communications, home life, and
market appeal.
“[There] is a challenge
facing our generation and future generations, and when we can bring a
collaborative team like this together, great things can happen,” said Chapman
University President James Doti.
For the past two years Team
OC has been working on Casa del Sol—an innovative, zero-net energy home that
draws inspiration from the California poppy. Casa del Sol addresses
California’s growing population and changing demographics with a flexible and
open floor plan, as well as a separate studio unit complete with its own
bathroom and kitchenette. This studio can serve as additional space for a
multigenerational family, for example a returning college student or an aging
relative, or it can be rented out for secondary income.
Mimicking the diurnal and
drought-resistant California poppy, Casa del Sol is designed specifically for
Southern California. Our home addresses regional drought concerns, encourages
the California indoor-outdoor lifestyle, and maximizes natural shading and
ventilation to keep the inside temperature comfortable before relying on the
home’s power supply.
Using research on the sun’s
transitional path over Orange County, Casa del Sol incorporates architectural
elements to passively regulate the homeowner’s heating, cooling, and lighting
demand. This specific technique is called passive solar design. While sunlight
is invited into the home during colder months, the architectural design also
provides shelter against the hot summer sun and the destructive Santa Ana Winds
in the fall.
Team Orange County’s Casa
del Sol truly represents Orange County and what it needs. “We will show the
nation that our campuses and Orange County lead the way on innovative,
affordable solar power and other clean energy advances,” said Gregory
Washington, Dean of the Henry Samueli School of Engineering at the University
of California, Irvine.
Irvine Valley College
President Glenn Roquemore said, “It’s a great opportunity for students to
participate in this wonderful project that will no doubt be a profound and
memorable experience for us all.”
Team OC member, and Champan University junior, Lotus Thai who double major in Business Administration and Environmental
Science/Policy said, “this competition is unique by
allowing students to learn outside of the traditional classroom. It also
provides the opportunity to combine the spheres of business, politics, and
science.”
To learn more about Team
Orange County, please visit www.teamoc2015.com or follow us on Facebook
(teamorangecounty), Twitter (@teamocsd), and Instagram (@teamocsd).