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FlexSola - Solar FlexHouse™

Promoting, environmentally, economically and socially sustainable housing. For more information, please contact Nicholas at: nvarias@cogeco.ca

 

FlexSola is a profitable investment for a wide range of home owners; an investment made affordable through flexibility of choice and initial purchase price, associated with flexibility of use and potential revenues.  FlexSola offers a great choice presently not available on the market.

 

 

FlexSola is the “green” upgrade to the FlexHouse™, “the home that adapts to life’s changes”, winner of CMHC’s FlexHousing™ Design Competition.  This new "passive" home design helps achieve four of the main objectives of the environmental movement: Slow down Global Warming, Protecting Human Health, Promoting Global Conservation, and Building a Sustainable Economy.

 

By incorporating the Canadian FlexHousing™ concept, FlexSola wins over the German Passive house (a success story which has recently crossed the ocean and generated the US equivalent). The Passive house (short for Passive Solar) uses its thermal mass provided by concrete to store heat from the sun; the floors and walls become part of the heating/cooling system; the house is called passive because it does not require energy produced from fossil fuels.


By accommodating life’s changes, FlexSola reduces the need for new home construction, thus helping curb urban sprawl.  FlexSola makes use of solar energy to produce electricity, and can also provide rental revenue; as such, FlexSola reduces the demand for energy and natural resources, currently wasted by conventional residential developments.  FlexSola can also create stronger communities, by helping people avoid moving, by encouraging multi-generational living, and by providing homecare for seniors and the disabled. All these benefits, which strengthen community spirit, create a better social climate and can lower healthcare costs.

 

FlexSola applies all four FlexHousing™ principles: Adaptability, Accessibility, Affordability, and Healthy Housing™; furthermore, it brings additional features and benefits: The house can grow as needed, from an initial one floor, to two and three floors.  The owners will never have to say “We are moving”.  Please read “The Circle of Life”.

 

 

F-5

              Sample Front Elevation – 3 two storey + 3 three storey units

 

 

Following is a summary of the social, health and economic benefits of FlexSola:

 

 

 

This document has made certain assumptions based on current home ownership and economic trends.  Based on these assumptions, FlexSola appears to be economically viable and attractive compared to other homes.  The economic projections indicate that, if all the potential financial benefits of FlexSola were taken advantage of, the initial investment could be recovered in less than twenty years. From the financial point of view, where a large percentage of the purchase price is covered by a mortgage, a conventional home is in fact a liability to the owner, in spite of its equity.  In contrast, FlexSola becomes a financial asset thanks to the revenues it can generate and the long term savings on energy and maintenance.

Architectural Concept

 

Barrier- free access can be provided to all floors, including rooftop, by adding an elevator, with minimal disruptions, in the space used by stacked storage rooms.  The house could be used as one dwelling unit, or two independent units, one may be rented to help pay the mortgage; it is ideal for “snow birds” and “retire-at-home”.

 

The green roof may be used to grow fruits and vegetables; it could also generate electricity with PV panels.  The house will have lower maintenance and house insurance costs, and has Net 0 energy consumption and no emissions; it incorporates passive solar heating & cooling; uses recyclable materials and non-combustible fire-safe construction.

 

The layout creates an independent one bedroom in-law suite and/or home office on the ground floor. The flat roof, complemented by a greenhouse, will provide a private outdoor space to be used for relaxation and gardening.


All interior partitions will be non-load bearing and may be relocated as desired. All floors are designed to be accessible to wheelchair users and they may be easily connected by an optional elevator installed in the stacked storage rooms located on each level.

FlexSola may be expanded from an initial one storey 728 sq ft unit, to 1456 sq ft two storeys, or to 2096 sq ft three storeys, with minimum disruptions to the occupants. This is achieved by designing the flat roof as a future floor, and by using state-of-the-art steel framing technology. The staircase to access the roof, the sunroom and the green roof assembly, are all features that can be added later.

The building will be very energy efficient, with built-in passive solar heating achieved with thermal mass and a rooftop sunroom, with distribution ducts running through the open floor space. The surplus heat will be stored in the concrete floors and will be supplemented by the radiant floor heating generate through a geo-thermal system. This combination of renewable energy sources will provide comfortable and efficient heating and cooling.

Photovoltaic solar panels will be installed on the roof and walls to generate electricity. They can be installed with optimum orientation on the flat roof. The surplus electricity will be stored in batteries, or in a tank, as hydrogen obtained from water through hydrolysis. The oxygen, which will also be produced in this process, will improve the interior air quality. On cloudy days, a small generator could be used to burn hydrogen for back up heat and to produce electricity and pure water. The owner will also have the option of producing extra electricity for sale into the grid, thanks to very attractive feed-in tariffs.

Cost effective and technologically advanced building materials and systems will be used to create adaptable, comfortable and healthy housing. The use of open light-weight steel joists and T-bar ceiling will allow for easy installation and future modification of the mechanical and electrical systems. A “smart house” computer control system can also be easily installed anytime through the wall and floors space.

Economic Projections

 

The following considerations should appeal to the informed homebuyers and housing providers.

 

The estimated construction cost for a three storey FlexSola unit, of 2096 ft2, is $230,000 (excluding land, development charges and other soft costs).  Compared with a conventional townhouse of similar size, a FlexSola™ unit would cost up to $30,000 more, required to provide the following features:

 

 

A. FlexHousing™ Design Features (based on award-wining design):

B. Green Roof, Terrace & Staircase (to replace a pitched roof):

C. Concrete & Steel Structure (to replace wood framing):                                               

D. Radiant Floor Heating (to replace conventional forced air heating):

E. Solar panels:

                                                                           Total additional cost: _______________________________________________________

 

The above features provide the following corresponding benefits which make FlexSola an economically viable and sustainable alternative over conventional townhouses currently available on the market:

 

A. Adaptability, Accessibility & Affordability features accomplished with the unique design which has won the CMHC national award. Initial affordability is achieved either by starting with a smaller unit (one or two floors), or by using a two or three storey unit as a duplex.

 

B. The green roof saves energy, lowers roof maintenance over the life of the building, and provides space for growing fruits & vegetables.

 

C. The concrete & steel structure is safe, durable and energy efficient due to thermal mass.  It also extends the life of the building well beyond what is expected from a conventional townhouse.

 

D. The radiant floor heating is most comfortable and energy efficient.  It can also be easily integrated into a geothermal heating & cooling system.

 

E. The solar panels will produce electricity allowing the owner to take advantage of Ontario’s lucrative feed-in tariff program. 

 

The additional cost required to construct FlexSola should be considered as a profitable investment for achieving the following objectives:

 

v  Improved safety, health & comfort

v  Energy efficiency

v  Low maintenance

v  Revenue generation

Following is a comparison of projected live-in costs between a conventional townhouse and a FlexSola unit using its full revenue-generating potential. It appears that FlexSola will be a profitable investment and could pay for itself in less than 20 years.

 

Conventional Townhouse

 

                                    Total expenses: _________________________________________________________________

 

FlexSola

                                                                                   

                                    Total expenses: _________________________________________________________________

 

 

Notes:  * These expenses will most likely escalate in the future.  2% per year increase, without compounding, is included in the calculation.

            ** 2 moves over 10 years are included in the calculation.

 

Approximate FlexSola cost gain after10 years:                                                                                                          $34,400

 

 

FlexSola potential revenues

                                    Total revenue: _________________________________________________________________

 

 

Approximate total net gain of a FlexSola unit,

as compared to a conventional townhouse after 10 years:                                                                                        $149,400

 

FlexSola is a profitable investment for a wide range of home owners; an investment made affordable through flexibility of choice and initial purchase price, associated with flexibility of use and potential revenues.  FlexSola offers a great choice presently not available on the market.

 

 

Copy Rights

Nicholas Varias, of Oakville, Ontario, Canada, has exclusive copy rights over the FlexSola design.  For more information, please contact Nicholas Varias at nvarias@cogeco.ca

 

 

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