Canadians raise the roof in solar project

Ryerson University is among 20 finalists in an international competition to build homes run only by solar power. The solar houses will be judged in 10 areas: architecture, engineering, liveability, marketability, comfort, power generation for space heating and cooling, water heating and powering lights and appliances.

Ryerson’s “North House” is loaded with solar features and will used to study whether they could be applied to housing and high-rises across Canada. The team hopes to get its project displayed at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

Teams in the “Solar Decathlon” get $100,000 from the U.S. Department of Energy to design and build the demonstration houses, which covers only a small part of the cost of each house. Each team must raise the rest. The buildings are to be erected for judging and public display at a “Solar Village” on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., in September 2009.

“We’re absolutely ecstatic,” said Mark Gorgolewski, an associate professor of architectural science at Ryerson and one of the faculty members on Team North, which also includes staff and students from the University of Waterloo and Simon Fraser University. A second Canadian team in the competition is headed by the University of Calgary.

“I’m thrilled,” said Lauren Barhydt, a master’s student at Waterloo and a student team co-ordinator. “It’s rare that students have the opportunity to be involved in a project of this magnitude – collaborating with institutions across the country, working on the cutting edge of sustainable design and manufacturing, and addressing the changing needs of Canada’s northern regions.”

The North House is expected to cost more than $1 million, including the expense of shipping it to the Solar Village.

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