The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Solar homes can be affordable, _ economical, says local expert *‘*But less expensive and less technologically advanced methâ€" ods of collecting the sun‘s heat will still do an extremely good job. So you can get a solar home costing just 10 per cent more to build and still cut the winter‘s heating bill to about 25 per cent of what it would be for a convenâ€" tional house of approximately the same size." One of the $53,000 homes he designed had a heating .bill that totalled only $50 for the 1980â€"81 winter. Prof.â€"Somfay feels the market for solar homes is slowly expandâ€" ing. However, he feels governâ€" ment involvement could be more effective if they would: *‘Sponsor teaching programs aimed at conâ€" tractors, developers and wouldâ€" be buyers ... this would really help to stimulate the housing inâ€" dustry ." _ Design is the key to low heating costs, Prof. Somfay says. This means insulating the homes with twice the usual amount. It also means minimizing heat loss through infiltration caused by cracks and around doors and windows, which are tightly sealed. *‘"What happens when governâ€" ment gets involved in testing solar or engeryâ€"efficient housing is that research is done using the most technologically advanced and therefore most expensive â€" equipment. The result is the solar home appears to be a very costly alternative to more conventional housing," he points out.. (Active solar homes have a system utilizing water, rocks. salt or some other substance for storing heat during the daytime; heat is reâ€"circulated by fans or pumps at night or on cloudy days. Passive systems store heat in walls or floors and reâ€"circulation is by natural air currents within the dwelling â€" sometimes assisted by mechanical devices). By Josee Dutfthues Though they‘re usually thought of as extremely expensive, solar homes can often be built for as little as 10 per cent above the cost of a regular home, according to one of Canada‘s leading solar home experts, Prof. Joe Somfay of the University of Waterloo‘s (UW) school of architecture. Prof. Somfay learned architecâ€" ture in Australia where solar heating has long been popular. He claims government involveâ€" ment in this kind of housing development may actually have hampered its acceptance in the residential market in Canada. He designs airâ€"locks at enâ€" trances. Rooms are arranged to maximize heat retention ... few if any windows are on the north side of solar buildings and closets and inactive spacers act as buffers between rooms and outâ€" side walls. Vents, such as clothes dryer vents, are located so as to prevent heat loss. He himself, with associate James E. Fryett, a UW graduate in architecture, has designed and built passive and active solar homes for as little as $53,000, excluding the price of the lot. Som{fay homes sometimes rely on efficient airâ€"tight wood stoves for backâ€"up heating. Where there Solar homes cost 10% more to build Heating bill only $50 for emtire winter Lenders consider lower mortgage rates for solar homes "If we can convince 10 per cent of our audience of the advantages of solar energy, that in itself will produce a real turnaround conâ€" cerning these homes, within the building industry,"" he says. "It wouldn‘t take much these days." Municipal authorities are also becoming more interested in solar, reports Prof. Somfay. For example, Kitchener planning auâ€" thorities recently altered their square footage minimum area requirement for a home built in a particular part of the community to permit a solar home of only about 1,500 square feet. Somfay‘s clients explained that more space would actually represent wasted heat, and the authorities agreed. Prof. Somfay claims some lenders are even considering lower mortgage rates for energy efficient homeowners. This too is of benefit to growth in the solar home market. . _Prof. Somfay frequently lecâ€" tures on solar homes, together with Jim Fryett. These lectures are geared to the building indusâ€" try as well as to general audiâ€" ences. The Housing and Urban Develâ€" opment Association (HUDAC), an association of private buildâ€" ers, is also becoming increasingâ€" ly involved with solar design, Prof. Somfay says. Currently HUDAC has an education proâ€" gram for builders and Somfay Associates are keen particiâ€" pants. Somfay indicates mortgage companies are beginning to show a greater willingness to lend to people planning solar homes possibly because they expect such people will be better able to carry current high interest mortâ€" gages, since their fuel bills will be lower. As far as he is concerned, energy efficient homes make sense. "It‘s like wearing clothing that matches the weather," he says. "I guess I can summarize my feelings about them by saying that solar buildings ought not to be nearly as special as they are; they ought to be commonplace." They have already built five energyâ€"efficient homes for Hydro; these are now experiencâ€" ing their first winter. Other Ontario Hydro builders have parâ€" ticipated in putting up a total of 45 test dwellings in Ontario, and Hydro is closely monitoring their performance. Research in solar design is continuing. Recently Joe Somfay Associates, Salem, the architecâ€" tural firm to which he devotes part of his time, received a contract from Ontario Hydro to develop a solar housing proâ€" gram. *"Furthermore, as fuel prices continue to rise solar homes will become, increasingly, an even better buy,"‘ he says. Prof. Somfay argues the addiâ€" tional cost of the solar homes he designs is more than made up for by heating savings. are fireplaces, these are deâ€" signed for efficient combustion; fans circulate the heat throughâ€" out the house and combustion air is supplied from the outside. Northeast view of $53,000 passive solar home designed by Somftay Associates, Salem. Note minimum window exposure on northern side. The roof of this home is made of a special barnâ€"wood painted black for maximum absorption of sun‘s rays. y The Greatest Little Restaurant In Town CRANDMA LEE‘S WATERLOO SQUARE ~nutritionsg. WA TERLOO CHRONICLE, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 7, 1982 â€" PAGE 5