How did Goodhouse Architects design a new home optimised for solar power production?

Goodhouse Architecture specialises in sustainable and affordable architecture with low energy and zero carbon emissions. Goodhouse 13 was a challenging project due to the site's hilly terrain, but the team rose to the occasion by designing an all-electric home with solar panels, inverters, and battery systems to achieve zero carbon and zero energy use.

The team was able to achieve around 70% effective solar access to the panels by raising the house into the trees and punching it into the side of the hill. Goodhouse 13 has a 6.6-kilowatt system, a five-kilowatt inverter, and a 10-kilowatt battery. Post occupancy data is showing that the energy consumption will be met entirely by the power generated on-site.

So I'm Mark Thomas from Goodhouse Architecture, we specialise in sustainable architecture. So Goodhouse really came to exist, because of the perceived lack in our market for a sustainable architecture that was low energy, zero carbon, affordable. Goodhouse 13 was a lovely project that we did in the hills, it was a very very tricky site. And one of the challenges of Goodhouse 13 was to try and get as much solar access as we possibly could into the living areas, as well as give as much solar access as we could to the solar panels. So each Goodhouse is really important to be an all electric home, because of the technology that we now have available to us in solar panels and in inverters and in battery systems. We can actually have a house that is pretty much zero carbon and zero energy use, when it's balanced out with those things.

So Goodhouse 13 was always going to be a trick because of the site. It's very very hilly, steep site, and it's got lots and lots of trees giving shading to the roof. So on site you can see that we've essentially punched the house into the side of the hill, raise it up into the trees as high as we possibly can and in that position, we're getting around about 70% effective solar access to our panels. Which is fantastic, it was more than we thought. So Goodhouse 13 has got about a 6.6 kilowatt system, with a five kilowatt inverter, and it's got a 10 kilowatt battery. Now we're in the process of getting some post occupancy data done on that building. The evidence is showing already that the energy consumption will be well and truly met by the power generated on site.