Home Tours

2008 Guided Green Homes Tours

We live in an interesting and cutting edge area up here in the North Country of New York and many people are already implementing the renewable energy and energy saving, sustainable ideas put forth at the Energy Fair.  Our guided Green Home Tours on Sunday afternoon, were as popular as ever and helped people to get a first hand look at inspiring possibilities.

The homes and buildings featured were energy efficient, well-insulated, employ passive solar design and often use either grid-tied or off-grid solar photovoltaics, wind energy, hydropower and/or geothermal heat pumps. Some are built with alternative methods, such as strawbale and cordwood masonry, and have unique and interesting designs. Below is a gallery of some that are likely to be on the 2008 tours.

Sign up for the tours is at the Fair near the front reception table. Certain ones fill up early. They all leave from SUNY Canton and go from 1 to 4 pm. You may choose only one and registration is limited to 20 people for each. (A limited amount of pre-Fair sign-ups are available for out-of-towners only. Please note that Jerry Bartlett’s house was on the Off-Grid Tour this year.

HOME TOURS 2008

Canton Tour
1. Village grid-tied solar

2. Grid-tied solar electric, passive solar design, recycled stone, efficient appliances, hybrid car

3. Earth sheltered passive solar home

4. Self-built post and beam passive solar home with many simple energy retrofits and ways of saving on your electricity bills

Pyrites Tour

(Led by Bryan Lee who designed and built these homes. This one fills up fast!)
1. Unique passive solar design, super-insulated home, grid-tied solar with battery back-up

2. Round strawbale with passive solar elements

3. Unique passive solar design, super-insulated home with greenhouse, instant hot water, masonry stove and earthen floor

4. Passive solar, super-insulated home, off-grid solar electric

Potsdam Tour
1. Straw bale house with passive solar and solar electric

2. Passive solar Energy Star home, super insulated, grid-tied solar electric, gasefication wood boiler and in floor heat, energy efficient appliances, and many other energy efficient systems

3. Energy Star passive solar home with hybrid on demand heat/hot water boiler, heat recovery ventilation

Off-Grid Tour
1. Strawbale house with passive solar design, off-grid solar electric, masonry heater

2. Super insulated passive solar home with solar electric that also powers a woodshop
3. Non-electric farm using horses for farm work and transportation, water pump windmill, icehouse, root cellar, cold storage, homemade fuel alcohol lights and more

4. Retrofit of older home with moveable off-grid solar electric system, wind, biodiesel generator, super efficient DC refrigerator, washer and wring dryer, creative hot water system, biodiesel vehicles and more (Crazy Jerry Bartlett)

GALLERY OF SOME HOMES ON THE TOURS

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