Naked City

A model of the UT Solar Decathlon Team's SNAP House

When it comes to building and designing new homes, members of the UT Solar Decathlon Team say, "as professionals and simply as homeowners, we all have failed to address our own cultural, environmental, and familial needs … until now." Last Friday, UT unveiled a scale model of the house they will build for the 2005 Solar Decathlon, an interdisciplinary competition challenging students to design and build an 800-square-foot, solar-powered house. Entries from 19 teams nationwide will be judged in 10 events that evaluate the ingenuity, energy efficiency, and architecture of their designs.

UT's concept home is known as the SNAP (Super Nifty Action Package). By using prefabricated, factory-made pieces that snap together at the building site, UT teammates believe their method will allow for high quality construction, fast assembly, low costs, possibility of disassembly and relocation, decreased worker commutes, and minimal waste. Students will begin building the SNAP in a few weeks at a university-owned lot on Leona Street in East Austin.

"By building a beautiful, livable house and integrating Photovoltaic panels into the design – instead of slapping them on the roof as an afterthought – we hope to show that solar power is not a fringe market, but a viable energy source," says the team's Web site. "Solar power is more affordable than ever, easier to install, use, and maintain." Solar D student representative Rachel Carson said the UT team placed added emphasis on long-term viability and materiality compared to the current industry. The SNAP design allows for easy upgrades or expansions, and materials were selected based on environmental sensitivity both in their origin and effect on occupants, she said.

The Solar Decathlon is a project of the U.S. Department of Energy and its National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The competition focuses on solar energy production, although the 10 contests of the decathlon also explore such issues as thermal comfort, livability, and system efficiency.

Team UT's stated goal is to transform the residential housing industry in this country into one that is "accountable to the people and successfully addresses their desire for beautifully designed, appropriately diverse, economically viable, and environmentally responsible housing." Further, through the use of solar power, the Solar D team hopes to enable homeowners to directly participate in the energy economy by producing rather than simply consuming energy. The construction and maintenance of housing accounts for the highest energy consumption and the most environmental damage of any industry in our country, according to data on the Solar D Web site (www.utsolard.org).