This stately colonial appears to be just another House & Garden centerfold, but it's actually suburbia's first zero-energy home. That glossy black roof is rigged with 1,300 square feet of solar panels that generate 6 kilowatts of electricity. "Usually, a solar house is a spaceship-looking thing with boxy modules, or it's a junky ecoshack in the woods," says Alden Hathaway, a director at the Environmental Resources Trust and proud resident of the Solar Patriot, located on the outskirts of Washington, DC. "This structure defies stereotypes." Hathaway incorporates photovoltaic panels to generate electricity, thermal panels for hot water, and a geothermal pump for the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning. The PV system feeds through two inverters before hitting the grid, where local utilities buy up the surplus. The technology increases the mortgage by about 10 percent, but the savings in energy bills - up to $300 a month - more than offset the added cost. And the Hathaways don't skimp on creature comforts: The family runs four computers, three TVs, and three stereos. "We're energy-conscious," says Hathaway, "but if the kids forget to turn off the Nintendo, we don't call the watt police."
ELECTRIC WORD
Timescrapers
High-Performance Design
Solar Powerhouse
Peripheral Vision
Cape Crusaders
Skeleton Key
