Question: I want to build a conventional-looking house that uses solar heating and cooling without the big solar roof collectors. I would like a spacious, open floor plan. What solar features are best ...

Even diehard Instagrammers admit it: Sometimes the best design is in what you don’t see. Such is the case with passive solar design, an approach to building that—in a nutshell—uses a house’s site, ...

Following the first energy crisis in 1973 there was a rush to heat homes with the sun. It was a tinkerer's paradise, with all manner of solar heating systems migrating from garage workshops to ...

The passive-house building standard relies on lots of insulation and intentional design to use as little energy as possible for heating and cooling. "Things like 'passive house' have become more ...

As I discussed in last week’s column ("Resilience: Dramatically Better Building Envelopes," Jan. 4), a resilient home is extremely well-insulated, so that it can be kept warm with very little ...

Paul and Patricia Grogan, both 81, built an energy-efficient passive solar home near Dublin in the 1970s. After almost 50 years, they're listing the 4-bedroom property for $1.32 million. "There'll be ...

John Avenson fell in love with his home more than four decades ago. The year was 1981. That’s when Avenson, a young engineer at the Bell Telephone Company, caught an ad for an event called a Passive ...

A midcentury house in Olympia Fields designed by passive-solar pioneers Keck & Keck in 1954 is coming on the market for the first time in nearly three decades. Terry Debruin is asking $399,000 for the ...

In our latest call for entries, Building Design+Construction collected over 20 multifamily projects with a focus on affordable housing. Here are two developments that are PHIUS-certified and built to ...

Jun. 12—Building a passive solar adobe home wasn't the norm in 1982. But studio artist and Zen practitioner Susan Linnell, driven by a desire for efficiency and an interest in architecture, knew what ...

Clear Heart Redwood ceilings line the main level of the home. Cameron Carothers/Carothers Photo for Sotheby’s International Realty The 3,700-square-foot abode has an unconventional layout with four ...