Fifty Carleton students will be part of a team competing in the 2013 U.S. Solar Decathlon in Irvine, Calif., according to a university press release.
The Solar Decathlon is a biennial university competition where students design and construct a net-zero emission home, according to Carleton project manager Chris Baldwin. The houses are displayed publicly for 10 days and are judged in 10 areas relating to quality of design, consumer appeal, and efficiency, he said.
Baldwin said Team Ontario is one of 20 teams competing in the decathlon. The team consists of roughly 100 undergraduate and graduate students from Algonquin College, Queen’s University, and Carleton.
“We figured we would be much stronger as one team,” he said. “We all bring different strengths.”
In addition to monthly meetings, Team Ontario has weekly group meetings for each different discipline, Baldwin said. Architectural drawing and design plans are based at Carleton, business is at Queen’s, and trade students at Algonquin are in charge of technical aspects. He said the mechanics and structural components are split equally between Algonquin and Carleton.
“It’s been a lot of work to get to this point so when we found out it was a very exciting time,” Baldwin said.
Currently, Team Ontario is in the designing phase of their modular home. Baldwin said they plan on constructing a two-bedroom house for a young family that can hold up under the Canadian climate.
With less than 1,000 square feet to work with, this may prove challenging.
“It’s fairly rare. Most teams go for designing a bachelor pad because it’s easier,” Baldwin said.
Although they’re using triple pane windows, vacuum-sealed insulation, and solar thermal energy to ensure efficiency, it doesn’t mean they’ll be sacrificing design.
“We want to use cutting edge materials in all aspects of the house,” Baldwin said.
They’re also looking to score points with the judges under building materials.
“We are looking to use locally-sourced and Canadian materials. However, this isn’t an absolute requirement for the competition,” Baldwin said.
As for the grand prize, Baldwin said “there’s no financial prize but it’s a really prestigious competition and goes a long way in terms of sustainability for the future.”
So far, Team Ontario has received financial support from their universities and their sponsor, Panasonic, Baldwin said.
Carleton president Roseann Runte said she’s “delighted” Carleton students are participating.
“I am sure they will make a fine contribution and that it will be a . . . very good opportunity to work as a team,” Runte said.
Canada has yet to make the podium in the decathlon, Baldwin said. The highest a Canadian team scored was at the last decathlon in 2009 with Ryerson University, the University of Waterloo, and Simon Fraser University’s team finishing fourth, he said.
As 2013 approaches, Baldwin said more students are getting involved with Team Ontario.
“There’s no limit as to the number of students that can be involved, and the more students involved, the better,” Baldwin said.
Starting in January 2013, Team Ontario will move on to the construction phase.
“Since it’s a modular home, we’ll break it up and ship it by truck down to the States,” Baldwin said.
Once their house arrives in Irvine, they have seven days to reconstruct it before the competition begins in October 2013.
