“The house was started as an on campus location to do blower door and duct tester training. From that base I thought that it could be used as a hands-on example for the students to learn green building and building science concepts,” says Dan Smith, an instructor involved in the zero-energy house program.

As the project continues, students will be monitoring the house’s efficiency using several diagnostic tools, including a blower door. Individual circuits of the building system will be tracked, to experiment with the energy consumption of different house-hold appliances and plug loads.

“The idea that I want my students to take with them is “conservation before generation”, a kilowatt that we don’t use is a kilowatt that we don’t have to produce,” Smith says.

Several Passive heating features have been applied to the house’s design, including south facing glass, natural ventilation for air conditioning, and using prevailing winds for passive air movement. And not just building diagnostics students are benefiting from this program:

“… the Architectural Design program took on the task of drawing a set of plans. We have several other programs on campus contributing to the project such as well. The Interior Design program is coordinating colors and finishes,” Smith explained. “The low voltage program will be installing the alarms and data lines, landscape management is designing the greenery around the house, and the Automotive Restoration Program is rebuilding a golf cart to demonstrate the use of electric vehicles.”

The building itself will serve multiple purposes - from air leakage training to a venue for lectures and seminars. The program even plans to incorporate tours and presentations on everything the house embodies, including water conservation, solar basics, and organic gardening among others.

“My goal for the future of this program is to be the go-to center for construction and building science education,” Smith says.

The college itself continually networks with Habitat for Humanity and community outreach organizations. Before students graduate they must first donate 90 hours to the community.

For more information about the project, pictures of progress, or to donate to this unique program, visit the website at www.cptc.edu/zero or contact dan.smith@cptc.edu

Retrotec proudly supports Clover Park Technical College with training materials and equipment. To learn more about how Retrotec can work with your training program contact silvie@retrotec.com