On Wed, 19 Nov 2003 09:39:13 -0500, Rob Halgren
wrote:
Hah!! A man after my own heart. :-) I am very interested in solar
energy too. And wind energy! And Susan's idea of building it half
underground is a great one too. Earth is a great insulator and heat sink.
Yes, that is a great idea. I don't know if I have the energy to dig
_quite_ that deep. I was thinking of sinking the final floor a foot or
two, at least. Commercial growers I have talked to warned me against
setting it too deep. What you gain in thermal efficiency, you lose in
light. For me, that isn't a bad thing, my chosen orchids are pretty low
light (paphs and phrags, mainly). If you are a vanda grower in the
north, dirt walls might not be such a good option. But if you are a
vanda specialist in the northern tier, it might be cheaper to move south...
Rob

Use solar to prewarm your water if your going to use any type of
electric heat.
Why do you need full sun on the under bench areas? Our bench is
probably set about 8" under the glass height. Then the step
shelves were set on top. I don't grow under the bench and the
opposite wall has a lower shelf height. I grow Catts and Ascda
hanging overhead. With the drop down we have almost two stories
of head room, as the roof attaches at the eves.
SuE
http://orchids.legolas.org/gallery/albums.php