Yep, an Incredible, Yet Passive, Idea!
Okay – inspiration struck today. I’m doing this poolhouse – right angle gables, dark shingles, and going to be painted red outside – inside is natural rough-sawn pine, just studs and rafters and diagonal sheathing, no ceiling. No AC. Gonna be hot, I’ll bet.
So, I put in good ridge venting, anticipating sufficient eave venting – so outside air would come in over yer head, and go out way up at 11′ or 15′. Whoopee.
BUT – Today I’ve decided to SEAL UP the eaves, and tighten the structure below the big CobraVent ridge vents.
THEN – I’ll build a water table detail around the perimeter of the outside just above ground level – typically a thickened “base” to visually ground a structure.
BUT – this water table will actually have screened vents on the bottom edge, opening into lots of 2″ holes through the exterior sheathing, into the structure just above the toe plate. The idea is that incoming air will wash up the walls and out through the ridge vents.
I’ll bet it will keep the place a lot cooler, and with the ceiling fans set to blow up, it should help the draft even more.
Other thought might be to fur out the Hardi-siding like a rain-screen wall, and let that be the air intake, between the siding and sheathing, into the soffits, and up and out.
Client says go for it!
Forrest – dizzy sometimes from all the thoughts whizzing around
Replies
Yep, that thar's a good idear.
"Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing..."
Couldn't you have a gate at the top so it could become a
passive solar heater in the winter?
Waite, you would have to gate the bottom to.
Cold air from floor drawn up wall and sent out warm at ceiling.
Furring out the exterior sheathing won't draw the cooler air into the interior space.
I am assuming this is your goal.
Are you still considering some kind of solar pool heat if so would running tubing up the walls and under the ceiling and then back to the pool help heat the pool while cooling the pool house?
ANDYSZ2
WHY DO I HAVE TO EXPLAIN TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY THAT BEING A SOLE PROPRIETOR IS A REAL JOB?
REMODELER/PUNCHOUT SPECIALIST
Oh I don't know, once you are drawing warm air up it's
logical you would get a venturi effect at the peak.
That could draw the hot air out of the room, replaced with cooler outside air.
Sure .... let's over-engineer everything, make it as complicated and expensive as possible, even dream of getting a patent.
Or, we could simply plant an Ivy trellis parallel to the walls. Leafy shade and cool in summer, warmed by the sun in winter.
forrest ..."A" for inventiveness...... "D"for practicalityy not just increase the insulation values.... much more cost effectiveMike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
<y not just increase the insulation values<
No - there's no heat or cooling in the building - the goal is just to have the inside at outside air temperature, without actively pumping it in - these two rooms will go for long periods closed and used; don't want them to get manky, either.
Were I to give the building a lot of thermal mass, to give it a 12-14 hour temperature lag, then I would insulate it - you'd be feeling 4 AM outside temperatures in the afternoon.
Forrest
forrest... it sounds like "envelope house" writ smallenvelope house never circulated the air.... they spent large sums for nothing but an attractive theoryMike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
Listen to Mike. Couple of non-functioning envelopes here. Gave up and went to heat pumps.
But what does work well are the insulated translucent panels I salvaged from a pool house (after insurance replacement). Noticeably cooler under them than an uninsulated roof. Give a wonderful glow even on an overcast day."I am a perfect ahole" Sphere 4/13/08
Okay - here's the execution - not an "envelope" design - actually drew it on a piece of 2x.
Intake holes - 2-1/4"; 2x each bayView Image
Holding up the bug screen - it's trapped behind the bottom 1x, and you can see the edgewise 1x2 standoffs - top is all beveled at 15 degrees.
View Image
Section at corner showing concealed intake slot at the bottom -View Image
Finished detail -View ImageForrest - using my dollar TufBoard
Edited 4/22/2008 10:02 pm ET by McDesign
i've used my share of tuff board nice detail... how you going to know if it draws ?....... smoke test ?Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
I think I will do a smoke test, as well as check temperatures bottom to top.
Forrest
Justin - I think this is a good concept for un-conditioned, un-insulated sheds that need passive ventilaition. It occurred to me last Friday, as I realized eave and ridge venting wasn't really going to keep the poolhouse as near the outside temperature as I wanted, down where the people will be.
Any FHB tip interest? I'll probably measure the various temps once it's finished, on a hot day.
Forrest
I will "Bee" sensitive as possible here. ( actually allergic ) If I am reading this right you simply covered the holes with the screen , and didn't close off the bottom of the stand off.
Hate to say this but to me that design looks like a perfect ready made home for wasps, yellow jackets etc. Nice sheltered area out of the weather and not readily seen. I might be thinking about screening off the bottom of the stand off / skirt to prevent the little buggers from making it a home.
They can't get your Goat if you don't tell them where it is hidden.
Hey - all God's creatures gotta live somewhere! But yes, I could see that "slot" becoming a home. Guess they'll spray if it becomes a problem - could always do it from the inside through the holes, in perfect safety.
Forrest
"Ah believe you've re-in-vented the chicken coop, ma boy," declared Foghorn Leghorn.
Edited 4/23/2008 11:01 am by Hudson Valley Carpenter
Any air cooling you get from the water table is due to the air shedding heat to evaporate water, so it gains moisture. The drop in temperature, makes it denser, and the added moisture makes it even denser. So, it will tend to hang low near the floor.
In Pheonix, they have open topped towers at bus stops, that have water misters installed at the top. They act like tall swamp coolers, the humidity is very low there so the falling air column evaporates all the water from the misters, and they get a thirty to forty degree drop in air temperature. The benches are under the towers so they are cooled and shaded.
I would tend to go more in this direction.