"One Tonne Life" Experimental House Seeks to Drastically Reduce Carbon Footprint of Family

The One Tonne Life Project home was designed by Gert Wingårdh, as an experimental test house for low-carbon living. The two-story home makes the most of its small footprint and utilizes solar passive design to maintain an extraordinarily degree of energy efficiency. Soon a lucky family will move into the super energy-efficient home in Hässelby to see what it takes to live a "One Ton Life" - the goal of the project is to see if a family of four can reduce their carbon footprint from 6-8 tons of CO2 per person down to one ton per person.

The home includes many hallmarks of solar passive design, including a tight building envelope, thick insulation, shaded windows, and a strong insulating foundation. These measures ensure that the home can be powered completely by thin-film solar panels on the roof of the house and the carport. The home will be built by A-hus, whose goal is to build climate-smart wooden houses.

Inside, energy efficient appliances, LED lighting, energy monitoring, daylighting, and a specialized recycling and waste management system help to reduce the environmental impact of the family. The family chosen for the experiment will also receive a Volvo Electric C30 that can be fully charged in 8 hours using the home’s solar panels and a home charging connection made by Vattenvall. During the experiment, the family is expected to go about their normal day-to-day lives including work and school, and they will be interviewed and filmed about their experiences

[via Inhabitat]