Revised on: 05/11/05
Course Number: ENTS 228
Course Title: Design and Construction of a Eco-house
Term Spring 2005
CarletonCollege
Northfield, MN55057
Class Time: Tuesday1:10–3:15p.m.
Lab Time: Thursday 1:10–5:00 p.m.
Classroom: Computer and Mathematics Center Room 206
Basic Contact Information:
Name:Professor Gary Wagenbach
Office: 305 Hulings Hall
E-mail:
Phone number: 507-646-4390
Name: Lecturer Richard Strong
Office: 307 Facilities Building
E-mail:
Phone number: 507-646-4271
Office Hours: TBA
Course Description/Overview/Objectives:
Exploration of a design for a small "foot print," energy efficient, cost effective and aesthetically pleasing student house. Course goal is to learn about good design and plan for construction. Seminar format will be used along with demonstrations, field trips, guest speakers, and practical work on initial phases of construction. Lab required. This year’s lab focus will be on energy, both heating and power within the house, especially looking at the natural flows of energy available and how they may supplement the eco-house requirements for heating and power. The outcome of the class is for the student to have a greater knowledge and appreciation of living with the capacities of the climatic and eco-systems of southern Minnesota.
Week One - Rachel Carson
March 29Class 1 a: Becoming Eco-techs/Introduction to the course and expectations/ Climate/Culture and Materials(Lecture/Discussion)
(45 Minutes)
Class 1 b: Study of Indigenous Buildings (Lecture/Discussion)
(45 Minutes)
Assignment:Exercise #1Indigenous Structures, due April 5.
Reading Assignment: “Lessons from Environmental Collapses of Past Societies” by Dr. Jared M. Diamond On the Web at:
Reading Assignment:“Cradle to Cradle”by William McDonough and Michael Braungart, due for class discussion on May 3.
March 31Class 2 Lab a:Introduction to the Purposes of the Lab/Review of last year’s work (Lecture/Discussion)(45 Minutes)
Class 2 Lab b: Introduction to Energy(Lecture/Discussion)(45 Minutes) Class 2 Lab c:Energy Basics(Lecture/Discussion)(45 Minutes)
Class 2 Lab d:Review of Lab #1: What are the student energy needs? And Field trip to the Solar House. (Lecture/Discussion)(45 Minutes)
Reading Assignment:“Regenerative Design for Sustainable Development”byJohn Tillman Lyle, chapters1, 2, and 3, pages 3-50.
Bioclimate Design:
Assignment:Lab #1 What are the student energy needs? Due April 7.
Week Two - Ian McHarg
(Optional Lecture)Monday, April 4, 5:45p.m., CALA Auditorium
David Pijawka, Ph.D., Director, Ph.D. Program in Environmental Design and Planning and Professor, School of Planning and Landscape Architecture, College of Architecture and Environmental Design, ArizonaStateUniversity
“Confronting Sustainability at the Neighborhood Level: Perceptions, Footprints and Design”
April 5 Class 3 a: Presentation of: Exercise #1 Discovering the natural energies in indigenous structures(60 Minutes–6 student’s presentations at 5 minutes each)
Class 3 b: Site Analysis/McHarg (Lecture/Discussion) (45 Minutes)
Reading Assignment: “Design with Nature” by Ian McHarg, pages 103-115
Web site on Check List for Sustainable Development
When architects, city planners and other large physical space designers talk about development, invariably the question "how can architecture influence the quality of life?" in a community comes up. For the American Institute of Architecture’s take on this question―useful when talking with designers―here are AIA's 10 short principles, elaborated on succinctly at the following Web page:
Exercise #2: Ecological Site Planning, due April 26.
Reading Assignment:On the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Web site under Scientific and Natural Areas see the Three Eco-regions of Minnesota
April 7Class 4 Lab a:Presentation of Lab #1(1 Hour)
Class 4 Lab b:Presentation of Lab #1(1 Hour)
Class 4 Lab c:ElectrochromicsGlass presentation (1/2 Hour)
Mike Myser 507/331-4903 Tour of Sage Glass
Class 4 Lab d:Scott Oslund 507/645-4401, Tour of Cardinal Glass (1-1/2 Hour)Field Trip - Van
Reading Assignment:“Regenerative Design for Sustainable Development”byJohn Tillman Lyle, chapter 4, pages 51-98
Lab #2:Mapping Connections between energy use and supply, due April 14.
Helpful Web Site:
Reading Assignment:“Permaculture, Principles Beyond Sustainability,” by David Holmgren, chapter 2,Catch and Store Energy, pages 27-51
Week Three- Wes Jackson
April 12Class 5 a: Campus planners Mark Johnson and Todd Mead, from Civitas, willexplain the geographical and ecological evolution of the Carleton campus(Lecture) (45 Minutes)
Class 5 b: Guest presentation by Dennis Sun Rhodes, a Native American Architect, and Currine Wanstall, both Northern Arapahoe Tribal Members at Wind River,WY.(Lecture) (45 Minutes)
Reading Assignment:“White Buffalo” by Chief Looking Horse
April 14Class 6 Lab a: Guest Presentation by David Ejadifrom Wiedt Group, Energy Analysis Programs(Lecture) (45 Minutes) (Rich gone)
Class 6 Lab b: Computer Energy Modeling Energy-10 by Jay Johnson(Lecture) (45 Minutes)
Class 6Lab c-d: Field Trip:Jay Johnson Home and Candace Knudson's 507-332-0557/210-0007 straw bale construction site in Faribault– Field Trip (Vans)
Lab #3:Researching Energy Collection Strategies, due April 21.
Helpful Web site:
Reading Assignment: “Regenerative Design for Sustainable Development”byJohn Tillman Lyle, chapter 5, pages 99-140
Week Four- John Lyle - Earth Week
April 19 Class 7 a:Presentation of an Ecological Design for the Site—Bio Regionalism (Lecture/Discussion) (45 Minutes)
Reading Assignment:“Water Stained Landscapes” by Joan Woodwardpages 11-73
Class 7 b:Studying and Creating the Micro-climatic of the Site (Lecture/Discussion) (45 Minutes)
Reading Assignment: “Permaculture a Practical Guide for a Sustainable Future” by Bill Mollison, pages 36-56
Or Janine Benyus reading
April 21Class 8 Lab a: Presentation of Lab #1
Class 8 Lab b: Presentation of Lab #2
Class 8 Lab c: Continuation of Creating a Micro Climate
Class 8 Lab d: We will assemble the Tipi. All are encouraged to participate – (Class Project – 45+ Minutes)
Labs #3 , #4 and #5:Researching Energy Collection, Storage and Release Strategies House Program Considerations, due May 5.
Reading Assignment:“Regenerative Design for SustainableDevelopment”byJohn Tillman Lyle, chapter 10, pages 281-306
Week Five - David Orr
April 26Class 9 a: Guest Speaker: Carleton Professor Clifford Clark,
Professor of History and M.A. and A.D. Hulings Professor of American
Studies “History of the American House” (Lecture) (45 Minutes)
Class 9 b: Exercise #2 Presentation of Site Ecological Analysis (Student’s Presentations)(60 Minutes)
ReadingAssignment: “Ecological Design” by Sims Van Deer Ryun and Stuart Cowan, pages 51-81
April 28Class 10 Laba-b:Mary Guzowski, Associate Professorfrom the Daylight Lab at the U of M – Field Trip
Class 10 Lab c-d: John Carmody Director, Center for Sustainable Building Research– WindowsBuilding Researchat the U of M– Field Trip(Vans)
Reading Assignment:“Regenerative Design for Sustainable Development”byJohn Tillman Lyle, chapter 9, pages 263-280
April 29-May 1 (Optional Event)Annual Living Green Expo at the State
Fairgrounds in the Grandstand. Over 10,000 visitors are expected. This 4th annual event will feature both workshops on and exhibitors of products, services and approaches for personal living that has fewer environmental, social and economicimpacts.
Week Six - William McDonough
May 3 Class 11 a:Remainder of Exercise #2 Presentations and Class Discussion of “Cradle to Cradle” byWilliam McDonough and Michael Braungart(Discussion) (45 Minutes)
Class 11 b: Myles Bakkediscussion of theEco-house Site on the Eco-house site (Lecture/Discussion) (45 Minutes)
Exercise #3:Bubble Diagrams
Reading Assignment:“Patterns of Home: The Ten Essentials of Enduring Design” by Max Jacobson, Murray Silverstein, and Barbara Winslow, pages 6-21
May 5Class 12 Lab a:Presentation of Lab #3
Class 12 Lab b: Presentation of Lab #4
Class 12 Lab c: Presentation of Lab #5
Class 12 Lab d: Presentation by Chris Petit about insulation of the straw bale warehouse (30 minutes)
Lab #6:Design of the South Wall
Reading Assignment:“Regenerative Design for Sustainable Development”byJohn Tillman Lyle, chapter 6, pages 141-186
Week Seven - Amory Lovins and Hunter Lovins
May 10Class 13 a:Assessing Ecological Footprint of House Design(Lecture/Discussion) (40 Minutes)
Class 13 b:Sketch-up Presentation by Jason Lord (10 Presentation)
Reading Assignment:“One with Nineveh” by Paul and Anne Ehrlich, chapter 4, pages 112-137
May 12 Class 14Lab a-b:Allan Stanowicz 507/894-4140-404/461-9978,owner ofCord Wood House Presentation (Lecture/Discussion) (120 Minutes)
Class 14 Lab c-d: Introduction to the Elements of Design(30 minutes)(Lecture/Discussion) (60 Minutes)
Lab #7:Energy Modeling the South Wall
Reading Assignment:“European Project Regener Life Cycle Analysis of Buildings” by Brono Peuportier,Niklaus Kohler and Chiel Boonstra
OrReading Assignment:“Life-Cycle Assessment for Buildings: Seeking the Holy Grail” by Environmental Building News
Week Eight -John Todd
May 17 Class 15 a: Introduction into water cistern systems, grey andblack water systems – living machines (Lecture/Discussion) (45 Minutes)
Class 15 b:Exercise #3 House Design Presentation (Bubble Diagrams) (45 Minutes)
Exercise #4:Building Design Presentation
Reading Assignment:“Creating the Not So Big House” pages 2-19 and “The Not So Big House” pages 6-28, both by Sarah Susanka
Reading Assignment:“Regenerative Design for Sustainable Development”byJohn Tillman Lyle, chapter 8, pages 225-262
May 19Class 16 Lab a: Presentation of Lab #6 and #7: Energy Modeling the South Wall (60 Minutes)
Class 16 Labb:Rating Systems-Are they any good? (Lecture/Discussion) (30 Minutes)
Class 16 Lab c:Green Roofs (David Holman, Jason Lord, Andrew Kaplan and Jacob Gold)(Lecture/Discussion) (20 Minutes)
Class 16 Lab d:Tipi Painting (Remainder of class)
Reading Assignment:“Regenerative Design for Sustainable Development”byJohn Tillman Lyle, chapter 7, pages 187-224
Let the Testing Begin:
SouthWallBuilding and Testing Starts Today See Schedule below
Lab #8: Building the South Wall
Lab #9: Testing the South Wall
Lab #10: Presentation of the Design to the Community
South Wall Testing times
Group One- David Holman Start 12 pm May 19th, Finish 12 pm May 21st
Group Two – Kate HammondStart 12 pm May 21st, Finish 12 pm May 23rd
Group Three – Jason LordStart 12 pm May 23rd, Finish 12 pm May 25th
Group Four- Josh TolkanStart 12 pm May 25th, Finish 12 pm May 27th
Week Nine - Janine Benyes
May 24Class 17 a: Exercise #4 Final House Design Presentations (40 Minutes)
Class 17 b: Student Time
May 26Class 18Lab a-b: Practice Class Presentations of Lab #8, #9 and #10
Class 18 Lab c-d: Building and Testing Eco-house Outside (Student Time)
Reading Assignment:“Regenerative Design for Sustainable Development”byJohn Tillman Lyle, chapter 11, pages 307-320
Week Ten
May 31Class 19 a: Class Presentations of Lab #8, #9 and #10 in Olin 141
Class 19 b: Class Presentations of Lab #8, #9 and #10 in Olin 141
Required Reading List:
Cradle to Cradle by William McDonough and Michael Braungart
Regenerative Design for Sustainable DevelopmentbyJohn Tillman Lyle, Wiley,1996 ISBN 0471178438, paper
Optional Reading List:
The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices: Practical Advice from the Union of Concerned Scientistsby Michael Brower, Warren Leon
Ecohouse 2, Second Editionby Sue Roaf
Grading Criteria: All exercises and labs will be graded. Since most of the student’s work will be focused on the labs and the final presentation, 65% of the grade will be weighted on these two items. The grades will be weighted in the following distribution:
Class Portion of ENTS 228 (25%)
Exercise #1 Indigenous Structures25% - Teams of four
Exercise #2 Ecological Site Study25% - Teams of four
Exercise #3 Bubble Diagrams25% - Teams of six
Exercise #4 Building Design Presentation25% - Teams of six
Lab Portion of ENTS 228 (65%)
Lab Presentation #1:Assessing Student Energy 5% - Teams of four
Lab Presentation #2: Mapping Connections Between
Energy Use and Supply 5% - Teams of four
Lab Presentation #3: Research Collection Strategies10% - 1 Teams of four
Lab Presentation #4:Research Storage Strategies10% - 1 Teams of four
Lab Presentation #5:Research Release Strategies10% - 1 Teams of four
Lab Presentation #6:Design of the South Wall10% - 4 Teams of seven
Lab Presentation #7:Computer Modeling10% - 4 Teams of seven
Lab Presentation #8:Building the South Wall10% - 4 Teams of seven
Lab Presentation #9:Testing the South Wall
Lab Presentation #10: Community Presentation20% - 4 Teams of seven
Class Participation: 10% - Individual
Total: 100%
Class presentations are required to be professional and well rehearsed. Exercises 1-4 and Labs 1-7 will be for fellow classmates. The final presentation (Labs #8, 9, and 10) will be presented to the design/construction community.
If there is alternative subject matter instead of the proposed exercise that you are interested in that directly pertains to the subject matter of the course, you may propose a substitute investigation to be approved by the instructors.
*Please notify Professor Wagenbach if you need anyphysical or academic disability accommodations.
Bibliography for the ENTS 228CourseBooks below in the Carleton Library inthe Reserve Section,see Veronica Otte
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Alexander,Christopher, Notes on the Synthesis of Form, HarvardUniversity Press, 1964, ISBN 0-674-62750-4
Alexander, Christopher,Davis, Howard, Martinez, Julio, Corner, Don, The Production of Houses, OxfordUniversity Press, 1985, ISBN 0-19-503223-3
Anderson, Bruce, Solar Energy, Fundamentals in Building Design, McGraw Hill Book Company, 1977, ISBN 0-07-001951-4
Anderson, Ray C., Mid-Course Correction, Toward a Sustainable Enterprise: The Interface Model, Chelsea Green Publishing Company, 1998, ISBN 0-9645953-5-4
AtKisson, Alan, Believing Cassandra, An Optimist Looks at a Pessimist’s World, Chelsea Green Publishing Company, 1999, ISBN 1-890132-16-0
Bailey, Robert G. Ecoregion-Based Design for Sustainability, Sprinker, 1987, ISBN 0-387-95429-5
Barlett, Peggy F. Chase, Geoffrey W. Sustainability on Campus, Stories and Strategies for Change the MIT Press, 2004, ISBN 0-262-02560-4
Behling, Sophia and Stefan, Solar Power, The Evolution of Sustainable Architecture, Publication for the READ Group, Prestel, 2000 ISBN 3-7913-2411-X
Benyus Janine M., Biomimicry, Innovation Inspired by Nature, Quill William Morrow, New York, 1997, ISBN 0-688-16099-9
Bowers, C. A., Educating for an Ecologically Sustainable Culture, Rethinking Moral Education, Creativity, Intelligence, and Other Modern Orthodoxies, StateUniversity of New York Press, 1995, ISBN 0-7914-2498-7
Bowers, C. A., Mindful Conservatism, Rethinking the Ideological and Educational Basis of an Ecologically Sustainable Future, Rowen and Littlefield Publishers, Inc. 2003, ISBN 0-7425-3321-2
Brower, Michael, Leon, Warren, The consumer’s Guide to Effective Environmental Choices, Practical Advice from the Union of concerned Scientists, Three Rivers Press, 1999, ISBN 0-609-80281-X
Brown, G.Z., Delay, Mark, Sun, Wind and Light, Architectural Design Strategies, John Wiley and Son, Inc., 2001, ISBN 0-471-34877-5
Building Tipis and Yurts by Blue Evening Star, Lark Book, A division of Sterling Publishing Co., New York1995
Capra, Fritjof, The Hidden Connections, Integrating the Biological, Cognitive, and Social Dimensions of Life into Science of Sustainability, Doubleday, 2002, ISBN 0-385-49471-8
Capra, Fritjof, The Web of Life, A New Scientific Understanding of Living Systems, Anchor Books, Doubleday, 1996, ISBN 0-385-47676-0
Chambers, Nicky, Simmons, Craig, Wackernagel, Mathis, Sharing Nature’s Interest, Ecological footprint as an Indicator of Sustainability, Earthscan Publications LTD, 2001 ISBN 1-85383-739-3
Chiras, Daniel D., The Natural House, A complete Guide to Healthy, Energy Efficient, Environmental House, Chelsea Green Publishing Company, 2000, ISBN 1-890132-57-8
Chiras, Daniel D., The Solar House, Passive Heating and Cooling, Chelsea Green Publishing Company, 2002, ISBN 1-931498-12-1
Daly, Herman, E., Townsend, Kenneth, N., Valuing the Earth, Economics, Ecology, Ethics, the MIT Press, 1993, ISBN 0-262-04133-2
Davis, Mike, Ecology of Fear, Los Angeles and the Imagination of Disaster, Vintage Books, 1998, ISBN 0-375-70607-0
Del Porto, David, Steinfeld, Carol, The Composting Toilet System, Center for Ecological Pollution Prevention, (CEPP) 2002, ISBN 0-9666783-0-3
Dean, Angela M., Green by Design, Creating a Home for Sustainable Living, Gibbs Smith Publisher, 2003, ISBN 1-58685-172-1
Earth Pledge Foundation, Sustainable Architecture, White Papers, Quebecor Printing, Laval, Quebec, 2000, ISBN 0-9675099-1-2
Erin O. Cofaigh, John A. Olley, J. Owen Lewis, Energy Research Group, University College Dublin, The Climatic Dwelling, An introduction to climate-responsive residential architecture James and James Ltd, 1996, ISBN 1-873936-39-7
Fathy, Hassan, Natural Energy and Vernacular Architecture – Principle and Examples with Reference to Hot Arid Climates , The University of Chicago Press, Chicago 1986
Gould, John, Nissen-Peterson, Erik, Rainwater Catchment System for Domestic Supply, Design, Construction and Implementation, ITOG Publishing, 1992, ISBN 1-85339-486-4
Hawken, Paul, The Ecology of Commerce, A Declaration of Sustainability, HarperBusiness, 1994, ISBN 0-8730-704-3
Hawken, Paul, Lovins, Amory, Lovins, L. Hunter, Natural Capitalism, Creating the Next Industrial Revolution, Little, Brown and Company, 1999, ISBN 0-316-35300-0
Holmgren, David, Permaculture, Principles and Pathway Beyond Sustainability, Holmgren Design Services, 2002, ISBN 0-646-41844-0
Jackson, J.B., A Sense of Place, a Sense of Time, YaleUniversity Press, 1994, ISBN 0-300-06397-0
Jackson, J.B., Discovering the Vernacular Landscape, YaleUniversity Press, 1984, ISBN 0-300-03581-0
Jackson, J.B., The Necessity for Ruins and Other Topics, The University of Massachusetts Press, Amherst, 1980, ISBN 0-87023-292-4
Jackson, Wes, Becoming Native to This Place, Counterpoint, Washington, D.C., 1994, ISBN 1-887178-11-2
Jacobson, Max Silverstein, Murray, Winslow, Barbara, Patterns of Home, The Ten Essential of Enduring Design, The Taunton Press, 2002, ISBN 1-56158-533-5
Laubin, Reginald and Gladys, The Indian Tipi: Its History, Construction and Use, Ballantine Books, New York, 1957
Leopold, Aldo, A Sand County Almanac with Essays on Conservation from Round River, a Ballantine Book, 1966, ISBN 0-345-34505-3
Ludwig, Art, Create an Oasis with Greywater, Oasis Design, 1994, ISBN 0-9643433-0-4
Lyle, John Tillman, Design for Human Ecosystems, Island Press, 1999 ISBN 1-55963-720-X paper
Lynch, Kevin, The Image of the City, The MIT Press, 1960, ISBN 0-262-62000-4
McCullagh, James C., The Solar Greenhouse Book, Rodale Press, Emmaus, PA, 1978, ISBN 0-87857-198-1
McHarg, Ian L., Design with Nature, John Wiley and Sons, Inc. 1992, ISBN 0-471-55797-8
Melby, Pete, Cathcart, Tom, Regenerative Design Techniques, Practical Applications in Landscape Design, John Wiley and Sons, 2002, ISBN 0-471-41472-7
Merkel, Jim, Radical Simplicity, Small Footprints on a Finite Earth, New Society Publishers, 2003, ISBN 0-86571-473-8
Moughtin, Cliff, Urban Design, Green Dimension, Architectural Press, 1996, ISBN 0-7506-2659-3
Nabokov, Peter and Easton, Robert NativeAmerican Architecture, OxfordUniversity Press, New York1989
Ndubisi, Forster, Ecological Planning, A Historical and Comparative Synthesis, The JohnsHopkinsUniversity Press, 2002, ISBN 0-8018-6801-7
Olgyay, Victor, Design with Climate, Bioclimatic Approach to Architectural Regionalism, Princeton, University Press, 1963, ISBN -