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    Here’s the follow up to the tour: It was sponsored by NorthWestern Energy with funding form the Universal System Benefits Charge. We visited two homes.

One home is south of town on flood road. While it had the well-known systems like photovoltaic panels, a windmill, and solar hot-water panels, its real strength was less glamorous. The house is built with the principle of a heat sink in mind. It is built partially into the hill, and its roof is covered with sod. The house is loaded with concrete, stone, and tile. The three materials are very massive compared to others, and they make for great heat sinks. They use the moderation effect of the ground. I asked about keeping the grass alive on the roof, and they said it wasn’t a problem until this July when it got real hot and dry. Much of the grass died, but if I know anything, grass is a survivor, it’ll come back. Also, I sensed a little hostility towards straw-bale home builders. The owner argued that straw-bales are not mass, and cannot be used the same way as stone or concrete. I agree in part. However, I think there could be a wonderful union on the two theories. Being built into the side of a hill is what a straw-bale house could not be though. The outside of the house was less than glamorous, but the inside was quite nice. It had a beautiful arched ceilingm and very nice metal work in the kitchen and living room. However, I think it is a little extreme for the average home owner today. But, moving on.

The second house was east of town in the foothills ranch subdivision. There the home was designed by Ryan Smith of RK3 architecture. There were several foci of the house. First, the orientation of the house with its hip roof instead of a gable roof was designed to be aerodynamic and reduce heat loss though convection. They used 2x6 on the external walls, and Klinefelter Insulation filled the walls with 2” of spray-in urethane to seal cracks and leaks then 4” of blow-in fiberglass insulation. It makes the house very quiet on the inside, not to mention cozy. Instead of the current trend of vaulted ceilings, the home has standard 8’ ceilings, which cut down on the volume needing to be heated, saving energy. It also cuts the amount of waste in construction significantly. The house shared two items with the first on the tour. One was solar panels. An array of 10 cost a total of $17,000, $7,000 of which NorthWestern Energy granted to them. The other was the Earth coupling aspect. This house was a one-story with a basement instead of the current trend of two stories or a walk-out basement.

It was a very fascinating tour, and well worth the $12. Both of these ideas are great, but one is new construction, and the other is unlike any house in town. So what do the rest of us do with our existing normal homes? Mr. Klinefelter says if you have an older home (over 60 years really) then you might be able to fit more insulation in your walls. Anything newer has insulation filling the walls, and though you could lose up to 50% of your R-value from something so small as a 1/4" gap at the top or bottom, there isn't enough room to spray in more insulation.

Here are some Great Falls-area Renewable Energy Distributers and Installers:

Alternative Energy Systems, Mark Gray & Ross Michaelson  4192 N Park Trail, Great Falls, MT 59405

Phone: 406-761-7200  Email: aes@sofast.net

Pine Ridge Products Jenni & Logan Bryce 1646 East Highwood Rd, Belt, MT 59412

Phone: 406-738-4283 Email wlbryce@pineridgeproducts.com Website: www.pineridgeproducts.com

Dearborn Solar Electric Michal & Lumarie Strickland 633 Dearborn River Rd, Cascade, MT 59421

Phone: 406-788-7023

For Guidance about developing commercial-scale wind power, contact:

Wade Crouch, Cascade County Extension Agent, 1807 Third St. NW Great Falls, MT 59404

Phone: 406-454-6980  Email: wcrouch@montana.edu

For a full list of Montana installers and distributers, visit:

www.montanagreenpower.com