approach to net zero

[RWebb]

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/15/science/15building.html?hp

[wdfifteen]

Very cool. The time is coming. This is one thing about the future that is very exciting.

[Scott R]

No mention though of the 2200 gallons of diesel sitting in the bunker next to the building for the datacenter. But I had to ask what it was on the tour as well. I liked the concept when they showed it to us, but it's not practical for 99% of the computing centers out there. They have 24 backup diesel generators for when the power dips. You can't shut those computers down just because the sun went away, or the grid is down.

[red-beard]

We designed buildings like this in the 1980's. The primary thing is super-insulation. You do R-50 to R-100 windows and walls. The problem is the summer, if you don't have the building setup to reject most exteral heat. The people produce a lot of heat and the A/C load can be quite high. It was only about 10% more in initial cost. The problem is, builders are cheap. Utility bills are by the customer...