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TEAM BeauSoleil heads to D.C. to compete for "the most attractive and energy efficient home" in the 2009 Solar Decathlon on the Mall, Oct 8-17. Watch as TEAM BeauSoleil uses the experiences of Katrina and Rita to create a self-sufficient solar home, designed for southern Louisiana and the Gulf Coast.
The BeauSoleil Home is built to withstand hurricane winds. |
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| The BeauSoleil Louisiana Solar Home |
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On October 8th, as the curtain goes up on the fourth U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon staged on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., a dedicated team of architecture and engineering students from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette will present the BeauSoleil Louisiana Solar Home. (http://www.beausoleilhome.org)
The house is designed to withstand hurricane-force winds and to be totally self-sufficient, which makes it especially ideal for coastal environments. Although this is the first time UL, or any Louisiana university, has participated in the Solar Decathlon, a blend of technology and tradition promises to make the Ragin' Cajuns' entry a strong contender in this intense international competition among 20 universities from around the world. (http://www.solardecathlon.org/teams.cfm)
The BeauSoleil (pronounced bo-so-lay) house takes its name from the French word for sunshine, but its title also gives a nod to the Grammy Award-winning ambassadors of Cajun culture, BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet. (Doucet and the band are supporters of the project.) |
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| Key Elements of the BeauSoleil Louisiana Solar Home |
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The BeauSoleil Home reflects key elements of Louisiana's rich culture, including its world-famous Cajun cooking. At the same time, it represents an architectural heritage that developed after Acadians, who were exiled from Nova Scotia by the British in the 1700s, settled in south Louisiana. The result is a simple, modest, but highly functional 800-square-foot structure.
The BeauSoleil Louisiana Solar Home design incorporates several aspects of early Cajun cottages. For example, it emphasizes wide exterior porches for social interaction and casual entertaining, as well as movable exterior doors in the 'dog-trot that make access to the outdoors easy. The home also has a large kitchen that is the cultural center of the home. Good conversation and great food, important elements of Louisiana's culture, flow naturally from this functional space.
This structure accommodates Louisiana’s sometimes-challenging climate. Long, hot summers are the norm, so the BeauSoleil Home takes advantage of natural breezes and utilizes several dual-purpose shutters, while collecting its own water and generating more energy than it uses.
And when conditions get tough during the hurricane season, as they did in 2005 when Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated parts of south Louisiana, the BeauSoleil Home can withstand high winds. The structure can also be elevated to provide housing in areas vulnerable to flooding.
But is this design ready for the commercial market? The answer is a resounding “Yes!” The students and faculty members who make up TEAM BeauSoleil are dedicated to turning this real-world, sustainable living solution into an affordable, working model that can be sold to the public. They used the median income in Louisiana as a guide to design a home that should be affordable when mass-produced. When introduced to the marketplace, it will address the urgent need for self-sufficient residences, especially in the hurricane-prone regions of the Gulf Coast. |
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| About the Competition |
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| The Department of Energy Solar Decathlon (http://www.solardecathlon.org)is a worldwide competition in which 20 colleges and universities are chosen to each design, build, and operate an energy-efficient, solar-powered home. The teams will operate and simulate real-world living in the homes in a Solar Village, erected on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., during the judging period, Oct. 8 – 16. The decathlon is made up of 10 competitions and evaluates the prospect of day-to-day life in the home.(http://www.solardecathlon.org/contests_scoring.cfm) |
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