Media Advisory: Bon voyage, UB solar house!

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Since June, a team of UB students has been working 12 hours a day, six days a week to finish the GRoW Home, an 1,100-square-foot solar house they are building for the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon competition.

Now, the structure is finally complete, with the exception of finishing touches that include an unstained deck and missing glass in an on-site greenhouse.

Media are invited to visit and tour the home Friday, Sept. 11, before students begin dismantling parts of the structure to ready it for shipment to California, where the Solar Decathlon contest will take place in October.

UB is one of just 15 intercollegiate teams competing in the biennial event, which challenges participants to build a highly efficient solar house from scratch.

UB’s entry is a modern, minimalist structure designed to produce twice the energy it consumes. The dwelling embraces Buffalo’s urban gardening culture, featuring a greenhouse for growing food year-round.

The Western New York community has rallied behind the project: More than 300 people and organizations have donated funds, materials and services, and a new crowdfunding campaign is underway to raise another $15,000. This additional funding will support the GRoW Home’s cross-country journey and student teams that will travel to California to participate in the Solar Decathlon.

“Our team is honored by the groundswell of support from the community,” said GRoW Home faculty advisor Martha Bohm, assistant professor of architecture in the UB School of Architecture and Planning. “We could not have done this project alone. We look forward to representing UB and Buffalo in California this fall.”

What: GRoW Home viewing

When: 11 a.m., Friday, Sept. 11

Where: The GRoW Home construction site at the Riverview Solar Technology Park, 600 Riverwalk Pkwy., Tonawanda. The GRoW Home is in a warehouse parking lot where Montante Solar has donated space for construction.

The house will be complete with the exception of finishing touches that will be completed in California, such as installing glass in an on-site greenhouse and staining the deck. The home has fixtures installed such as a toilet, sink and dishwasher, but may be unfurnished at the time of the media event.

Friday at 11 a.m. will be the media’s only opportunity to see the GRoW Home in a finished state before it heads to California.

Directions: From Riverview Road in Tonawanda, turn onto Riverwalk Parkway, where you will see a group of solar panels. Follow Riverwalk Parkway until you see 600 on your left side. Turn into the parking lot and go around the building to the back.

Who: GRoW Home faculty advisor Martha Bohm will be on hand for interviews, along with students on the team.

Bohm is a member of RENEW (Research and Education in eNergy, Environment and Water), a Community of Excellence at UB that harnesses faculty strengths across disciplines to tackle complex environmental challenges.

Next steps: Later on Sept. 11, students will begin disassembling the GRoW Home to prepare it for a cross-country trek to California. The journey will begin the week of Sept. 21, when the pieces of the GRoW Home will be loaded onto trucks headed to Irvine.

In California, teams of UB students will reassemble, test and provide public tours of the home as part of the Solar Decathlon, which runs from Oct. 8-18. The competition includes 10 “contests” in areas such as architecture, market appeal and engineering that gauge how well the houses perform, and how livable and affordable they are.

Winners will be selected in each category, and an overall Solar Decathlon winner will be announced Oct. 17.

After the contest, the GRoW Home is expected to return to Buffalo as an energy education center for the community. Its permanent location has yet to be decided.

About the GRoW Home: Led by the UB School of Architecture and Planning, the GRoW Home team includes the UB School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, UB School of Management, UB College of Arts and Sciences, and Department of Landscape Architecture at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

GRoW stands for “Garden, Relax or Work,” in a nod to the many uses for the home. Design details: http://grow.buffalo.edu/design/.

The project, which began two years ago, gives students hands-on experience in construction, design and interdisciplinary teamwork, a skill that will help them succeed in future careers.

Sponsors: The U.S. Department of Energy supplied seed funding. Other sponsors include LPCiminelli Inc., New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), Montante Solar, Admar, Alegria Fresh, ALP Steel Corporation Inc., Armstrong Pumps, ASHRAE Niagara Frontier Chapter, ASAP Signs, B&L Wholesale Supply Inc., Brian Milcamp, Buffalo Energy, CannonDesign, Caplugs, Carlisle SynTec, D.V. Brown & Associates Inc., Davis-Ulmer Sprinkler Co. Inc., Dival Safety, Ecology and Environment Inc., Euro-Wall, Farneth Electrical, Fastenal, Fox Fence Inc., Frey Electric Construction Co. Inc., Gerster Solutions, Guard Contracting Corporation, H&V Sales Inc., Hamister Group Inc., Huber Construction, Intigral Inc., InCord, Iron Workers Union Local 6, Jameson Roofing Co. Inc., Kee Safety Inc., LaBella Associates PC, National Gypsum, Northeast Mechanical Inc., Parksite, Pella Corporation, Pittcon Industries, R-Control SIPs, Thermal Foams Inc., Richard Bergman, Rigidized Metals Corporation, S-5!, Schneider Electric, Skyworks, SolarCity, Stix Inc., TapeSolar, Three M Tool, Watts Architecture & Engineering, Weather Analytics, Whirlpool and Whole Foods.