ASSINIBOINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE PASSIVE SOLAR GREENHOUSE

Built for the Assiniboine Community College Horticulture Production Program, the Passive Solar Greenhouse incorporates a number of strategies that minimize the energy input requirements for heating the facility. The header house is the highly insulated control centre for the facility. To the south side of the header house is the passive solar greenhouse which is divided into two zone, oriented in an east west direction. The first zone is climate controlled with the ability to add heat when necessary. The second zone has limited heat input options and mimics more closely a stand alone passive solar greenhouse that might operate in more northern climes. A conventional greenhouse located to the east of the header house is oriented in a north south direction. The passive heat inputs into the building system include an evacuated solar tube collector, a black wall radiator, a water filled black pipe solar collector, and thermal mass collector in the concrete floor. The conventional greenhouse uses only conventional means for cooling and heat distribution, however, heat is pulled to the conventional greenhouse from the heat storage tank located in the passive solar greenhouse.