Solar Decathlon entry holds open house

Commencement weekend gave Houston a chance to see how to go green while saving green, as the Rice Solar Decathlon team gave tours of a home they designed and built for Project Row Houses, a neighborhood-based art and cultural organization that seeks to develop housing for low-to-moderate-income residents of Houston’s Third Ward.

The house is an entry in the Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon, a zero-energy housing competition in which teams of college and university students vie to design, build and operate the most attractive, effective and energy-efficient solar-powered house. The team of Rice students was the only one from Texas among the 20 teams chosen from around the world to participate. This year’s competition will be held on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., in October.

As the house nears completion, the Rice team is working on the details of transporting it to Washington. With lighting fixtures, plumbing and some appliances installed, it's beginning to look like a place someone could call "home."

Visit the Rice Solar Decathlon web page and follow their progress.