The SNAP House was designed to be both aesthetically beautiful and functionally efficient. During the design phase in Summer 2004, UT SolarD consolidated the main living spaces to ensure an abundance of daylight, a well-sealed and insulated house, and effective cooling, heating, and dehumidification.

To that end, we employed several design programs that allowed us to realistically model the SNAP House and see the effects of various design strategies. Software such as Ecotect by Square ONE Research and DOE3 allowed us to set properties such as the insulative value of our SIP walls (R-36), the heat given off by appliances and people, as well as the effects of the sun over the course of every day of the year.

Specific design changes that occurred as a result of these design simulations include: louvered redwood rainscreens that slide in front of the southern glass doors to decrease daylight and solar heat gain during the winter; translucent glass fins by the northern clerestory windows that support the roof and block solar heat gain during the summer...