CONTACT
Tina Wagner or Laura Hunt, 414-229-6447; wagner3@uwm.edu
MILWAUKEE – Meltwater, the solar-powered home designed and built last year by students at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UWM), will be on public display at the Milwaukee chapter of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) Home Improvement Show, Feb. 11-14.
Architecture and engineering students created the 775-square-foot house and entered it in the 2009 Solar Decathlon, an international competition of college teams that was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy. Since the house’s return from the Washington, D.C. contest, it has been located at State Fair Park where it also may be on view during the State Fair in August before it is moved to its permanent home. The house will become a satellite location in Washington Park for the Urban Ecology Center.
Organizers of the NARI show expect 40,000 people to attend the four-day event at the Wisconsin Exposition Center at State Fair Park. Meltwater will be near the Seminar and Demonstration Stage in the southeast corner of the exhibit hall.
The design inspiration for Meltwater comes from the glacial processes that carved the Great Lakes. The energy-efficient house incorporates green features including roof-mounted solar cells called photovoltaics. However, the simplicity of the house’s design and its small footprint allow occupants to be comfortable for as many days as possible without the use of heating or cooling. As a result, Meltwater actually generates more energy than it consumes.
Sustainable components used in Meltwater include bamboo cabinets and BIOFIBER Wheatboard instead of standard drywall. A hard surface called PaperStone, made from post-consumer recycled paper, was used for countertops and some windows and exterior doors. Meltwater also incorporates high-performance glass and sustainably harvested lumber from Wisconsin.
The NARI Home Improvement Show will feature 300 exhibitors in more than 700 booths. Milwaukee’s event is the largest of the NARI home shows held throughout the country. The Wisconsin State Fair runs from Aug. 5-15.
For more information on the NARI event go to http://www.milwaukeenari.org.
