• Solar homes do best with the majority of the glazing( windows) on the side of the building facing the equator (that is, the south side in the northern hemisphere )

• A good passive solar design rule is to site the building so it has the most sun exposure possible between 9AM and 3PM.

• Magnetic south (the south you see on a compass) is not true solar south. Magnetic south may as much as 22 degrees different from true south. Obviously, this can make a great deal of difference. It's something you'll need to account for in your passive solar design.

• Keep thermal mass masonry between 4” and 6” thick and no more than 8” thick.

• Ideally, the light from one square foot of window strikes about 9 square feet of thermal mass.

• Concrete floors serving as thermal mass should be a medium dark color.

• Thermal mass floors should not be covered with wall-to-wall carpet and only have as many area rugs on them as esthetically required.

• Non-thermal mass walls should be light colored to reflect light toward the thermal mass.