Thompson Rivers University
IN-1: Innovation 1

YMCA – Equilibrium home The Kamloops “Green Dream Home” team, which included students and faculty in TRU trade-entry and advanced technology programs, in partnership with the Home Builders, designed and built the eco-friendly home at Sun Rivers in Kamloops, and the “Green Dream Home” was sold to the Kamloops Y for their 2009 Dream Home fundraising project. The 3,000-square-foot home stands at 1858 Ironwood Terrace in Sun Rivers and is so loaded with energy-efficient features that the estimated net cost for a year’s worth of electricity will be zero. Photovoltaic panels, evacuated tube solar collectors, geothermal heat pumps, drain water heat recovery, super-insulation, passive solar design, and passive ventilation are just some of the technologies and techniques that have been employed in the Green Dream Home in order to reduce the building’s energy consumption to zero over the course of a year. Other features include a 2.5–cm-thick recycled rubber shingles to a living-room waterfall that balances interior humidity. The green design and stellar innovation make it one of the most technically complex and modern homes in existence.