BU540 Solar gain in housing

The sun provides a major source of heat for our houses, but it is often untapped because houses are not always designed to benefit from it. Excess solar gain can also be a nuisance as it can overheat the internal spaces. It is important to consider conflicting aspects of using heat from the sun at the initial design stage of a new home or any major alteration to an existing home.

This bulletin updates and replaces Bulletin 311 Use and control of solar gain.

This bulletin covers:

• measuring the sun's energy
• using the sun in winter, including collecting, storing and retaining the sun's energy
• reducing solar gain in summer, including solar control glass and films, building for shading, external building elements, landscaping for shading and internal shading methods.