Passive place

Today was the planning stage for an exciting new project Brian will be starting very soon. He wants to rebuild our passive cellar in one of the barns. Because the water table here is quite high we cannot have a cellar below ground very easily. However, one end of the barn is cut into the side of the slope, so it’s partially below ground, and so benefits both from being shielded from direct sunlight and cooled by the body of earth. By insulating a room that he is going to build, and leaving the floor as natural earth, the temperature in the room will become both cooler and more consistent all year round, which is perfect to store wine.

I will share more as it develops over the coming weeks. It’s a big job but a really exciting one.

Sizing up a ceiling plank from the wood he has stored