South-Facing Windows Deliver Winter Heat
By Collecting Solar Energy

      Even though the entire square footage of the home is less than 800 square feet, it was determined that an entry hall was very important. This small room serves multiple purposes. It acts as a transition from the outside to the higher-ceilinged living area, it offers a place to remove one's shoes (which can be stored on a shelf just to left of the door), and it helps to heat the home in the winter solar energy.
      Sunlight enters the South facing windows and hits the naturally colored mud-plastered adobe walls to the left. These walls are part of the thermal mass that stores heat generated from sunlight—which is solar energy. This is called passive solar heating because no mechanical devices are needed to collect the solar heat.
    The light colored wall surrounding the door is skim-coat unpainted gypsum plaster on top of an earth plaser. The waterproof gypsum plaster was used for durability since it connects to the kitchen wall which is hidden to the left.