A good builder learns from the mistakes of the past.  This house was built by some environmentally conscious folks in the 70’s according to the latest “green” technology of the time.  It was a partial underground house, with solar panels on the roof for electricity and hot water, and a greenhouse on the southern side to catch and collect the solar energy throughout the day.  The house never functioned as expected, partly because the earth-sheltered technology on which it was based is much better suited to the southwest than the northeast.  Houses like this have a lot to teach us.  One of the lessons that we’ve learned is to carefully evaluate new technologies and weigh them against our own experience.  If it doesn’t make sense to us, that may be because it just doesn’t make sense.  We’ve also learned that not every technology is right for every owner.  Some systems require more involvement than some owners are willing or able to provide.