if money was not (much of) an object, what technology would

[mopinko]

you invest in now, if you were building a house?
we are drawing up plans for an addition on our house. we live in chicago, have a nice, unobstructed southern exposure. we currently have hot water heat, and no air conditioning. we, and our architect, are kinda thinking of it as- post-apocalyptic shelter. it's a little bit of a joke, but one where you cross your fingers when you say it. we are probably too close to lake michigan to be saved in the event of a really truly environmental collapse, but still....

so. give me your thoughts, and i'll tell you what we are actually planning.

[phantom power]

1. I would invest heavily in securing a water supply.

Deep wells, a water collection cistern, etc. I'd also figure out a way to set up a patch of land for cultivation, that you can also irrigate. Last year a lot of people in MI found themselves irrigating their crops, which is something Michiganders simply aren't prepared for, due to their history of, um, endless rain.

[mopinko]

8. water

we are planning a cistern for roof runoff. we are also planning a rooftop greenhouse. there is plenty of groundwater here, and easy drilling through the sand. whether we could get to anything that has not been polluted on its way to the lake is another matter. (in the real post apocalypse, i THINK we would be able to walk the 6 block to the lake. if we can't drink out of lake michigan, i think we will just be taking the cyanide pills.)

[gateley]

2. K&R. I don't know enough to suggest anything but want to keep this 'up there'

so you can get some good suggestions.

I think many of us in the not-too-distant future will be making changes with an eye toward difficult times. Keep us posted!

[GliderGuider]

3. There are a number of them

In addition to a good water well, I'd go for geothermal heating/cooling, a hyper-efficient wood-fired auxiliary heating system and solar panels. A heat-conserving air exchanger of course, as well as hyper-insulation and top notch low-e windows. I wouldn't do a wind turbine right away, even if I was rural enough for zoning laws to permit it, because it might require too much maintenance (plus in the event of a collapse it's a great big "Come get me" flag).

[mopinko]

9. looking at geothermal, plus

some pv, and domestic hot water.
we are planning on an insulated concrete system that will give us very low-e walls, and the best windows we can find. the whole south wall will pretty much be glass, plus the greenhouse.

[Fovea]

4. An earthship style house

on high ground with roll down steel shutters and a deep well with graywater irrigation of the garden plot.
Solar water heating, and a perimeter fence with alarm. A cesspit and field with catalytic conversion of brownwater and solids to sludge.

[mopinko]

10. well, we are in the house, now.

so, high ground would be nice, but we are here on a mostly typical chicago street. bigger lots than average, tho.
right now the city has a real bug about grey water and all that. i know they will be out of the way come the apocalypse, but....
security is something that DH and i have a deep, deep division about. i hate locks and keys. that is why i have dogs. if he had his way he would have locks on half the doors INSIDE the house. (kidding) don't think we could put shutters on a 2 story window wall. guess i will just have to take in more dogs. sure they will be wandering the streets after the apocalypse.

[phantom power]

5. composting toilet.

Even human poop can become fertilizer, when treated properly.

[mopinko]

11. hmmmm.

that would probably be a good idea. got dogs, too. won't have the luxury of just tossing it in the garbage for the city to worry about.

[OKIsItJustMe]

6. A greenhouse/solar room

Grow food in your house and get passive solar heat.

Solar panels are a good addition, and if permitted by zoning and such, in the "windy city" you should have plenty of wind for a small turbine or two.

[mopinko]

7. looking at wind.

we are in the lake michigan basin, and i insist there is enough wind to harvest, but my architect thinks i am crazy on this one.

[tom_paine]

14. Could you set it away from the house?

Why would your arichitect think it's nuts? I must be missing something.

[yop]

12. Camoflage

The flip side of security. After the apocalypse, all your green improvements are going to look awfully good, maybe too good. You might want to look into ways to hide what you have. From the outside, you'll want to look as cold and miserable as everyone else, so everyone else isn't tempted to come to you for comfortable shelter.

[tom_paine]

13. Rooftop solar panel plus small windmill (depending on yard size & location)

Probably those two things together would pay between 20-50% of your elictricity bill and pay for themselves.

They both seem feasible and within reach.

You owuld need to do the research on how fast they would pay for themselves, but as if you say, money is no object...