Unfortunately for those of us who don't live in Southern California, the price of keeping our homes warm during the winter can be enormous. It can easily become a waste of power and savings. Going green in home heating can be effective in saving you money and helping out the environment- so why not consider passive solar heating when you're looking for alternative home heating options?

Even on the coldest winter days, the sun's heat can be significant. It's only the shortness of the days that keeps the snows from melting. What if you could harness that heating power, even for the short time you get it, without making huge changes to the structure of your home?

There is an answer to some of the heating costs. It's called the Trombe wall. It is made of material that is used for thermal mass, usually stone or concrete. It is insulated with glass and an airspace to help keep the heat in at night. There is also a shade that lets direct low winter sun enter, but keeps the glass from being heated too much from the high summer sun to help keep your cooling costs down.

Many of us are interested in pursuing more energy efficient heating alternatives such as passive solar heating. Whatever alternative you choose the cost of installation may be expensive. Whether you are seeking a custom designed home or renovating an existing structure you have options. One advantage of passive solar heating is that once installed continued use expenses are nominal.

You should also think about how the Trombe wall was invented in the 19th century, and became popular in the 1960's. This wall has been installed in many existing homes. If you want a new, energy efficient home, you can still consider older designs because they can be green as well.

The ideas being pushed in the mainstream do work, but people have been looking for ways to save money for years. It's just now that people are becoming more environmentally conscious and the cost of heating has risen so much that we are starting to look back at the clever solutions like passive solar heating that our ancestors used to save scarce resources, and use them instead to help save the planet.