SunCatcher Design Group, LLC
SunCatcher Design Group, LLC is an association of professionals dedicated to the design and development of all things solar. Our main focus is Fossil-Free Food Security though the use of Leap-Frog passive solar greenhouse design technologies. The key is to have as small a carbon footprint as possible. SunCatchers are designed to solve traditional greenhouse problems associated with heating, cooling, carbon dioxide, light, and humidity levels with PASSIVE solutions and very little or NO fossil fuel input. Our designs include a variety of configurations and price ranges. We can also help you with solar issues for homes and other types of buildings.
How did standard greenhouses get so bad?
The generally accepted concept of greenhouses is entwined with the era of cheap energy: Do you want to protect some plants? Slap a simple structure over them. Make it glass for that cool English look. Make it a Quonset shape with polyethylene for a low budget. Does it get cold? Install a heater. Does it get hot? Well, a huge fan or two will solve that!
THOSE DAYS ARE OVER
Today with ever raising energy costs, many growers in moderate and cold climates can no longer afford to grow their crops through the winter. Yet this is a time of year when growers can maximize their opportunities if they can manage their energy costs. "Regular" greenhouses are inherently inefficient. Pick up a greenhouse catalog. Why do you think so many pages are filled with heaters and fans? Why do you think over 30% of small greenhouse growers in some areas have gone out of business since energy costs have increased so much? Yes, you can extend the growing season with a basic unheated shell, but you can grow only cold-tolerant crops. Standard greenhouses are really anti-solar: they overheat horribly, then get too cold at night.
SunCatchers are specially designed structures which use the sun, laws of nature and natural elements to provide an increase in available natural sunlight for plant growth, heat at night and on cold overcast days, and a CO2 rich environment for enhanced year-round plant growth in most any climate.
The air is fresh, the temperature is right, the light just wraps around you. When you ask Nature what is needed, this is what you get!
Food security is SunCatcher's primary concern. Energy-intensive, modern growing methods have become widespread across the globe. Large scale agriculture operates with monocultures dependent on synthetic pesticides and herbicides, excessive irrigation, excessive fertilization, processing, refrigeration, and long-distance transport to market. This is not sustainable or secure.
Energy-intensive, modern growing methods have become widespread across the globe. Large-scale agriculture operates with mono-cultures dependent on synthetic pesticides and herbicides, excessive irrigation, excessive fertilization, processing, refrigeration, and long-distance transport to market. This is not sustainable or secure.
The most secure alternative is to be able to grow locally year-round even in climates with cold winters. Food demand is growing and its costs fluctuate with the price of the oil that fuels the large agricultural industry. Local, year-round sustainable production especially in urban and colder climates can greatly reduce this price fluctuation while providing economic development in the form of capital and jobs to the local community.
Standard greenhouses in cold climates use too much energy for economical winter growing. The answer is "passive solar." China knows this. The China Agricultural University provided a 20-year study, redesign, and review of solar greenhouses (included herein). These studies point to these designs as the future of protected agriculture, while finding weaknesses in the designs. We believe that SunCatcher has addressed these issues (and several not addressed in the report) that are vital to successful plant production.
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