They’re called “Team California,” and the team is made up of students from Santa Clara University and California College of the Arts. About 200 students from both of these California colleges have been working together to build a solar powered house for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon 2009.

The solar decathlon is a competition where college students across the world compete to build the best solar powered, renewable energy house. Right now there are 20 teams participating, and Team California is the only team from the U.S. west coast.

The Refract House

Team California’s solar decathlon house is known as the Refract House. Unlike most houses, which are shaped like a box, this house is uniquely shaped as a bent tube.

Here are some green features of the home:

• A radiant water system that runs water throughout the house for heating and cooling
• Walls made of used billboards and covered with salvaged redwood
• Water circulation system for sinks and showers

At an estimated $1.3 million to make, the Refract House hopes to take home the solar decathlon prize in Washington DC this October.

Take a look at this video about the Refract House:

Santa Clara University won third place last year, so let’s see if Team California can take home a first place this year!

Source: LA Times