U.S. Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon | Powered by the Sun

Solar Decathlon 2011

The Southern California Institute of Architecture and California Institute of Technology

After the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2011, CHIP, which stands for Compact Hyper-Insulated Prototype, went on display at the California Science Center in Exposition Park in downtown Los Angeles. The house placed sixth overall in the competition and tied for first place in the Energy Balance and Hot Water contests. It took home second-place awards in the Engineering Contest and Home Entertainment Contest and won third place in Affordability.

At Exposition Park, CHIP was open to the public for free tours from January through May 2012. Afterward, the house was dismantled and all of its material fully recycled. The custom furniture used in CHIP during the competition and expo remains in use today at the student lounge at SCI-Arc.

Photo of CHIP at Solar Decathlon 2011. Enlarge image

CHIP's most striking feature was its exterior insulation. (Credit: Jim Tetro/U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon)

Who: The Southern California Institute of Architecture and California Institute of Technology
What: CHIP
Where:
Dismantled and recycled

Public tours: Not applicable