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Suncastle Park |
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Welcome to Suncastle Park, Suncatcher's Solar Development by Pike Lake Provincial Park Imagine living in a community where the homes are oriented toward the sun. Most windows face the south to maximize solar heating in the winter, while extended eaves provide shade from the high summer sun. The internal walls of a passive solar home absorb heat during the day and release it at night, providing even temperature all the time. Solar thermal collectors are used to heat water for washing and provide comfortable in-floor radiant heat; photovoltaic solar panels deliver grid-tied electricity to power appliances. Surplus power is passed back to the grid and credited on your power bill. This is the vision for Suncastle Park. Located adjacent to beautiful Pike Lake Provincial Park this development offers all the benefits and beauty of country living. The amenities of Saskatoon are also within easy reach, just a 15 minute drive away. You are walking distance to the Pike Lake Community Centre and Pike Lake School. All lots are serviced by Sask Power with SaskEnergy and SaskTel adjacent. Lot sizes vary from just over one acre to just shy of 2 acres. The landscape is natural unbroken prairie and wild brush. The hills passing through the development mean that most lots are perfectly suited for walkout basements.
The Suncastle Park Concept At the heart of Suncastle Park lies a really bright idea. Homes are built to complement their natural setting and take advantage of the planet’s greatest energy source – the sun. To accomplish this, homes will have a passive solar design, dramatically reducing the energy needed for heating. Much of the power needed for the homes will be supplied by a solar power system. Included with each lot is a certificate for 10% off the homeowner's choice of solar power system. With grid tied systems, excess power is fed back to the electrical grid and you’ll earn credits to use against future power bills. How it Works: On a sunny day, the solar panels will produce more than enough electricity to operate household appliances so the extra power will be used against future power bills – the electrical meter will run backwards. At night SaskPower will supply the electrical needs of the home. The homeowner will pay only for the difference between the power supplied by SaskPower and the power produced by the solar panels. This is called “net metering”, because you only pay for the “net” amount used. This “grid-tied system”, so called because the house is tied to the utility grid, operates differently from an off-grid system that is not connected to the utility grid. An off-grid system uses a battery bank to store energy for overnight and a backup generator for occasional times during the winter when there is not enough sunlight to produce the amount of electricity needed. A grid-tied system is more convenient for the homeowner because there are no batteries or backup generator to maintain. The grid becomes your battery and your backup.
Green Architecture Guidelines and Incentive Programs The Guidelines set out at Suncastle Park are intended to ensure a respect for the environment, the use of renewable energy and the highest possible construction standards.
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