Bryan Headrick

I second the instant pot suggestion.

For the past few months that I've owned one, I've basically cooked all my meals in it.

Not only has it removed the need for a microwave, I haven't even needed to use my oven or stove top ( though admittedly, I'll eventually need to use my oven).

It's a pressure cooker, a slow cooker, a rice cooker, a yogurt maker, a steamer, a warmer, and it also sautes.

There are, of course, other brands of multicooker out there that are as good or better, but the Instant Pot is definitely a worthwhile purchase.

I'm tying to design a house that uses passive solar technology in a tiny form factor - 16x24ft and I'm not sure how much of the strategies I should apply.

It's going to be a mostly open floor plan, and it's in a southern climate - Tennessee, so I'm more concerned about cooling than heating.

Obviously, I need some thermal mass, and I'd prefer to have it decoupled from the soil - mainly because there is an existing foundation that I'd like to be able to use and if I can't use that, I'd prefer to use piers than pour a new one.

I've bought a couple books on passive solar design, but they seem to be geared more towards larger houses, and I wasn't sure how well this scales down.

The southern side deciduous and northern side evergreens will of course come into play, but I'm not sure how much glazing I need and how much thermal mass - do I need a clerestory window, or are a few normal sized windows adequate?