Suggested Reading List — Solar Fools Wiki

URL: https://wiki.solarfool.org/en/reading_list
Last edited: Brett, 2026-05-14
Captured: 2026-05-14 (mutable web source — sidecar copy)
Description: “Books, articles and other media about passive cooling and heating and related subjects”

Core Reading

Dome Cookbook by Steve Baer (1968). Baer’s first major publication that helped inspire the back-to-the-land movement and documented practical dome construction techniques. Self-published through the Lama Foundation, it became a foundational text for alternative builders.
Sunspots: An Exploration of Solar Energy Through Fact & Fiction by Steve Baer. Baer’s foundational work introducing his solar energy concepts and philosophy.
Zome Primer by Steve Baer. Explores Baer’s geometric system that underlies many of his architectural designs.
The Solar Home Book: Heating, Cooling and Designing with the Sun by Bruce Anderson and Michael Riordan. Contextualizes Baer’s work within the broader passive solar movement.

Extended Reading

A Golden Thread: 2500 Years of Solar Architecture and Technology by Ken Butti and John Perlin. Provides historical context for Baer’s innovations.
Soft Energy Paths: Toward a Durable Peace by Amory Lovins. Complements Baer’s philosophy of appropriate, sustainable technology.
The Passive Solar Energy Book by Edward Mazria. Offers practical applications that align with Baer’s passive cooling concepts.
Passive Solar Design Handbook (Volumes I, II, III) by J. Douglas Balcomb et al., U.S. Department of Energy (1980–1984). The definitive technical reference for passive solar design, produced by Los Alamos National Laboratory. Provides detailed design methodologies, performance data, and calculation methods that became the industry standard.
Passive Solar Architecture: Heating, Cooling, Ventilation, Daylighting and More Using Natural Flows by David Bainbridge and Ken Haggard. A comprehensive modern text covering all aspects of passive solar design using natural energy flows. Bainbridge founded the Passive Solar Institute and this work synthesizes decades of research and practice.
Passive Solar House Basics by Peter Van Dresser. Written by a New Mexico pioneer who built some of the first passive solar houses in the 1950s. Van Dresser’s practical experience and early advocacy laid groundwork for the broader movement. ISBN: 978-0941270908.
The Owner-Built Home by Ken Kern. Shares Baer’s DIY ethos and self-sufficiency approach.
Direct Use of the Sun’s Energy by Farrington Daniels. Covers solar radiation, collectors, cooking, heating water, drying, heat storage, solar furnaces and engines.
“Zome Geometry” by George W. Hart and Henri Picciotto. Expands on the mathematical principles behind Baer’s structural designs, intersects with Paul Hildebrandt’s work creating Zometool.

Exploratory Reading

Domebook One (1970) and Domebook 2 (1971) by Lloyd Kahn. Seminal publications from the Whole Earth Catalog era documenting dome building techniques and featuring work from Drop City and other communes.
Shelter by Lloyd Kahn and Bob Easton (1973). Often called “Domebook 3,” expanded beyond domes to showcase diverse building methods from around the world.
A Landscape for Humans by Peter Van Dresser (1972). Early work on sustainable living and appropriate technology in the New Mexico landscape. Van Dresser’s vision integrated passive solar design with ecological principles and regional self-reliance.
The Straw Bale House by David Bainbridge, Athena Swentzell Steen, and Bill Steen. Alternative building materials using straw bales for insulation and structure.
“Living Off the Grid with Steve Baer” — Mother Earth News (1970s). Documents Baer’s practical implementations at his Zomeworks compound. Not yet ingested.
Natural Solar Architecture: A Passive Primer by David Wright. Offers complementary passive design strategies.
Design for a Limited Planet by Norma Skurka and Jon Naar. Features Baer’s early work alongside other ecological designers.
The Integral Urban House by Sim Van der Ryn. Applies similar principles to urban environments.
“The Dome Builder’s Handbook” by John Prenis. Explores alternative structures influenced by Baer’s geometric thinking.
Radical Technology edited by Godfrey Boyle and Peter Harper. Places Baer’s work in the context of the appropriate technology movement.
The Solar House: Passive Heating and Cooling by Daniel D. Chiras. Provides updated passive solar techniques building on pioneers like Baer.

Articles and Online Resources

“Harold Hay, Skytherm, and the Quest for Passive Cooling” — Architect Magazine. https://www.architectmagazine.com/technology/harold-hay-skytherm-and-the-quest-for-passive-cooling_o (403 blocked; sidecar created)
“Harold R. Hay: Skytherm Pioneer” — Mother Earth News. https://www.motherearthnews.com/sustainable-living/nature-and-environment/harold-r-hay-zmaz76soztak/ (ingested as source for harold-hay.md)

Archive cross-reference

Title	Archive status
Dome Cookbook	✅ Ingested
Sunspots	✅ Ingested (1975 ed + 1979 Cloudburst in collection)
Zome Primer	✅ Ingested
Direct Use of the Sun’s Energy (Daniels)	✅ Ingested (stub + PDF)
Hay Architect Magazine article	✅ Sidecar (403 blocked)
Hay Mother Earth News interview	✅ Used as source
Solar Home Book (Anderson & Riordan)	Not in archive
A Golden Thread (Butti & Perlin)	Not in archive
Soft Energy Paths (Lovins)	Not in archive
Passive Solar Energy Book (Mazria)	Not in archive
Passive Solar Design Handbook (Balcomb, LANL/DOE, 1980–84)	Not in archive
Passive Solar Architecture (Bainbridge & Haggard)	Not in archive
Passive Solar House Basics (Van Dresser)	Not in archive
Zome Geometry (Hart & Picciotto)	Not in archive
A Landscape for Humans (Van Dresser, 1972)	Not in archive
”Living Off the Grid with Steve Baer” — MEN	Not in archive — priority pending ingest
Domebook One, Domebook 2 (Kahn)	Not in archive
Shelter (Kahn & Easton)	Not in archive

New information for the wiki

Ken Haggard (not “Keith”) — co-authored Passive Solar Architecture with David Bainbridge; co-founded the Passive Solar Institute; also involved in the Atascadero Skytherm project (baer-aia-passive-solar-slideshow.md confirms “Hay / Edminster / Haggard”). Our steve-baer.md and peter-van-dresser.md incorrectly use “Keith Haggard” — should be Ken.
Peter Van Dresser — two books now confirmed: Passive Solar House Basics (ISBN 978-0941270908) and A Landscape for Humans (1972). He “built some of the first passive solar houses in the 1950s” — earlier than previously documented.
Passive Solar Design Handbook (Balcomb et al., LANL/DOE, 1980–84) — the standard technical reference from Los Alamos. Different from the USAF handbook (Vols I–III). LANL is in New Mexico, the same state as Baer.
“Zome Geometry” by George W. Hart and Henri Picciotto — directly links to Paul Hildebrandt/Zometool.