How I became a passive solar home builder

In 1978, while still playing music in the Amdahl Wolfe band, I determined to build my own home with then girl friend Diana Alexander. A follower of the band, Blake Wilson, was in the insurance business and built log homes on the side. I designed a simple “L-Shaped” log home. We had a loan approved with Sun Savings in Kansas City, KS. After viewing my plans, my friend Jim Huddleston prompted me to do something that was more expressive of my philosophy. So I embarked on designing a passive solar home, reading and researching while we were “on the road.” Diana and I traveled to Santa Fe to see homes by Wayne Nichols, J. C. Nichols’ grandson, who was a developer of passive solar homes. One of his homes (picture at right) was owned by Douglas Balcomb, a Principal Engineer with the Solar Energy Research Institute of Los Alamos National Laboratory in Santa Fe. He and his wife were gracious and showed us their home. So I cloned the passive solar elements of the home with my own interior design (see our log home “Wolfe One” at right).

Later in May of 1979, my band Amdahl Wolfe sadly broke up. So, I began a new career before I knew I needed one. In the next eleven years, I started Craig Wolfe Solar Design & Construction and proceeded to build nearly sixty passive solar/super insulated homes, becoming one of the leaders in the Kansas City area for energy efficient housing.

Below are some examples.

Balcomb Residence

Wolfe Residence, Kansas City, KS