Steve Baer
Encyclopedia
Steve Baer is an American
inventor and solar and residential designer. Baer has served on the board of directors of the U.S. Section of the International Solar Energy Society, and on the board of the New Mexico Solar Energy Association. He is the Founder, Chairman of the Board, President, and Director of Research at Zomeworks Corporation
.
Steve Baer was born in Los Angeles
. In his teens while a student at Midland School
, he read Lewis Mumford
and decided technology needn’t necessarily degrade or complicate people's lives. In the latter 1950s, Baer worked at various jobs and attended Amherst College
and UCLA. In 1960, he joined the U.S. Army, being stationed in Germany
for three years. He also was married in 1960. After discharge from the Army, he and his wife, Holly settled in Zurich, Switzerland, where he worked as a welder and attended Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule, studying mathematics. Here he became interested in the possibilities of building innovative structures using polyhedra (non-rectangular polyhedron
s).
Baer and his wife moved back to the United States, settling in Albuquerque, New Mexico
, where Baer initially worked as a welder of trailer frames for the Fruehauf Trailer Services company. However, he soon went into business by forming a small company called Zomeworks with Barry Hickman and Ed Heinz. The partners experimented with constructing buildings of unusual geometries that they came to call "zome
s", often using heavy sheet metal as the main exterior material. Some of the earliest experiments were carried out in cooperation with members of the intentional communities Drop City
and Manara Nueva.
During this time Baer had also become interested in utilizing solar energy for direct heating of buildings, inspired by reading Farrington Daniels
' Direct Use of the Sun’s Energy. He began to experiment with practical methods, always seeking to simplify his approach as the experiments proceeded. Steve Baer was a key organizer of an important grassroots Western-American conference, Alloy, focusing on these matters. Because the conference was spotlighted in the Whole Earth Catalog
, Baer and Zomeworks became better known among solar enthusiasts in the U.S. Baer also was known as the author of Dome Cookbook and Zome Primer.
In the early years at Zomeworks, Baer was able to work fruitfully with other innovators and idea people, such as the solar designer Day Chahroudi, Dave Harrison, and Dick Henry. In 1975, Zomeworks published a useful, succinct illustrated book, Sunspots, written by Baer and illustrated by Criss-Cross
; focusing on solar-design principles, the book was notable for its cognizance and insights.
One of Zomeworks' inventions was the now-expired patented Beadwall
, which consists of two sheets of glass with small styrofoam
beads blown in the space between them by an air pump at night to insulate the window areas of the building (the beads being removed by vacuum action in the morning). The design is somewhat similar to the drum wall.
Baer’s approach has been to develop strategies and products that simplify rather than complicate; things that add to, rather than detract from, the self-sufficiency of a building and its occupants. The “Track Rack” solar tracker
which Baer and Zomeworks staff developed is a metal-framed passive-solar dynamic mounting for photovoltaic (PV) modules. With an ingenious arrangement of cylinders, pistons, and tubing, the device uses the differential pressure and movement of entrapped liquid to enable gravity to turn the rack and follow the sun. Depending on heat and hydraulics, and without motors, gears, or computerized controls, the rack enables the PV module to face the sun ("sunflower-wise") for maximum efficiency. To fit into the developing solar energy industry, Zomeworks has designed and builds several Track Racks to fit all common photovoltaic modules.
Another innovation, the Skylight Tracker, has a dual purpose: it shades a skylight for indirect daytime lighting while making electricity from PV panels built into the shading slats.
Besides designing, testing, and fabricating solar-energy equipment, Baer and his company have provided consulting services to architects. Baer's design work was included in the Contemporary Developments in Design Science exhibit at St. John the Divine Cathedral, New York City, in 1995.
Baer's unconventional "zome" building-design approach, with its multi-faceted geometric lines, has been taken up by French builders in the Pyrenees
. A 2004 book, Home Work edited by Lloyd Kahn
, has a section featuring these buildings.
While Zomeworks has been known mainly for exploring passive solar strategies and equipment, some of the equipment the company has developed more recently, for solar-driven space cooling, has used active-solar principles.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
inventor and solar and residential designer. Baer has served on the board of directors of the U.S. Section of the International Solar Energy Society, and on the board of the New Mexico Solar Energy Association. He is the Founder, Chairman of the Board, President, and Director of Research at Zomeworks Corporation
Zome
The term zome is used in several related senses. A zome in the original sense is a building using unusual geometries ....
.
Steve Baer was born in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. In his teens while a student at Midland School
Midland School, Los Olivos, California
Midland School is a small, co-ed, college preparatory boarding school near Los Olivos, California, founded in 1932, by Kent School and Harvard graduate Paul Squibb. Squibb envisioned a small, rural community reliant only on the work of its inhabitants to meet its basic needs...
, he read Lewis Mumford
Lewis Mumford
Lewis Mumford was an American historian, philosopher of technology, and influential literary critic. Particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture, he had a broad career as a writer...
and decided technology needn’t necessarily degrade or complicate people's lives. In the latter 1950s, Baer worked at various jobs and attended Amherst College
Amherst College
Amherst College is a private liberal arts college located in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Amherst is an exclusively undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 1,744 students in the fall of 2009...
and UCLA. In 1960, he joined the U.S. Army, being stationed in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
for three years. He also was married in 1960. After discharge from the Army, he and his wife, Holly settled in Zurich, Switzerland, where he worked as a welder and attended Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule, studying mathematics. Here he became interested in the possibilities of building innovative structures using polyhedra (non-rectangular polyhedron
Polyhedron
In elementary geometry a polyhedron is a geometric solid in three dimensions with flat faces and straight edges...
s).
Baer and his wife moved back to the United States, settling in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
, where Baer initially worked as a welder of trailer frames for the Fruehauf Trailer Services company. However, he soon went into business by forming a small company called Zomeworks with Barry Hickman and Ed Heinz. The partners experimented with constructing buildings of unusual geometries that they came to call "zome
Zome
The term zome is used in several related senses. A zome in the original sense is a building using unusual geometries ....
s", often using heavy sheet metal as the main exterior material. Some of the earliest experiments were carried out in cooperation with members of the intentional communities Drop City
Drop City
Drop City was an artists' community that formed in southern Colorado in 1965. Abandoned by the early 1970s, it became known as the first rural "hippie commune".-Establishment:...
and Manara Nueva.
During this time Baer had also become interested in utilizing solar energy for direct heating of buildings, inspired by reading Farrington Daniels
Farrington Daniels
Farrington Daniels , was an American physical chemist, is considered one of the pioneers of the modern direct use of solar energy.- Biography :Daniels was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on March 8, 1889...
' Direct Use of the Sun’s Energy. He began to experiment with practical methods, always seeking to simplify his approach as the experiments proceeded. Steve Baer was a key organizer of an important grassroots Western-American conference, Alloy, focusing on these matters. Because the conference was spotlighted in the Whole Earth Catalog
Whole Earth Catalog
The Whole Earth Catalog was an American counterculture catalog published by Stewart Brand between 1968 and 1972, and occasionally thereafter, until 1998...
, Baer and Zomeworks became better known among solar enthusiasts in the U.S. Baer also was known as the author of Dome Cookbook and Zome Primer.
In the early years at Zomeworks, Baer was able to work fruitfully with other innovators and idea people, such as the solar designer Day Chahroudi, Dave Harrison, and Dick Henry. In 1975, Zomeworks published a useful, succinct illustrated book, Sunspots, written by Baer and illustrated by Criss-Cross
Criss-Cross
Criss-Cross was an artist's cooperative that formed in Colorado in the early 1970s. Having evolved out of Drop City, the 1960s artists' community, C-C focused on issues surrounding "pattern and structure" and became associated with the 70's art movement "P&D" .In 1974, the five founders, Gene...
; focusing on solar-design principles, the book was notable for its cognizance and insights.
One of Zomeworks' inventions was the now-expired patented Beadwall
Earth sheltering
Earth sheltering is the architectural practice of using earth against building walls for external thermal mass, to reduce heat loss, and to easily maintain a steady indoor air temperature...
, which consists of two sheets of glass with small styrofoam
Styrofoam
Styrofoam is a trademark of The Dow Chemical Company for closed-cell currently made for thermal insulation and craft applications. In 1941, researchers in Dow's Chemical Physics Lab found a way to make foamed polystyrene...
beads blown in the space between them by an air pump at night to insulate the window areas of the building (the beads being removed by vacuum action in the morning). The design is somewhat similar to the drum wall.
Baer’s approach has been to develop strategies and products that simplify rather than complicate; things that add to, rather than detract from, the self-sufficiency of a building and its occupants. The “Track Rack” solar tracker
Solar tracker
A solar tracker is a generic term used to describe devices that orient various payloads toward the sun. Payloads can be photovoltaic panels, reflectors, lenses or other optical devices....
which Baer and Zomeworks staff developed is a metal-framed passive-solar dynamic mounting for photovoltaic (PV) modules. With an ingenious arrangement of cylinders, pistons, and tubing, the device uses the differential pressure and movement of entrapped liquid to enable gravity to turn the rack and follow the sun. Depending on heat and hydraulics, and without motors, gears, or computerized controls, the rack enables the PV module to face the sun ("sunflower-wise") for maximum efficiency. To fit into the developing solar energy industry, Zomeworks has designed and builds several Track Racks to fit all common photovoltaic modules.
Another innovation, the Skylight Tracker, has a dual purpose: it shades a skylight for indirect daytime lighting while making electricity from PV panels built into the shading slats.
Besides designing, testing, and fabricating solar-energy equipment, Baer and his company have provided consulting services to architects. Baer's design work was included in the Contemporary Developments in Design Science exhibit at St. John the Divine Cathedral, New York City, in 1995.
Baer's unconventional "zome" building-design approach, with its multi-faceted geometric lines, has been taken up by French builders in the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
. A 2004 book, Home Work edited by Lloyd Kahn
Lloyd Kahn
Lloyd Kahn is the founding editor-in-chief of Shelter Publications, Inc., and is the former Shelter editor of the Whole Earth Catalog. He is also an author, photographer, and pioneer of the green building and green architecture movements....
, has a section featuring these buildings.
While Zomeworks has been known mainly for exploring passive solar strategies and equipment, some of the equipment the company has developed more recently, for solar-driven space cooling, has used active-solar principles.