Make Your House a Perfect Zero

For some, the phrase "off the grid" may still conjure up visions of a weather-beaten wood shack with rusted metal on the outside and angry tax evaders within. But that's about change, if two Texas-based architects have anything to do with it.

The Austin American Statesmanreported this month that after ten years in the making, architects Scott Specht and Louise Harpman have a plan for a net-zero house that is "shovel-ready."