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A passive solar house incorporates features that minimize heat gain in summer and maximize heat gain in winter. The first step in the process is siting and orientation of the house. I picked a site at the north end of a small clearing on the land. The long axis of the house runs east and west, so that the south side can have a lot of windows.
The two photos above show the effect of the changing angle of the sun on the amount of sunlight that is allowed into the house. The photo on the left was taken at solar noon on the summer solstice (21 June), when the sun is highest in the sky. The photo on the right was taken at solar noon on the winter solstice (21 December), when the sun's angle is low. As you can see, the south-facing front of the house is completely shaded in the summer by the overhangs and awnings. In the winter, the windows get full sun.
Although I incorporated these passive solar features, the house doesn't get all its winter heat from the sun. There's also a woodstove and a heat pump.