Virginia Tech students hope to build world's best solar house

Virginia Tech, is only team to represent US in global house competition

BLACKSBURG, Va. – Students at Virginia Tech are getting ready to enter a solar home for a global competition called Solar Decathlon Middle East.

This comes after their first house burned to the ground earlier this year.

They've since built a new house and are making them the only team to represent the United States in the competition.

Their hope is to complete the best solar home in the world.

 “In the future, you're going to be walking to Best Buy or you can go online and you're going to order your kitchen and your bathrooms through Amazon,” the team's co-director Joseph Wheeler, at Virginia Tech, said.

The team, which spans multiple disciplines, is building a house that's smart, sustainable and adaptable to the needs of people worldwide.

“So all the houses are run off solar panels on our roof and they're completely net positive housing solution, which will greatly influence the way we live,” Virginia Tech student Laurie Booth said.

This week, the team is powering up a crowdfunding fundraiser.

Its goal is to raise the $10,000 needed to purchase the solar panels.

In November 2018, the team will travel to Dubai to compete against 22 universities from 16 countries, demonstrating how this house can generate more energy than it consumes.