Passive solar heating is usually an appropriate strategy when the plotted lines fall anywhere below the comfort zone. Passive Cooling Strategies Natural ventilation depends solely on air movement to cool occupants. Window openings on opposite sides of the building enhance cross ventilation driven by breezes. Since natural breezes can't be scheduled, designers often choose to enhance natural ventilation using tall spaces within buildings called stacks. With openings near the top of the stack, warm air can escape, while cooler air enters the building from openings near the ground.
Ventilation requires the building to be open during the day to allow air flow.
High thermal mass depends on the ability of materials in the building to absorb heat during the day. Each night the mass releases heat, making it ready to absorb heat again the next day. To be effective, thermal mass must be exposed to the living spaces. Residential buildings are considered to have average mass when the exposed mass area is equal to the floor area. So, for every square foot of floor area there is one square foot of exposed thermal mass.