In September 1993, the Codicile House demonstration project was recognized by the IEA when the Architect, Martin Liefhebber, was awarded a prize as part of the Architectural Ideas Competition "Photovoltaics in the Built Environment", conducted by Task 16 of the Solar Heating and Cooling Programme. Two totally self-sufficient homes, using solar as the primary energy source, have since been constructed in downtown Toronto to demonstrate the quality that can be achieved while living in the "inner city".

The buildings are highly energy efficient, taking maximum advantage of natural daylighting, thermally resistant wall and roof construction and energy efficient appliances. Both houses each rely on a 2,3 kW PV array consisting of eight 285 W panels (12 V, 22 A) for power. The array, together with the solar collection for water heating, double as "umbrellas" to provide shading to the walls and windows during summer months. The electrical controls and power conditioning comprise voltage regulators, a disconnect switch and a Trace 4 kW inverter to convert 48 VDC to 120 VAC. One of the houses is entirely independent of the municipality electricity grid, incorporating Twenty-Four 2 V gel batteries to provide up to four days power storage, with a 4 kW ethanol fuelled co-generation system providing back-up heat and power. The second house uses the mains grid as storage and backup. A two way-metering arrangement is used to monitor the electricity banked with the utility.

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