PassivHaus
Building to the Passivhaus standard creates a warm and cosy, light, bright and fresh building with exceptionally low energy bills. Despite what the name would suggest, it applies to all building types, not just houses. This standard is applied to new buildings and its sister standard ‘EnerPHit’ relates to retrofit and upgrade of existing buildings. Passivhaus buildings give:
- Great comfort – warm and draught free, with good daylight, solar orientation and fresh air throughout with good indoor air quality.
- Exceptional energy efficiency – a maximum of 15 kWh/m2.annum or around 90% saving on heating bills compared to a standard house and a maximum of 120 kWh/m2.annum for all primary energy use in the building.
- High quality build – high levels of insulation and high performance components such as triple glazed windows and excellent design and detailing.
We are designing a number of Passivhaus buildings and are delighted that our Hayshed Passivhaus won the 2014 UK Passivhaus Trust ‘Bespoke Projects’ Award.
We aim to apply the key principles of the Passivhaus and EnerPHit standards to all our projects, whether they will reach all the way to Passivhaus or meet a different standard such as the AECB CarbonLite benchmarks. There are lots of links to more information in our Library including ‘Why Choose Passivhaus’.
Kirsty is a Certified EU Passivhaus Designer, and provides both consultancy to other architects as well as working with clients directly to integrate this standard into our designs. She is also a founder member and on the steering group of the Passivhaus Trust Scotland group.
(*Written with reference to The International Passivhaus Association, iPHA, Passipedia)