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Passive House

What is a Passive House?

The Passive House (German: Passivhaus) is a voluntary building standard, that exceeds the present regulations by far. Built according to
this standard the need for heating will be reduced by 90%. Compared to conventional build, which has an average heating demand of 150kWh/m2a,
these homes need only 15kWh/m2a.

- The remaining heating and hot water demand can be covered almost completely by renewable energies.

- Zero Carbon Housing will be achieved by additionally reducing the electricity demand and alternative means of supply.





Raising the comfort factor

Because of effective insulation heat stays within the building, and all surrounding areas are equally warm. Consequently there is no radiation heat-loss through the outside walls of a passive house, nor any resulting draughts. Conversely, the heat in summer stays outside and this prevents overheating inside. Because of these factors the room temperature in a passive house remains constant and comfortable
throughout the year, ensuring a high standard of comfort and coziness for the occupier. In addition, passive houses have super-efficient ventilation
systems (MVHR) which prevent a build-up of mould and dust and their resultant allergies.

Specification of a passive house

One of the key features is the use of available energy; i.e. the basic principles are the minimizing of heat loss and maximizing of heat gain. To qualify
for the passive house building standard, it is not enough merely to put together passive house-appropriate components; the whole is more than the
sum of its parts. Because of the interaction of individual components, integrated planning is essential so that the completed building fulfills three
following requirements:

* Heating output requirement < 15 kWh/m²a
* Primary energy requirement (heating/hot water/household appliances) <120
kWh/m²a
* Pressure test air change n50 < 0,6 h-1, i.e. in a pressure differential of 50 Pascal, the air current must come to less than 60% per hour of the volume
of the building.






Passive house windows- a dual function

Windows play an important role in passive houses in two ways; firstly, they can reduce heat loss despite their large areas of glazing and secondly, they allow the sunlight to produce additional heat through the glass.
With Internorm windows and heat-conserving glazing as installed in passive houses, it is possible to achieve U-values of 0.58 W/m²K. These
windows have two infra-red reflecting coatings and are filled with krypton or argon. This means that the surface temperature of the glass inside the
room is comparable with the air temperature of the room itself. The amount of total energy-loss (g) with triple glazed Internorm windows is around
50%, depending on glazing and gas-filling. Where these window systems are installed in a south-facing position the heat gains even from December
to February are higher than the heat losses.

Internorm: Passive house certified 5 times over!

High quality components are a must for achieving the passive house building standard. An objective appraisal of one particular property - energy
efficiency - is, however, not always possible. Consequently, the introduction of a norm for product comparison is both effective and meaningful.

The independent Passive House Institute of Darmstadt sets guidelines and carries out a standardized evaluation of products according to these requirements. Certificated products have the appellation, "passive house-appropriate components" and this indicates excellent quality in terms of energy-efficiency. The choice of certificated components eases the task of the planner and helps achieve the passive house building standard.