Passivhaus or 'Passive House' is the fastest growing energy performance standard in the world with 30,000 buildings realised to date, the majority of those since 2000. The Passivhaus Standards strengths lie in the simplicity of its approach; build a house that has an excellent thermal performance by maximizing the levels of insulation, whilst reducing air leakage and installing mechanical ventilation.
This 'FabricFirst' approach to building design allows the designer to minimise the 'Heating Demand' of the building and in some residential buildings only specify a heated towel rail as means of conventional heating, this heat can then be recovered and circulated by a Mechanical Ventilation and Heat Recovery (MVHR) unit.
As well as being an energy performance standard Passivhaus also provides excellent indoor air quality, this is achieved by reducing the air infiltration rates, code 4 is capable of achieving the highest standards of air leakage reduction due to the quality of our vapour control membranes and construction techniques. Air supply to a building is obviously essential to maintain a healthy atmosphere in buildings. This is achieved by supplying fresh pre heated air which is filtered through a mechanical ventilation heat recovery unit or (MVHR)
Global Application
The Passivhaus Standard can be applied to any climate in the world and works equally as well in warm climates as it does in more moderate climates. To date Passivhaus buildings have been designed and built in every European country, Australia, China, Japan, Canada the USA and South America....a research station has even been constructed to the Passivhaus Standard in Antarctica!
Reducing fuel consumption
As we become more aware of fuel poverty it becomes increasingly important to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, with fuel prices continuing to rise the low heating demand of Passivhaus Buildings of less than 15kWh per square metre per year means that annual fuel costs are reduced by a factor of 5-10. For example a household living in a 70m2 Passivhaus with gas heating could spend as little as £25 on space heating each year.
It has been proven that a Passivhaus will not fall below 16°C, even without heating during the coldest winter months; this is due to the excellent thermal performance and low air infiltration rates
Q.What specific criteria does the buildings superstructure need to achieve passivhaus standards?
A.
PassivHaus Standards PassivHaus Certification
Wall - U/Value Wall U/Value
1.5 (code 5) 1.0 (code 6)
Roof U/value 0.13 Roof U/Value
(code 5) 0.9 (code 6)
Airtightness Value Airtightness Value
1.5 (code 5) 0.6 (code 6)
Code 4's Superstructure has been built to achieve both Passivhaus Standards and Certification. Our Superstructure has been developed in association with the following companies;
Masonite - Structural elements
Xtratherm Ltd - Thermal Insulation
Glidevale Ltd - Reflective vapour control layers / Breather membranes
Simpson Strong tie Ltd - Steel connectors