A passive house is a construction concept meant to drastically reduce heating bills and make homes more energy-efficient compared to conventional houses. Even though this concept has been around for quite some time now and has started to gain popularity in recent years, many people still don’t know much about it and its many benefits.
If you want to learn more about this type of house and how it can help you save a lot of money on your heating bills, you should keep on reading.
First Things First: What Is a Passive House?
In a nutshell, this type of house is a super insulated, energy-efficient home.
Every house designed using the passive house concept has to reach a voluntary standard for energy-efficiency that requires a decrease in heating energy consumption. Reaching that standard involves using a different approach in terms of building design and construction. The techniques and technologies used include:
- Superinsulation to minimize the heat transfer through the walls, roof and floor.
- Heating systems to supplement solar gain.
- Air tightness and use of natural passive ventilation.
- Advanced window technology (high R-values).
This energy-efficient design is most often applied to new buildings, but it can also be used for refurbishments, which is a big advantage for homeowners looking for an upgrade.
So Why Would You Want One?
There are definitely a lot of advantages to living in a house designed using this energy-efficient concept. The most obvious one would be, of course, the dramatic reduction in energy required for heating or cooling.
To get a better grasp of exactly how you could profit from it, let’s look at some of the other important benefits it offers homeowners:
- Substantially lower heating bills – Compared to a standard house, a passive house would achieve about a 70% to 80% reduction in heating costs. That is a lot of money saved.
- High-level of comfort – One of the best things about this type of house is that it can provide a convenient temperature (20°C to 21°C) all day long, throughout the year and without compromising on design.
- Great indoor air quality – You can certainly expect clean, fresh air provided by a whole house mechanical ventilation system with extremely efficient heat recovery.
- Minimal carbon footprints – It’s also good for the environment.
[ Image Credits: Green Energy Futures ]
The Key Is to Only Use High-Quality Materials
Low energy costs associated with high levels of comfort. It sure doesn’t sound bad, does it? However, you should keep in mind that achieving the passive house standard not only requires good workmanship, but top-quality materials as well. If you decide to invest in this concept, it’s very important that you don’t take this part lightly and use the best materials.
We can help you with that! We offer high-quality multi-layer foil solutions ideal for roofs, walls, floors and many custom designs. We’re more than happy to send you our product samples containing data sheets in addition to the insulation products themselves.
