The Tour attendees, who visited this house last year, will be
happy to find it finished and lived in instead of under construction. 9. Wright - DuVivier
The Tour attendees, who visited this house last year, will be
happy to find it finished and lived in instead of under construction.
The owner writes:
This house was designed to meet the very strict standards of the Passive House Institute, US (PHIUS). If it passes the final energy inspections, it will be among the first dozen, or so, officially certified “Passive Houses” in the United States.
The PHIUS was established in January of 2008 in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois to promote the European building technique called “Passiv Haus”. Passive House standards go way beyond the well known passive solar gain techniques of the United States. Their combination of super-insulation (R-40 walls and R-70 ceilings), energy efficient heat recovery ventilation, minimization of thermal bridging, passive solar heat gain, and the careful utilization of highly efficient windows and doors produces a house that is more than the sum of its parts.
The typical European Passive House is heated through a combination of: passive solar gain, waste heat from appliances and people, and supplemental heat from devices that use about as much energy as a hand-held hair dryer.
Passive Solar Features
Faces true south
Thermal mass
waste sheetrock put in the wall cavity
5/8” sheet rock on ceiling and selected walls
4” concrete slab
2” thick interior stone wall
Photovoltaic Panels
Roof mounted 3.3 kW, 20 panels
Grid tied
Solar Hot Water
1- 4’ x 8’ panel
80 gallon holding tank
Domestic hot water and space heating
Thermal Envelope / Thermal
Comfort
Insulation
Walls R 40 – code is R 15
Roof R 60 – code is R 38
Under slab R 50 – code is R 6
Low – e windows
Highly efficient Heat Recovery Ventilator with ECM
Expanding foam insulation around windows and outlets
Insulating Levolor “Honeycomb” window blinds
Lighting
Interior windows
CFL and T-8 lights
Construction
SIPS walls
Thermal breaks – external stucco detail insulates around windows and doors
Low VOC paint
1,800 reused brick pavers
High performance windows – Low-e
Raised heel (Arkansas) trusses to allow for extra insulation in the roof
Energy efficient exterior doors
Appliances
Energy Star rated
Condensing clothes dryer (no outside venting required)
Transportation / Lifestyles
Walk to work
Use of public transportation
Bicycles
Recycling
Composting
Organic gardening
Low consumption lifestyle
Re-Use / Salvaged Materials
/ Recycle
1,800 reused brick pavers
Habitat for Humanity salvaged doors, cabinets, appliances, concrete blocks and
lights
Some fencing and landscape stone reused
Unique Features
Highly informed homeowner
Native or edible landscaping
All electric house (easier energy monitoring)
Green Features
Bio-based polyurethane foam, blown in cellulose and EPS
Cork floor upstairs bathroom
Low VOC paints,
“Pop bottle” carpet
Oriented strand construction board
Sunflower seed hull counter tops
Water Features
Low flush toilets
Low flow shower heads
Low flow faucets
Xeriscaping
Water permeable hardscape