Passive House homes make for happy families

Wonderful article from Stuff on the Sole Family Passivhaus in Christchurch. The Soles built a well-above-Code home about 10 years previously, but decided to go all the way on this,...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Nov 2021

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Passive House is totally achievable (and worth it)

This is a stand-out article from San Francisco Bay area Passive House builders, One Sky Homes. These guys are the real deal, coming to Passive House over a decade ago...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Mar 2026

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SIP build a good PH option

“How much space do you need? Do you need a TV room, a rumpus room, a dining room, and a living room? New Zealand is an amazing country: get out...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Nov 2021

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Ngā Kāinga Anamata announced

Kāinga Ora’s first Passive House pilot project was a great milestone but we knew far more was in the works and today we are happy to be able to share...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Mar 2026

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Passive House subdivision in Christchurch blazes a trail

Interesting perspective here on materials from an experienced builder of certified Passive Houses. Peter Bielski of Ethos Homes is a fan of panelisation—in a shed on site, in the case...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Mar 2026

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ALL certified PH builds in NZ have been written up

Here’s a handy short cut to case studies on all certified Passive House projects in New Zealand to date. Phcert.nz will take you to the Sustainable Engineering website’s case study...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Mar 2026

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PHPP10 launched

Update [June 2022] PHPP10 is now available in English. In case you hadn’t heard, PHPP10 was released at the 25th International Passive House conference in Wuppertal last month. That’s the...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Jun 2022

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Why bigger is easier

There’s still lots of talk about the cost premium to build a detached family home to the Passive House standard and how much that premium is. Let’s not overlook that...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Oct 2021

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We won’t get to zero carbon without energy efficient homes

It’s great to see this piece in popular media, outlining research that shows that, like the rest of the world, New Zealand’s path to a zero carbon future requires homes...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Mar 2026

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Kāinga Ora will drive Passive House uptake across the whole building sector

Kāinga Ora’s announcement of its first Passive House pilot project, the 18-unit Bader Ventura apartment building in Mangere, Auckland, is receiving a lot of attention with stories running across national...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Mar 2026

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Airtight building resources

Here’s an excellent resource on planning, training, mocking-up and doing QA on an airtight building project. It’s very graphical and has great links to even more resources.  There’s video as...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Aug 2021

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Homestar V5 a huge improvement

The just-released Homestar V5 tool is going to lift the performance of homes using the NZ Green Building Council (NZGBC) rating system because the PHPP software is now the engine...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Mar 2026

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‘Worlds Apart’ graphic depicts future pathways

I spend most of my waking hours focused on improving the performance of the buildings: for the sake of the humans who live, work and play within them and for...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Aug 2021

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Breaking news: Warmer, healthier homes are worth more

This recent Stuff story was a pretty well-considered look at whether improvements in thermal performance influence sale prices. I’ve covered this ground before, in my book and in this blog...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Jul 2021

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Leadership needed in NZ educational sector

New Zealand got underway with Passive House before our Aussie mates but sadly we’ve been thoroughly surpassed in the last couple of years. We have no Passive House projects to...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Mar 2026

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NZIA adds weight to call for better Building Code

In this high-profile recent opinion piece, Marcus Hogan (professional practice director at Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects), points out that even new homes built to meet the...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Jul 2021

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The take-back effect

Folks are illogical. Including me. I think a fizzy drink should cost about $1 and don’t want to pay more—but $5 for a coffee is alright. Weird. Well it turns...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Mar 2026

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Energy-efficient builds increase sales price: Aus study

I’m often asked for data on the price premium a certified Passive House would command compared to the same house built to the legal minimum requirements of the New Zealand...

by Jason Quinn

Updated: Mar 2026

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