Today we have it: the new H1 has been released. I no longer need to keep it all secret and can finally talk about the new energy efficiency requirements. Note there is a year’s lag before these come into effect (“adjustment period”). Just get on with it, I say to the heel-draggers. As MBIE says, “the changes go as far …
Gone in 60 mins
Wow. The scale of this Irish development is immense: 219 Passive House homes planned across a 26-acre site in Belfast, a £70m project . The first 12 houses released for sale sold in less than a hour. A further nine are about to be offered, completing the first release. These homes are expected to be completed mid-2022. We’ve one builder/developer …
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, their forever home. Our case study has all the technical detail. Great to read that that the Soles are happy with their home, which “Nadia says is functioning ‘exactly how …
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 already having considerable experience in zero-energy, green builds. They now have a great deal of expertise in designing and building single family Passive House homes in California … and their …
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 of your house, get in amongst it.” That’s James Clarke talking (English builder and owner of NZSIP), and as a fellow immigrant, I have to agree. First rule of “eco-homes”: …
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 the news. Ngā Kāinga Anamata, previously known as the Five Systems Project, is five three-story apartment buildings in Glendowie, all designed to reach Passive House performance. Sustainable Engineering Ltd is …
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 of the ambitious and inspiring 11-home Passive House neighbourhood he is currently involved with in Christchurch. His post lists the reasons why he likes prefab timber panels and prefers them …
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 section. The case study initiative began with my book, Passive House for New Zealand, in 2019, which included case studies up to the award-winning Kowhai House. Once the case studies …
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 good news. The catch is, only the German-language version is out yet, so technically it’s PHPP10.0DE. The English version isn’t expected until around Easter next year. Now I don’t read …