Makeup air in a Passive House
Here’s a good summary on make up air for rangehoods, from HVAC consultants and designers at Energy Vanguard. It’s worth reading in full. The quick summary goes like this: Good...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Oct 2023
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Certifier scope of service guidance a helpful read
The Passivhaus Trust, the UK’s industry body, has published an excellent guide to where the roles and responsibilities sit during Passive House design, construction and certification stages. It’s worth reading....
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Oct 2023
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Successfully marketing Passive House performance
We hear that stories on homes built to Passive House standard are very popular with Stuff readers. Here’s another well-written story about this family home in west Auckland, just completed...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Oct 2023
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Leaky buildings ripe for EnerPHit level makeovers
Nick Gaites spent years designing a new home for his family and overseeing its construction, successfully achieving Passive House certification. His family loved the winter they spent living there but...
by Rachel Rose
Updated: Mar 2026
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Passive House design training relaunches, on-demand format
New Zealand needs more Passive Houses—and other buildings heading in that high-performance direction. That requires more confident and skilled Passive House designers. Sustainable Engineering last year launched a new training...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Sep 2023
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Detailed LCA resource available
The Buildings and Communities Programme (EBC*) has just published a huge resource of LCA work focused on buildings in Europe. The focus of the research are heavyweight buildings powered by...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Sep 2023
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MVHR inlet/extract positions
There’s some new advice available about locating the air inlets and exhausts in MVHR systems. If you’re a Passive House designer or otherwise involved in high-performance building, it’s important to...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Sep 2023
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TFA or CFA? The difference matters
Anyone who notices there are fewer biscuits in a packet that is outwardly the same size has encountered shrinkflation. Same price, but nine chocolate biccies instead of 11 means 18%...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Sep 2023
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Understand thermal implications of underfloor heating
Embedded under-floor heating is a luxurious way of keeping a house warm. You may encounter clients who hate heat pumps and who aren’t deterred by the cost of under-floor heating....
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Mar 2026
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Growth in multi-family Passive House buildings in North America
The PHI-aligned Passive House Network has released a detailed and inspiring guide to the costs and benefits of multi-family Passive House buildings. It draws on data from New York and...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Aug 2023
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A logical staircase to build PH design skills
Seaward House, a newly certified Passive House on Auckland’s waterfront, is a fantastic example of how architects can build their skills in high-performance design in effective, methodical ways. The architect...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Aug 2023
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Thermal bridge calc error rate is way too high
I estimate nearly half the thermal bridge calculations we see during pre-construction review are wrong. Newly minted Passive House designers and consultants are not wholly responsible. The Sustainable Engineering Ltd...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Mar 2026
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Glazing percentage: handy rule of thumb to prevent overheating
Prevent overheating by keeping the window area to 20% of the floor area. That’s a very old passive solar rule-of-thumb from New England (Eastern USA) where I grew up. So...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Jul 2023
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Q&A: Is spray foam insulation a good idea?
Q. What’s your opinion about spray foam insulation for New Zealand homes? A. Spray foam can be used with good results if properly designed and installed well—but a successful outcome...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Jul 2023
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MBIE releases technical guidance on operational carbon
I welcome the release of technical guidance for operational carbon calculations by MBIE, as part of its Building for Climate Change programme. There is lots of work ahead of us...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Mar 2024
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Kids suffer when schools are poorly designed
Some solid work has been done in Aotearoa New Zealand by very capable architects and Passive House designers to design classrooms to Passive House performance levels. The fact none have...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Mar 2026
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New thermal bridge requirements in US will influence NZ
There are new thermal bridging requirements being rolled out in the US, of which ASHRAE has just summarised. ASHRAE standard 90.1 is for all new buildings excepting low rise housing...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Jun 2023
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Retrofitting wall insulation is not risk-free
This article from the BBC discusses claims cavity wall insulation installed as part of a government retrofit scheme has led to homes filled with black mould. The installer has gone...
by Jason Quinn
Updated: Mar 2026
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