Do you know the concept of the passive house?
July 30, 2020
Nature gives us everything we need to live, we have to learn to benefit from everything it can give us and integrate with it to achieve a more sustainable coexistence. For us, efficient architecture, its values and construction techniques is a basic point for Constructora Espígul, since taking into account energy savings in the construction of houses and buildings is no longer an option but a necessity and duty of the present.
Do you know the concept of the passive house?
Passive house construction, or Passivhaus, emerged in Germany in the early 1990s. The concept of passive houses is based on making an efficient building that seeks to reduce energy consumption as much as possible. They use resources from bioclimatic or efficient architecture, and aim for almost zero consumption of the building.
This type of house is characterized by a minimum energy consumption, almost non-existent, and offers a stable room temperature throughout the year of at least 20 º in winter and up to 25 º in summer, and without using the usual heating systems.
5 KEY ELEMENTS OF A PASSIVE HOUSE
To achieve all the benefits discussed above, passive houses must meet at least the following requirements:
Thermal insulation. Insulation is one of the most important points. A passive house must have insulating materials for heat and also for cold. With quality thermal insulation and sufficient quantity, heat losses are very limited.
Hermeticity. Any air leakage must be avoided. Watch for gaps, holes… When building a passive house, these weak points must be taken into account so that there are no air infiltrations. There are tests to check the level of airtightness of a house.
Avoid or eliminate thermal bridges. We mean detecting points where heat leaks and repairing them. In traditional buildings and houses it is common to find different leakage points, as they are not taken into account in construction. This problem is solved with continuous insulation, without interruptions or weakening. The most problematic points are doors, windows, balconies and roofs.
Quality doors and windows. To ensure maximum efficiency, they should have at least two or three panes of glass. The quality of door and window materials is just as important as their installation.
Mechanical ventilation with heat recovery. Make sure that the air inside the house is healthy with no variation in temperature.
PASSIVE HOUSES ARE EFFICIENT, SUSTAINABLE AND PROFITABLE
They are efficient because thanks to their structure they have a much lower energy consumption than in traditional homes. By keeping the environment at a pleasant temperature all year round, only focused heat points are needed (such as underfloor heating or low-energy stoves)
They are sustainable, passive houses are energy efficient, as they use solar energy indirectly to achieve the desired temperature. The energy saving allows to reduce the CO2 emissions and the environmental impact that is generated.
They are profitable because although passive houses tend to have higher prices at the beginning because they involve a higher initial investment, this investment is easily recovered by the annual savings in energy consumption.
They are healthy because they are built with insulation that makes them less noisy and the air is cleaner and dust-free. A very important aspect is that there is no humidity since the condensation of the air is controlled.
In the end, the construction of passive houses is good for us and for the planet.
In Espígul Real Estate we love challenges, if after seeing all the benefits of passive houses you are interested in building a passive house in Girona, you can ask us for more information. We will accompany you throughout the process and together we can build the house of your dreams (whether passive or traditional!)
