5 Principles of Passive House

In the Passive House community people often talk about the 5 basic principles of Passive House. These principles are what enable a Passive House to maintain a healthy indoor environment and constant temperature. In the following posts we will discuss each of these principles in detail and how they work together to create a healthy home. Below is a quick outline to these basic principles.  

1.      High level of insulation

Continuous insulation throughout the entire building envelope helps to reduce heating and cooling needs.

2.      Thermal bridge free construction

Thoughtful design eliminating “cold corners” which minimised risk of mould growth and improves thermal comfort

3.      High-performance Glazing

Double or triple glazed windows in high-performance thermally broken frames to reduce heat loss and excess solar gain.

4.      Airtight construction

Airtightness provides energy savings by minimising infiltration of outdoor air and loss of conditioned air to the outside.

5.      Heat recovery ventilation

With an airtight envelope we require continuous, balanced pressure mechanical ventilation to exhaust stale air and provide fresh filtered air.