Roy Naughton is a Registered and Certified Passive   House Designer WHAT IS A PASSIVE HOUSE? A Passive House is a highly designed and engineered  house that utilizes airtightness, super-insulation,  specialist windows and a heat recovery system to  provide year round comfort at remarkably low fuel costs,  without the need for a conventional heating system.   Passive Houses are very common on mainland Europe, but are relatively  new to the Irish market. However, as clients begin to realise the massive  fuel savings and improved comfort levels achieved by Passive Houses,  they are beginning to become the preferred method of build for once off  houses. The immediate advantage of a Passive House is that the temperature of the house is maintained at 20 degrees Celsius, throughout the house, 24 hrs a day, 365 days of the year.  (No more economising on the oil by letting the house go cold and then reheating, or by having parts of the house with the heating turned off). Owners of Passive Houses in Ireland are reporting an  annual heating bill of around €300, depending on house size and  circumstances. This represents a massive saving on fuel bills, and given  the current trend of increasing oil prices, the savings shall continue to  increase into the future. It also represents a significant reduction in C02  emissions, hence doing your bit for the environment.  

Passive houses are light and bright due to large glazed areas designed to  optimise solar gains, as well as healthy buildings in which to live and work  due to fresh air supply through the ventilation system.   The air quality in a Passive House is fresher than in a  standard build, as warm, clean air is continuously pumped into the  house. Contrary to a common misconception, stale air is  not recirculated around the house, it is exhausted,  however, the heat exchanger extracts the heat from the stale air and uses  this to heat the incoming air. Also, it is possible to open the windows, and  to turn off the system in the summer if you so wish. The heat recovery system is the primary heating system for a Passive  House with supplementary heat provided, usually by a small wood burning  stove. Passive Houses do not use a traditional boiler and radiator system.  A  Passive House can only be designed and certified by  a Registered and Certified Passive House Designer.  The  designing of a Passive House is quite complex and the construction  process requires increased site presence to ensure standards are being  met. The construction type and materials used in a Passive House are of a  higher specification than standard build, employing thicker walls and  roofing with specially designed junctions (all of which require Passive  House certification), Passive House standard triple glazed windows and a  heat recovery system. The cost of constructing a Passive House would usually come in at about  10% above standard building methods, however, the extra capital  investment is quickly recouped by the significant savings achieved on  energy consumption. Additionally, after recouping your initial investment  you start saving annually year on year.   If circumstances or requirements do not allow for  Passive House Construction it is still possible to build a  ‘Near Passive House’ or a ‘Low Energy House’. This type of  construction would usually involve the use of a traditional heating system  in combination with many of the Passive House Features.  More Questions. Why not view our list of FAQ or Contact Us

Architect Galway, Barna