WHAT SHOULD I KNOW ABOUT PASSIVHAUS VENTILATION?

Heat and energy expert David Hilton explains the benefits, options and costs of this ultimate heating standard

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Passivhaus is a very high performance energy efficiency standard for new build properties and relies on a number of key details to maintain the high performance. It isn't a mandated standard, though it has all but become the go-to standard adopted by homebuilders looking for the highest aspirational performance standard in building.

Passivhaus is fairly agnostic of what materials are used as long as they meet the high performance levels set by the Passivhaus Institute and are installed in a controlled and accountable manner by correctly trained experienced contractors.

So here are some options and costs of Passivhaus answered.

WHY IS PASSIVHAUS VENTILATION NEEDED?

One of the most stringent Passivhaus performance details is the airtightness (draughtproofing).

All energy used, and heat created, from everyday living activities such as cooking, washing, lighting, electronic appliances and even our own body heat, is recycled to meet the heat loss of the property and lower the amount of primary heat that we need to supply through a central heating system.

Clearly, pumping heat out of the building in stale or polluted air is not efficient. So the heat needs to be extracted from the stale air and retained in the home before it exits the building.

HOW MUCH HEALTHY AIR IS NEEDED?