Passive House Design: Innovation Towards Sustantainbility

-

 


Passive House is defined as a scientifically supported and evidence-based building standard that minimises energy consumption and improves health-based standards. 

Passive House Certification involves implementing smart designs and following rigorous methodology. With NSW Government actively promoting zero-energy homes through updated BASIX standards, Passive House principles are becoming increasingly popular in Australia. 

BASIX assessment is mandatory in NSW for securing Development Applications. Without the BASIX report, your residential project won't be eligible for legal sanctioning.

What Components Are Accessed For Passive House Standards? 

Thermal Comfort 

  • In a Certified Passive House building, the internal temperatures must always remain below 25°C for more than 10% of the hours annually. 
  • Interior surface temperature of external walls and roofs cannot be greater than 1 °C below the indoor air temperature, 
  • Additionally, interior window surfaces must be less than 3.5 °C of interior environment temperature.

Natural Air Quality 

  • Certified Passive House designs must feature a ventilation system providing 30m3 of fresh air quality for each occupant/hour. 

Airtight Envelope

  • The air leakage must never exceed 0.6 air changes per hour at 50 Pascals pressure (ACH50). 

Primary Energy Usage 

  • This component is similar to the Energy section of the BASIX report. 
  • Considers the total energy consumption required for the building operation. 
  • Artificial heating and cooling, lighting fixtures and density, hot water system and other energy utilisation details are evaluated in this section. 

Space Heating/Cooling Energy Demand 

  • Total active heating and cooling input for maintaining interior thermal comfort. 
  • The standard requirement is 15-kilowatt hours/sq.meter of treated floor area/year or 10-Watts/square meter peak load. 
Since these requirements improve, energy performance Passive House Standards can also be utilised for JV3 modelling and assessment.

Benefits For Developer And Projects Owners 

  • No blind, baseless promises. You can present scientifically-supported, evidence-based designs to your clients. 
  • Get a marketing edge over traditional, non-sustainable building designs. 
  • Proactively contribute to ecological perseverance and climate protection. 
  • Quality assurance with reduced variance and greater quality through stringent compliance standards. You'll less likely encounter angry/dissatisfied customers. 
  • The design requirements align with Government compliance standards. (BASIX, JV3, NABERS). You can use the components for BASIX and NaTHERS checklists. 
  • Reduced operating costs, better living standards, and high-qiality design increase Passive House Certified buildings' market demand and value.

How To Achieve Passive House Certification Successfully? 

  • Research and gather information. 
  • Keep the design plan easy and compliant with applicable standards (BASIX, Section J). 
  • Use accredited software tools (BASIX online tool, Passive House Planning Package). 
  • Collaborate with professional experts
  • For residential construction, prepare a BASIX report and obtain a certificate. For a commercial building, NABERS or Section J report might be applicable. 
  • Utilise Certified Passive House products and building components 
  • Ensure the construction follows the design plan commitments. 
  • Receive certification for quality assurance 
Get in touch with an experienced building consultation agency to get a detailed understanding and factors associated with Passive House designing and certification.

Location: 413/33 Lexington Dr, Bella Vista NSW 2153, Australia

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Practical Insight To natHERS Assessment

-
Image
It has become crucial for every constructor or builder to pay special attention to energy consumption efficiency. They have to make houses that consume the least energy without compromising comfort. This is where the natHERS Assessment certification steps in! What's NatHERS? NatHERS or Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme is a procedure used for measuring a house's thermal efficiency. It determines how much energy will be needed for heating or cooling the home.  Structural details and specifications are used as input to the assessment software to calculate the efficiency. It then calculates and compares the result with the fixed scheme data.  Once done, the software displays the rating in 10-star credits. Following this, about 5.4% of energy consumption was decreased in the household sector.  What do the NatHERS star ratings mean? The higher the NatHERS star rating, the more efficient a concerned property is. For example, a 5-star property will need more energy to cool...
Read more

5 Important Things You Should Know About BASIX Report

-
Image
  What Is A BASIX Report?  BASIX or Building Sustainability Index was drafted in 2004 by the New South Wales Government to ensure that residential developments (homes and apartments) were sustainable.  This BASIX initiative was actually underlined in the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act. BASIX reports come with a BASIX certificate that enables the NSW state to have sustainable dwellings that can reduce water consumption and greenhouse gases.  BASIX reports were created to target about 25% minimization in greenhouse gases and 40% in water consumption.  These targets not only help to save the environment but provide economic savings for any homeowner as well. Consequently, a BASIX certified home has a better market value. What Does a BASIX Report Encompass?  A BASIX report comes with an assessment certificate (BASIX certificate) needed during any development application process in New South Wales. The BASIX report entails various criteria, includin...
Read more

How To Improve Your NABERS Rating For Existing And New Buildings?

-
Image
  Green Building and sustainable development are gradually shifting from a luxury to a necessity. So why this shift in mindset? Is it due to the stringent laws and regulations alone?  One-third of the global carbon footprint is generated by buildings alone (both residential and commercial). The investors, Government and the general public are becoming more aware of the benefits of sustainable buildings to the natural world.  Keeping this revolutionary shift in mindset and regulations, most building planners and project owners are looking towards developing sustainable building design. NABERS provides a measurable sustainability index for various components of building design.  So what exactly is NABERS Rating , and is it really necessary? What Is NABERS Rating? Although the demand for eco-friendly office spaces was increasing, how would you know for sure which buildings were actually following sustainability protocols? That’s where the National Australian Built Envir...
Read more