Building the passive house way in Christchurch

Passive House is well known for providing a warm comfortable home not only when its cold outside like the temperatures can get in Christchurch but also when a good old north westerner is driving in the heat during the summer months.  Did you know there are examples of Passive House buildings in the extreme cold like Zermatt in Switzerland at -20 degrees and even the Antarctic at -50 degrees. But there are also many examples of Passive houses in extreme heat like the Middle East +50 degrees, Spain +40 degrees and Australia +40degrees! So how does an eHaus work when it is 30+ degrees outside? 

The thing we love about Passive House is that it is all based on proven science principles, meaning the standard is the same anywhere in the world. We think that’s pretty cool. Sure the original thinking by Prof Wolfgang Fiest was how to stay warm in a cold German winter, but essentially the same science that keeps you warm in winter keeps you cool in summer. That is why Passive House is so much more than just a Passive Solar design.   So no matter what’s happening outside your eHaus will stay at an even temperature with little to no heating or cooling, making it a very energy efficient home.

Simply put- with every eHaus we consider the local climate data and how each house will perform in the extremes of both winter and summer. There are lots of key principles that are factored in but the starting point for every passive house design is a thermal envelope that essentially isolates us from the outside temperature, when you get this right the summer and winter temperature changes have little impact.  This means that your passive home is designed specifically for your site and the region you live in. 

Keen to find out more about designing and building your Passive House in Christchurch – contact us at info@ehaus.co.nz