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At Buck Moorhead Architect, we believe energy efficiency, building performance, and occupant comfort are integral parts of great design. We are industry leaders in Passive House, a performance-based building standard that provides superior comfort, indoor air quality, and energy savings. Our team of architects has a deep understanding of Passive House principles and can guide you through the process of designing and building a high-performance, low-energy building that meets your needs and exceeds your expectations. Whether you're looking to reduce your carbon footprint, save on energy bills, or create a healthier living environment for your family, we're here to help. Learn more about our Passive House Design & Consulting services and get in touch with us to start your project today.

Passive House Design and Consulting

What is Passive House?

The Passive House concept represents today’s highest energy standard for building construction. Heating and cooling energy consumption of buildings can be reduced by up to 85%. A Passive House is a very well-insulated, virtually airtight building that is primarily heated by passive solar gain and by internal gains from people and equipment. Energy losses are minimized. Any remaining heat demand is provided by a very small source. Shading and window orientation minimizes heat gain, helping to limit and minimize any cooling load. An energy recovery ventilator provides a constant, balanced fresh air supply, creating comfortable indoor air quality.

 

“A Passive House is a comprehensive system. “Passive” describes this system’s underlying receptivity and retention capacity. Working with natural resources, free solar energy is captured + applied efficiently, instead of relying predominantly on ‘active’ systems to bring a building to ‘zero’ energy. High performance triple-glazed windows, super-insulation, an airtight building shell, limitation of thermal bridging and balanced energy recovery ventilation make possible extraordinary reductions in energy use and carbon emission.”     - Passive House Institute US

 

 

Passive House Principles:

 

• Super insulated building envelope

• Thermal bridge free construction
• Airtight & Windtight exterior envelope
• Ventilation through energy recovery ventilator
• Highly efficient windows & doors.
• Solar & heat gain optimization

 

 

 

Goals for Performance Characteristics:

 

• Airtight building shell ≤ 0.6 ACH @ 50 pascal pressure, measured by blower-door test.

• Annual heat requirement ≤ 4.75 kBtu/sf/yr

• Primary Energy 38.1 kBtu/sf/yr

 

For additional information:

 

Passive House Institute

passiv.de

 

 

US Passive House Institute

passivehouse.us

 

 

NY Passive House (NYPH)

nypassivehouse.org

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