Photovoltaic Systems

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The Passive House movement in the US was on a major tear in 2011 but for that awful split between PHIUS and international PHI.  The standard seemed free of maneuvers and politics and infighting, yet now there’s something about PHIUS+ certification and a ban on spray polyurethane foam insulation.  Oh boy!  Notwithstanding all of this, let’s not take anything from the following incredible, high-performance, completed projects discussed in the past year that sought or achieved Passive House certification.

Traditional Style Passive House Built in Ohio

This isn’t a home with drafts, cold windows, or even heavy-duty heating and cooling equipment — it represents the future of energy-efficient housing. Read more.

Menlo Park Passive House Hits the Market

It turns out that a Passive House can take on a what’s being referred to as “mission revival style” or “old world” luxury. Read more.

The First Passive House in New York

The Hudson Passive Project doesn’t have all kinds of add-on gadgets — photovoltaics, wind turbines, or solar thermal — because its performance follows from the design.  Read more.

Passive Makes Perfect in North Carolina

This charming 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath bungalow in Chapel Hill uses dramatically less energy to heat and cool than a typical home. Read more.

The First Passive House in North Carolina

This is the first Passive House in the country built out of concrete, and the concrete exterior made the construction costs surprisingly reasonably. Read more.

Modern Prototype Passivhaus in Syracuse

R-House was given a 2011 AIA Housing Award, and one of the jurors said the 1,100 square-foot home presents “A new slant on sustainability!” Read more.

Unity College Gets Passive Haus Building

TerraHaus is expected to be the first student residence in the country with Passive House certification and will house 10 students at Unity College in Maine. Read more.

Photo credits: click the text links above for specific credits.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. 15 Terrific Tiny House Projects of 2011
2. Modern Prototype Passivhaus in Syracuse
3. Unity College Gets Passive Haus Building

I’ve seen the tiny house thrive in 2011 like none other.  People behind these structures — whether a tiny home, shed, backyard office, ADU, or off-season retreat — seem to have a little Thoreau inside.  Nonetheless, please keep this in mind: only about 5% of the population would ever dream to live in a tiny house.  Is this for you?  Here’s a little round up of the built projects that we covered in 2011, in no particular order.  Click the text below for more and use your tabs for hours of reading.

QB1 is an Energy Positive Tiny House

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Cedar-Slat Tiny Sunset Cabin on the Lake

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Solar-Powered Sunset Idea House 2011

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Net-Zero Energy Tiny House in Berkeley

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Backyard Work Studio for a Graphics Artist

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The Crib is a Tiny Enviresponsible Shelter

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Tiny Harbinger House in North Carolina

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Tiny Tubular Hotel Built in Three Months

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Super-Efficient ADU Complete in Portland

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Sett is a Tiny, Green, Modular Home Studio

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Prefab ADU Think Tank Built in Savannah

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Pure Salvage Tiny House for Texas Living

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Popomo is a Simple, Mobile, Modern Tiny House

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Tiny Green Faberhaus Opens in Quebec

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Earth-Friendly Garden Studio with a View

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Credits: click the text links above for more information.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. Sett is a Tiny, Green, Modular Studio
2. Net-Zero Energy Tiny House in Berkeley
3. Tiny Idea House in a Shipping Container

This is an update to a prior article about Tierra del Sol, a community of 22 prefab, starter homes, located in Stockton, California.  Built in modules by California-based ZETA Communities, the homes in Tierra del Sol have three bedrooms, two baths, and 1,268 square feet.  They’re homes are also expected to use about 45% less energy each than a typical home.

Each prefab home will have a hybrid heat pump water heater, mini-split heating and cooling, CFL lighting, Energy Star appliances, recycled and renewable batt insulation, 2 x 6 wall construction, triple-pane windows, and an envelope with R22 floors, R26 walls, an R50 roof, and an exterior layer of R15 rigid foam.

Other green features include no-VOC paints, low-VOC finishes, no-added formaldehyde finishes, proper ventilation and circulation, cement-board siding, and low-flow plumbing fixtures.

The solar-powered, Energy Star homes could help residents save up to $2,000 per year in energy costs.  Tierra del Sol is offered by developer Visionary Home Builders with the starting sales price of a home at $159,999 with a $30,000 GAP down-payment assistance loan from the County of San Joaquin.

[+] See more photos of Tierra del Sol in California.

Credits: William Porter via ZETA. 

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. ZETA Fabricates Homes for NZE Project
2. Blu Completes Another Next Gen Prefab
3. Affordable LEED Homes Open in San Jose

When we first profiled Anchorage Builders in 2010, they were in the construction phase of North Carolina’s first Passive House.  We followed up with the project in a subsequent post and were quite impressed with the completed home, both aesthetically and sustainably.  Building on this successful experience, Anchorage and architect Jay Fulkerson have recently collaborated on yet another Chapel Hill home designed with Passive House building methods.

Like it’s predecessor, this charming 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath bungalow uses dramatically less energy to heat and cool than a typical home, thanks to such features as:

• 14.5” thick precast concrete walls (R-40)
• 16” rafters (R-62)
• Stained/polished concrete floors (R-20)
• Triple-glazed Thermotech windows (R-7)
• 95%-efficient UltimateAir ERV
• Icynene and cellulose insulation
• Wall-mounted, variable-speed Fujitsu 0.25-1.0 ton 25-SEER mini split
• High-efficiency appliances include a non-vented Bosch condensing clothes dryer, Electrolux induction cooktop, and convection oven

Achieving Passive House certification is no easy feat, with strict metrics on heating and cooling loads, energy loss, and energy use. Intensive training and support from PHIUS (which governed the movement in the U.S. until recently) equips design professionals and builders with the ability to handle the additional challenges a Passive House must overcome.  Anchorage founder Chris Senior has advice for anyone interested in going the Passive House route:

Achieving certified PH is challenging but doable. It starts with involving the whole team, from the client and architect to the decorator and construction crew, right from the beginning of the design process.  Using the Passive House Planning Package (PHPP), we can calculate insulation needs and address air flow to ensure the home we are envisioning will meet strict Passive House standards.  Once construction is underway, the building team must be hyper-vigilant with the implementation of that plan.  Our job as the builder is to create the continuous air barrier and super insulate the home while avoiding leaky penetrations and thermal bridging.

Anchorage has another Passive House under construction in Pittsboro, in which the homeowner’s have been keeping a very informative blog about the building process.  Senior and his team relish the opportunity to perfect their technique. “The art is making this complex approach simple and affordable.  Repetition will hone our skills- but even now, there is little if any cost premium to our concrete PH’s!”

That’s good news for the movement here in the Unites States as it continues to gain momentum.  “These simple, low-load homes are the obvious future,” said Senior.

[+] More about this project at Anchorage Building Corp.

Credits: Anchorage Building Corp.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. The First Passive House in North Carolina
2. New Passive House in North Carolina
3. Tiny Harbinger House in North Carolina