only difference from common insulation is in the thickness of material and in insulating the foundations. 3. Windows (3 glasses) well-fitted. Important for air ventilation in interior and living comfort. Really good windows are more expensive than the ordinary ones. Installation is equally important. 4. Recuperative ventilation system. It saves 80% of the produced heat. The simplest systems can be bought from 1700,- Euro. It is an inevitable investment. 5. Heat pump. It is not a condition. It is just one of the possible technologies which lower the energy burden. It is commonly used today, at least it contributes to passive standard but in comparison to conventional solutions it is more effective. 6. Solar (thermic) panels. Ancillary equipment, useful for houses with pools. 7. Solar (photovoltaic) panels. Ancillary equipment, the ratio of the price, perfor‑ mance and investment return ranks them among the least effective investments. 8. Solid fuel boiler (variant with connection to the heating system). It is not a condition of the passive house, offer on the market is rather focused on low-energy and conventional houses.
A comparison of conventional and passive houses.
In terms of investment Building a passive house is not a low-cost solution but on the other side it is not an extreme above standard. A difference in price in relation to conventional houses is approximately 10%. However, as the standard of products is always rising up, today many of the products intended for passive houses are used for building conventional ones as well. In terms of operation A passive house of a high quality can have 80% lower operational costs in comparison with a conventional house. In terms of quality living Ventilation/quality of air is controlled in a passive house. For this reason, there are no molds. In case of large scale air pollution (for example in towns), it has healthier microclimate than typically ventilated house. Thanks to good insulation, there are no temperature differences in the space compared to conventional house. In terms of a building lifetime For a thorough insulation, the constructions are exposed to lower temperature
fluctuations and thus smaller expansion resulting in slower degeneration/fatigue of material. The total investment to a “passive standard” has to be divided into individual elements. Then we will see that some parts of investment are less effective and the others more; there are also those that will have its value while the object exists. It is not true that such a house is always more expensive. At the moment, there are technologies of all price categories on the market, for this reason equipment for passive houses is reasonably priced. Investment in housing during productive age of a person can be easily covered with his/her income. And when retired, one will welcome low operating cost of the building. Investment in passive house will ensure you low costs even for the time when you are not gainfully employed…
What is the future trend in energy saving in family houses?
According to the EU legislation, all buildings have to be built in passive standard from the year of 2020. Even now, by law, the objects need a thermo-technical assessment and a report of the Energy Performance of Buildings; these are certificates that will serve as “technical building certificates”. It means that you can orientate yourself on the real estate market on the basis of economic efficiency. Even more than now, this will be a parameter influencing the property price.
text a photo: Ing. arch. Ján Tvrdoň www.architekttvrdon.sk
Architekt Ing. arch. Ján Tvrdoň Študoval architektúru na FA STU v Bratislave (1992–1998). V rokoch 1996 – 2010 pracoval v Štúdiu Kolovrátok – kreatívne štúdio zamerané na grafický dizajn, výstavníctvo, fotografiu a produkciu. Od roku 2010 je riaditeľom spoločnosti ARCHITECTURAL & BUILDING MANAGEMENT, s.r.o. Venuje sa navrhovaniu pasívnych domov.
Architec Ing.arch. Ján Tvrdoň He studied architecture at the FA STU in Bratislava (1992-1998). Between the years of 1996 - 2010 he worked at Kolovrátok studio - creative studio focused on graphic design, exhibitions, photo and production. Since 2010, he is a director of ARCHITECTURAL & BUILDING MANAGEMENT, Ltd., and deals with the design of passive houses.
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