Key factors to designing a Passive House building
When broken down, passive house design is fairly simple. The following points are key factors that ensure a highly energy efficient house:
PROPER INSULATION
Similar to wearing a nice thick jacket in the winter, it keeps heat inside and requires less energy to maintain a constant temperature.
NO AIR LEAKAGES
Proper air barriers and taping ensure that you aren't wasting energy to heat the outside world.
NO THERMAL BRIDGES
Thermal bridges are like small highways for heat energy to travel from the inside of your house, past the insulation and be lost. Keeping them as minimal as possible creates a stronger thermal envelope for your home.
PROPER WINDOWS AND DOORS
Triple pane European windows and doors allow all the beauty of traditional windows but provide better insulating properties and seals.
ORIENTATION
Proper orientation allows us to best use the sun for its heating energy. Roof slope can be manipulated to allow more light during the winter months and less in the summer, maintaining a stable temperature inside.
HEAT RECOVERY VENTILATOR
A heat recovery ventilator cuts energy usage by taking the heat from already warmed indoor air and transferring it to new air being brought into the building. This allows for fresh air in the home with a much smaller energy loss to heat new air.
In order to know more about Passive House design in Toronto, contact award-winning principal Architect, Terrell Wong BArch OAA by phone at 416-898-8089 or by email at