Passive House: single-family home or passive apartment?

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A classic question is whether a floor can be passive or if this is only for isolated houses. The answer is very simple: yes, a floor can be passive . A passive construction is capable of maintaining specific standards of insulation and energy consumption, regardless of whether it is a single-family home or a passive apartment. In this article we explain what the main challenges are when it comes to achieving maximum efficiency and what requirements any building must meet to be considered passive . Single-family home or passive apartment? Construction challenges If what worries you when choosing between a single-family home or a passive apartment is that the apartment will be less efficient, don't think twice. A passive apartment is just as efficient as a single-family home . However, it does have some added difficulties when it comes to achieving energy efficiency: The orientation of the home Factors such as light or the incidence of the sun on the home are basic when designing a passive building. The rooms with the greatest activity are located in areas with greater or lesser solar incidence, depending on whether the aim is to take advantage of the sun's heat energy or keep the house cool.

One of the difficulties when designing passive apartment blocks is finding an equally efficient orientation in all of them. The reason is that they will possibly have different distributions and it will be more complicated to find a design capable of making the most of the position of the sun with respect to the building in all homes. This, however, is something that can be compensated for with other passive measures Brazil Phone Number List such as the amount or type of insulation or the size of windows, for example, so that the apartment will still achieve the energy efficiency set by the Passivhaus Institut. . The surface of the building envelope In all passive constructions it is vital to maintain correct insulation, watertightness and the absence of thermal bridges along the entire surface of the façade and roof of the building. This is the reason why many passive houses have such a compact shape: because the surface area of ​​the envelope is reduced and it is easier to avoid infiltrations and thermal bridges . A block of flats is larger, therefore it has a larger envelope and will require greater attention to avoid conflict points.



However, just as in the case of orientation, it is a surmountable obstacle that will not jeopardize compliance with the Passivhaus standard and the efficiency of the home. What are the requirements of the Passivhaus standard that all passive buildings meet? Standard: Passive House Requirements The Passivhaus standard is applicable to all types of buildings , from non-residential buildings, such as hospitals, schools or shopping centers, to single-family homes or passive apartments. These are the basic measurements of the standard: Air conditioning demand < 15 kWh/ m 2 a A passive building must be able to maintain a comfortable temperature inside without exceeding an energy consumption of 15 kWh/m 2 a. To achieve this, it is vital to take into account several aspects during the design of the building: Efficient thermal insulation appropriate to its environment (you will not need the same measures apassive house in a cold climatethat onein Mediterranean climate, For example). Doors and windows with maximum performance , with low thermal transmission.