First Steps

The Passive House (PH) technique is fundamentally a method rather than a specific building style. While several PH building techniques have been developed to suit the European climate it is important that these are not just copied without assessing and developing a specific solution for each area and climate. This is because of the massive differences in elements such as solar gain between different climates, e.g. Sunny California and Dreary Galway. While the climate changes the concept and laws of physics remain the same around the world in different climates. Although the designs of PH may appear quite different, the principle remains the same of reducing investment through energy efficient design (Lovins). When the heating load is less than 10 W/m2, independent of climate, the ventilation system can easily be used for space heating and then a separate heating system is no longer required. While there is an associated extra capital cost during the construction stage of PH compared to traditional methods the costs would rise much more dramatically if the goal was to achieve a 'Zero Energy House' instead of a PH as well as there being almost no additional environmental benefits. These PH's have a very low energy demand for maintaining interior comfort in the heating season. Examining the heating load is just one example in other regions other energy services may be of greater importance than that of heating. As stated earlier it is important to investigate the specific PH solution for each separate project with each one being different and unique. In this case the different technologies available, ventilation systems for thermal comfort and various other associated methods should all be investigated. There are also some rules of thumb to be followed, such as

Keeping Comfort to a high level.
Solutions should be simpler than what is used conventionally.
Insulation is highly recommended in all climates.
Shading is paramount in all climates with high radiation levels.
Heat recovery is necessary in all climates be they hot or cold.
The use of very low auxiliary energy is of great importance.
And in Many cases the ground may be used as a heat or cold buffer.

After defining the goals in different climates the next step is to perform a 'computer based parametric study' of the design solutions and to check the results. A traditional building design can be used as a starting point, then each element can be modified step by step.