We design and build an active house of zero energy according to the criteria of Active House

 

After the division of the site, one of the owners had the question of reconstructing an uncomfortable, narrow extension in two or even three family houses.

And if you make a complete reconstruction that is the opportunity to make the house as energy efficient as possible.

In the process of reconstruction, we figured out the criteria for Active House and, if possible, tried to implement them in the project.

What good is the Active Home standard?

1. Evaluation of the project and the future home according to criteria that affect the health of residents

• living room lighting
• comfortable temperature
• providing high-quality (purified) fresh air

2. Assessment of the house by energy indicators

• power consumption
• renewable energy production
• primary energy consumption

3. Environmental assessment of the building

• environmental friendliness of building materials
• use of fresh water
• use of recyclable materials

What is the process of evaluating an active home?

The assessment of Active House criteria takes place on a four-point scale where, where 1 is the highest level of compliance with the criteria, 4 is the minimum.

Zone 1. The top of the active home radar is responsible for comfort

а) natural light
б) temperature
в) air quality.

Zone 2. The right side of the radar is responsible for energy.

a.) Energy consumption by all systems.
b.) Energy generation.
c.) Total primary energy consumption from external networks

Zone 3. The left part is responsible for the impact on the environment.

a) Environmental friendliness of building materials (including the carbon footprint from the production and delivery of materials to the site).
b) Using fresh water (collecting rainwater)
c) Use in the construction of environmentally friendly wood, recyclable materials and materials with environmental certificates

As a result, an active home radar is formed by which you can determine how balanced the building is and what should be improved in the design process.

How to evaluate an active house in the design and reconstruction in practice:

Project Description:

By decision of the court, the semi-detached house is divided into three parts, each of which has an area of ​​about 47.4 m2

Initial data: The old house was built in 1947. Foundations - columnar brick, Walls - adobe, bricked outside, Ceilings - wooden, Roof-slate. Under the house there is a basement.
The house consists of two apartments.

We design a semi-detached house 121 m2 with a basement from the annex

The basic project was developed in 2013.

Objective: To design and build an affordable energy-efficient home for two families.

On a plot of 3 acres of irregular shape. Construction is planned to be carried out on their own without the involvement of heavy equipment.

Limitations The plot is irregular in shape. The area of ​​the plot on which the reconstructed part of the house is located is 3.2 acres.

From the corner of the house to the border of the plot is less than 3m.

 

Project: It was decided to increase the house by 0.5m in width and 1.5m in length. In this case, the passage between the house and the fence will be 1.5 m.
The wall of the reconstructed part of the house bordering the old house is oriented north.
Windows are not provided in it. All windows are oriented south.
Due to the fact that the plot is not even under the house, a residential ground floor has been designed.
The total area of ​​the house after reconstruction will be 121 m2 + 52 m2 ground floor.
Designs: Columnar foundations will be reinforced and turned into strip foundations from monolithic reinforced concrete. Ceilings - wooden, Walls - wooden frame with mineral wool filling.

Facades of the house that were originally planned after reconstruction

After evaluating the energy efficiency decisions, some changes have been made:

We evaluate according to the criteria of the Active House

1.Comfort

During the reconstruction, windows from the old house were used, therefore the desired illumination of the rooms was not achieved.

1.1 Daylight factor total score - 2.8

For heating and cooling the house is planned to use a heat pump.

Maximum (projected) summer working temperature without air conditioning - 28 celsius

The maximum (projected) summer working temperature with air conditioning is 25 celsius

The minimum temperature in winter is 21.1 degrees Celsius.

1.2 Thermal environment, the total score is 1

Average air quality above outdoor (by CO2 sensor in ppm) - 850

1.3 Air quality, total score - 1

The energy efficiency of the building is estimated according to the calculation methods of a passive house for reconstruction

2. Energy

2.1. Energy consumption

To maximize the accuracy of calculating heat loss at home, we use the building energy consumption modeling tool for the passive house planning package PHPP.

We calculate the energy consumption for heating:

Energy consumption for cooling 

Calculation of energy consumption for hot water supply

Calculation of energy consumption for domestic needs

Conformity assessment of a house to passive house

A summary table of energy consumption at home, taking into account the efficiency of the equipment (or COP heat pumps):

The total energy consumption of the building for all needs is 60 kW * h / m2 per year

2.1. Energy Consumption, points - 2.5

Renewable Energy Generation

2.3. The value of primary energy - 242, points - 1

3. Ecology

3.1. The environment load of the house construction

Total score - 1.92

3.2. Water consumption.

Total score - 2

3.3. Sustainability of construction and the use of recyclable materials

Total score - 3.7

The final result:

Also, when designing Active House, non-digital criteria are evaluated.

The customer and the architect must answer the following questions and fill out the checklist:

 

More about an active house of zero energy according to the criteria of Active House, see here

All about the calculation of heat loss, energy efficiency of houses and house energy plus read here