Queanbeyan Passive House – Hidden New Build 2018

House Notes – Queanbeyan Passive House – Hidden New Build

Tucked behind a dishevelled white-washed brick cottage, is Queanbeyan’s first Passive House. Still under construction, this Passive House has been built with the key focus of insulation, airtightness, thermal disconnection and controlling the solar heat gain (sun).

Whilst utilising the ideal solar orientation, this house moves away from solar passive ideals by having no thermal anchoring or thermal mass. Designed to be thermally broken, with no proper front door, this house is already at a stable temperature all year round. This house has been designed to move away from the reliance of working the solar heat gain constantly and needing to shut the house up in summer to keep cool. (I refuse to be a slave to my curtains! There’s nothing more depressing than having to turn lights on inside, in the middle of summer, because the house has been shut down – it’s just not cricket!)

By using 140mm-deep insulated walls, the house exceeds the typical BCA-compliant 90mm stud wall – providing R4.0 solely out of the insulation.

Walls are all externally and internally membraned, aiming for the Passive House requirement of 0.6 ACH (air changes per hour ~ i.e. the total volume of air moving through your home, thus how quickly any energy is lost through your building envelope). Pre-testing has come in at 0.67 ACH (Passive House FAIL) but, confident with the additional taping that has occured since then, the house will achieve the airtightness requirement.

Triple-glazed, timber (with external aluminium cladding) thermally broken windows throughout. Two low-e coatings, argon-filled; the whole kit-and-kaboodle.

Energy recovery ventilation (ERV), decentralised (wall-mounted little ‘lungs’ that bring fresh air into the building, without the thermal compromise), aiming for a building that sits around 24 degrees Celsius all year round. Currently, the house overheats in winter (sun coming in below the eave line), but this will be fixed once my external screens get installed!

This building is currently mid-construction, allowing people to view the airtightness membranes used and to see how the walls have been constructed.

Please bring sturdy shoes as the ground is uneven, can be muddy (if it’s rained recently) and gravelly!

To find out more about the NatHERS (Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme) click here.

Sustainability Features

Years Open
2017
2018
ENERGY AND WATER EFFICIENT FEATURES
    • Energy efficiency:
    • Draught proofing
      Efficient lighting
      Efficient appliances
      Energy monitoring
      Smart home features
    • Passive heating cooling:
    • Cross-ventilation
      Passive solar designed home
      Shading

    • Passive heating cooling:
    • Energy recovery ventilation system (ie: wall-mounted ventilation lungs throughout the building envelope)
    • Active heating cooling:
    • Ceiling fans
      Heat exchange ventilation system
      Split system air conditioner
    • Water heating:
    • Hot water heat pump

    • Water heating:
    • Sanden super-critical CO2 heat pump
    • Water harvesting and saving features:
    • Above-ground rainwater storage
      Greywater system
      Stormwater management
      Low-flow shower heads
      Low-flow taps
    • Above ground rainwater storage Type:
    • Slimline storage units
    • Above ground rainwater storage Size
    • 10,000
    • Energy Efficient Lighting
    • LED lights throughout
      Natural daylight
    • Window Protection:
    • Adjustable shading
      Automation/controls
      Blinds
SUSTAINABLE & RECYCLED MATERIALS
    • Recycled and reused materials:
    • Appliances
      Basins/sinks
      Bathroom cabinets
      Bricks
INSULATION SPECIFICATIONS
    • Insulation Type:
    • Under-roof
      Internal walls
      External walls
      Floor
    • Floor Type:
    • Cross-section of all construction assemblies will be available on the day
    • Floor Rating:
    • R5.0 (240mm)
    • Internal / External Walls Type:
    • Accoustic batts for sound attenuation
    • Internal / External Walls Rating:
    • R4.0 (140mm)
    • External Walls Rating:
    • R4.0 (140mm)
    • External Walls Type:
    • Cross-section of all construction assemblies will be available on the day
RENEWABLE ENERGY SPECIFICATIONS
    • All-Electric Home?
    • Yes
    • Energy star rating:
    • Passive House 9+ EER
HOUSE DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS
    • House Size
    • 157m2
    • BAL Rating
    • BAL – Low: There is insufficient risk to warrant specific construction requirements
    • Roof
    • Metal (colorbond)
    • Wall Materials
    • Insulated panels or blocks
    • Window and Door Types
    • Clerestory windows
      Low-e, films
    • Number of bedrooms
    • 3
    • Number of bathrooms
    • 3
HEALTHY HOME FEATURES
    • Healthy home features
    • Airtight house design
      Heat recovery ventilation (HRV)
      Indoor plants for air filtration
Location
Crestwood NSW 2620
    • Housing Type:
    • Standalone House
    • Project Type:
    • New Build
    • Builder
    • Designer/Owner/Builder
    • Designer
    • Engineering, Passive House Design and consultation by LAROS Technologies

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