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First cavity wall Passivhaus receives certification |
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3 May 2010, 8:21 PM
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The first cavity wall constructed Passivhaus has just received official certification. Green Building Store has succeeded in adapting the Passivhaus approach to British traditional building methods - by creating the first certified Passivhaus in the UK to use traditional cavity wall construction at Denby Dale in West Yorkshire. The project - built by the Store's construction division Green Building Company - has pioneered the combination of low energy Passivhaus methodology with standard British cavity wall construction and building materials.
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Passivhaus design originated in the 1990s in Germany and there are now over 10,000 certified Passivhaus buildings in the world. Passivhaus buildings are more usually built using timber-frame construction or block work wall with external render.
As well as using materials from a local builder's merchant, specialist materials for the project were sourced from the company's range of Passivhaus products (including windows, airtightness tapes and membranes, cavity wall ties and MVHR systems).
Bill Butcher, Director of Green Building Store, said: "We chose cavity wall construction because most British builders are familiar with the technique and materials could be sourced easily from any builders' merchant. Cavity wall also met Yorkshire planning requirements for stone exteriors and was affordable for our clients. In addition, masonry construction, including cavity wall, offers a 'cave effect' which acts as a thermal mass, helping to keep temperatures stable in winter and summer".
The three bedroom detached house cost £141,000 to build, the airtightness reached 0.33 ach @ 50 Pa, space heating needs are estimated at under 15 kWh/m2/annum. The house should require minimal heating - using 90% less energy for space heating than the UK average, redulting in costs of around £75 per year.
Bill Butcher added: "The Denby Dale Passivhaus proves that it possible to build an ultra low energy house using British building techniques and materials, at a low cost. Good simple robust design, knowledge and care in application are all that are needed to achieve Passivhaus levels. Traditional British construction methods can be used to reach the performance levels that you need for 2050 carbon reduction goals".
Wolfgang Feist - originator of the Passivhaus methodology and founder of the Passivhaus Institut in Germany - has been supportive of the project: "The Green Building Store team is to be commended for adapting the Passivhaus methodology to British building techniques and for constructing the first Passivhaus using cavity wall construction in Britain. The Denby Dale project has proven that Passivhaus design can be easily adapted to British building techniques. Airtightness is not a myth - the rules of physics are the same everywhere - and wet plaster offers an excellent airtightness barrier for cavity walls, if applied to all surfaces of external walls and connected properly at the joints. The Green Building Store team has done a great job at Denby Dale and also in helping to spread the word about Passivhaus design in the UK. Congratulations!"
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