South-west Victoria Passivhaus

I recently was fortunate to visit a new build Passivhaus home during construction in a rural setting in South West Victoria. I had connected with the owner via Instagram, and she kindly invited me to visit when I was next in the area.

I grew up in the area, and know how brutal the winters can be down there. The day I visited there was no exception, with torrential rain, high winds, and a top of eight degrees. So it was a perfect day to visit a Passivhaus and personally test its high performance.

The house was at lock up stage and the builder had left the door open all day. The MVHR (mechanical ventilation heat recovery) unit or the split system air conditioning had not been commissioned. So the indoor air temperature was solely relying on the thermal insulation, high-performance windows, and airtightness (the builder has achieved an amazing 1.9 ACH for the blower door test), along with the passive solar gains. The house’s indoor conditions were beautiful to experience. The air was warm, there were no draughts, and there were no cold spots. It was a pure joy to experience.

I can’t wait to hear how the owners experience the house in the first year of occupation. I’m sure the use of heating will be limited to when there are a number of overcast winter days in a row.

To learn about the basics of Passive House (Passivhaus) click here.

I am a Certified Passive House Designer. If you’d like to build a high-performance home, please contact me for an obligation free consultation.