PHPP vs. Title 24: Shading Analysis

One critical aspect of building performance is shading. With a properly designed building shell, the amount of solar radiation hitting the building’s opaque surfaces usually aren’t a problem. However, the windows are the weakest link in the shell. The presence or absence of shading can have a huge impact on cooling and heating loads, even with excellent quality windows. You can control radiation intrusion to a certain extent by tuning…


EpiPHany Corner | Do Pass/Fail choices deliver optimum performance?

Even though it seems intuitively obvious that the logical answer is NO, a surprisingly high percentage of decisions regarding the design and construction of new homes are made on a Pass/Fail basis. “Building to code”, means complying with at least the minimum acceptable requirements in the large number of specific areas where compliance is required. Code is a Pass/Fail system and if a building does not meet one or more…


Meet the iPHA Affiliates

The International Passive House Association (iPHA) has created a new blog series aiming to introduce our international partner associations and the great work they are doing to the wider, global audience. The International Passive House Association (iPHA) was founded in 2010 to support the growing global Passive House community, disseminate information on the Passive House Standard and foster a greater public understanding of its significance. iPHA partners with independent Passive…


NARI | Remodeling Done Right – Eat & Talk San Francisco – Passive House Remodel

NARI Bay Area is having an event to recruit members and do a meet & greet on the evening of Oct. 13th, at 2815 7th St, Berkeley, the window & door showroom for Golden State Lumber. This is an excellent opportunity to let builders and suppliers know that we want them to use the Passive House standards for construction and materials, and encourage them to do any training, and get…


2021 Passive House Award Winners

Darmstadt/Wuppertal, Germany. The ceremony for the 2021 Passive House Award was held online this time, but was equally exciting. During the 25th International  Passive House Conference in the Historic Town Hall of the city of Wuppertal, the Passive House Institute presented the Passive House Award to 14 awardees from nine countries. Most of them participated in the ceremony via video stream and celebrated online.  The awardees of the 2021 Passive…


Call For Papers & Ideas | Boston 2022 – Passive House Network Conferecne

We're at a decisive moment. How can our building industry, our communities, financial institutions and everyday building occupants drive transformational change? We think Passive House education and peer-to-peer knowledge sharing has the power to change our vocabulary, our conversations, and our culture. Let's expand the conversation. We want your ideas, your proposals, for our 2022 Passive House conference. Read the event message and give us your great ideas. We want…


Three Types of Filters that Help your Zehnder HRV to Keep Indoor Air Clean

From the moment outside air enters the system, a Zehnder system (and its filters) are designed to keep air contaminants from entering your home, while efficiently recovering heat (or cooling) from the air exiting your home. Do you know every level of filtration available to you for your Zehnder recovery ventilator? If you’ve recently installed one of these units, or purchased a house that included one already, you hopefully know…


Highly Efficient and Very Impressive | Passive House Award 2021

Darmstadt, Germany. The winners of the Passive House Award 2021 will be announced this Friday. The jury of the international architecture competition has already selected 20 finalists. Within the framework of the 25th International Passive House Conference, the Passive House Institute will present a total of 14 awards to the architects of the highly efficient and impressive buildings. The awards ceremony will take place at the Historic City Hall in the…


The Net Zero Conference 2021 | Virtual + Los Angeles

The Net Zero Conference is back, and Passive House California (PHCA) is proud to announce that we’re an official Conference Partner! Join leaders in sustainability for the 8th annual conference and expo—the largest in the world dedicated to net zero, decarbonization, and climate resilience. This year, they're expanding their focus areas to create synergistic learning opportunities across industries. In addition to highlighting sustainability trends in buildings, energy, water, waste, and…


EpiPHany Corner | The Audubon Society Supports Wind Energy

This month’s EpiPHany Corner, while not directly related to Passive House, does provide some relevant insights associated with the production of renewable energy — specifically, the misinformation regarding the significance of bird deaths from wind turbines. The fact that the misinformation is largely funded by the fossil fuel industry is not an epiphany. Indeed, a significant number of birds are lost to collisions with turbine blades, but research into causes…



Passive House is an International Building Standard

Passive House is an International building standard that is calculated through a software program that is strictly for the climate zone you are planning on building in. The PH Standards focus on 5 basic principles. Un-interrupted Continuous Insulation around the Whole Building Envelope Airtight Building Envelope Thermal Bridge Free Really good windows with proper U factors and Solar Heat Gain Coefficients Balanced Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery Once I learned…