The pandemic and restrictions have shown us just what’s missing from our homes. In tandem, the climate crisis has been forcing us for some time now to rethink architecture and the building of the future. The answer is practically unanimous and calls for an urgent and necessary change towards sustainability.
After several years of adapting to European directives, Spain finally has legislation for the construction of nearly-zero energy buildings (NZEB). With the recent implementation of the latest change in the Technical Code for Construction (Código Técnico de la Edificación in Spanish) the sector is refocusing on energy efficiency in buildings and a healthier, safer and more comfortable environment for users.
In addition, there’s the increase in the time we’ve spent at home with remote working and restrictions that have boosted an increasingly bigger architectural trend. The result? Passive homes are right on trend.
What is Passive House
The passive home or Passive House was established in 1988 by Bo Adamson, a Swedish lecturer at Lund University, and the German physicist, Wolfgang Feist. Their initial idea came from the search for construction that reduced the energy required for temperature control to the minimum and managed at the same time to keep the same comfortable temperature in the house all year round by using existing resources.
With time, this concept evolved to its current state: a standardized system regulated by the Passive House Institute in Germany.
But what’s the main characteristic of a Passive House? Unlike other buildings, passive homes use sources of energy without artificial means of transforming them, in a similar way to homes that have solar panels. In a Passive House, therefore, you don’t turn anything on or off: the perfectly integrated installations work according to requirements.
Advantages of a Passive House
A Passive House is a home designed so that inside it has the ideal environmental conditions using healthier and comfortable systems – for temperature, humidity, CO2 levels and other pathogens – and allows energy savings of between 60 and 90%
Building characteristics in a Passive House
To create these conditions, strict building criteria must be taken into account:
- Excellent heat insulation.
- No thermal bridges.
- High-quality windows (triple glass, low transmittance and correct installation).
- Mechanical ventilation with heat recovery.
- Air-tight conditions.
Investment and returns from a Passive House
The initial investment in a passive home is slightly higher than in a conventional house and costs around 5% more. This difference can be as high as 15% in Passive House in the prime residential sector and it also depends on other factors such as the chosen finishes, the design or location. However, return on investment is fast and high if we bear in mind the following aspects:
- Capital appreciation can increase by up to 20% in homes that meet Passive House standards.
- Reimbursement in the medium term through energy savings, even if you work from home. Imagine, for example, that the average annual cost of heating a 120 m² home is around €1,500. In a passive home, the cost can decrease to €150, 90% less.
- Operating costs are protected against price fluctuations in the energy market.
Passive House Certificate
Any new construction and even refurbishment can be built according to Passive House standards. The strict criteria for ventilation, watertightness, insulation and the reduction in energy consumption make for very demanding standards and getting the certificate isn’t easy. The Passive House Institute is responsible for certifying whether a building meets the necessary technical levels to be considered a passive home. However, despite their requirements, the passive homes commitment to health – even more so in times of a pandemic – as well as taking care of the environment have made them an example of the road to follow to build the future.
Passive House in Spain
Over the last two years, the number of Passive House projects in Spain has doubled. The first project received a certificate in Spain in 2010. 8 years later, there were already 80. According to the Passive House Building Platform, a non-lucrative association that promotes passive buildings, there are currently 169 certified projects with the stamp across Spain.
Some of the leading Spanish companies in this type of construction are JO Arquitectura (Valencia), Medgón (Palencia), B+HAUS (Zaragoza) or Farhaus (Barcelona). One of the most recent additions is a project for two homes in San Sebastián (in the Basque Country) in a 1910 refurbished building that has just received the Passive House certificate.
If we look at these growth figures as well as the boom in industrialized and sustainable homes outside Spain, which even has financial backing from giants like Amazon, everything points to passive homes continuing on their upward trend and becoming the way to build in the future.
In our opinion, the growth of Passive House is satisfactory. Products that are environmentally-friendly, healthier and allow energy savings are increasingly popular even when that final product is a home. However, it’s worth underlining that there’s still a way to go since the developer still have a market to exploit.
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