The Reno Coach Reiner Hoyer is getting a chance to put his money where his mouth has been for the last year. The Passive House he’s been building through the last six months or so in Toronto had its first real test when the temperature went down to an overnight low of -20C. How did the house fair? As of 4:00pm in the afternoon, his heating cost for the day was 36 cents.
Comments posted here, may also appear in the print version of Canadian Contractor Magazine.
D. Brian Baker — Shell Bussey's HouseSmart has been doing this for all the trades and subtrades for a very long time and we...
Keith — Modern day communism.I have a recorded call with the office of MPP Van Lone,his secretary admitted that the CRA are...
Joe — Hi rob
I can't agree more
Us experienced contractors know the real time required to complete a job
I have in...
Loading ...
JGoodmanHomes
January 4, 2012
This is a really great video Robert!
I’m inspired to go out and buy some insulation for my attic, that is for sure!! Will have to consider some spring exterior insulation options as well. Nothing like seeing how true insulation efficiencies can exist at -20C!
Ian Szabo
January 4, 2012
Great video, What type of Insulation was used (Spray Foam) in the ceiling?Walls,Floors , Etc.
Robert Koci
January 4, 2012
The insulation is a combination of spray foam and rigid. Almost every wall has both. The basement is mostly rigid. I’ll be detailing the construction of this house in Issue #2 of Canadian Contractor this year, which will be out some time in March. In the mean time I’ll get as much information online as I can.
David Zwarych
January 4, 2012
Is this house certified to meet the Passivhaus standard of >15Mj / m2 / yr and > 0.6ACH @ 50Pa? Only 5kw on one day sounds low, but how do you calculate the annual heating and cooling energy demand for the year based on heating and cooling degree days?
Success,
DaveZ
Robert Koci
January 4, 2012
I’ll ask Reiner to answer your questions. He should get back to me shortly, or answer you here. I should mention that I visited at about 4:00pm so there was a considerable amount of time left in the day. I don’t know what the total consumption for the full day way. But again, I can ask.
Robert Koci
January 5, 2012
David: Reiner says the house does meet the standard you describe, and he is in the process of getting the house certified by the German Passive House group. He says the house would sell for about $1.5 million in the current market. The additional costs associated with potential certification as a Passive House were about $30,000.
D. Brian Baker
January 12, 2012
Great story and one that needs to get more attention. It is not always about the mechanical systems, but rather retaining the heat that is generated within the spaces and gained through passive solar. In our training center in Winnipeg todate we have only used the furnace (electric) for six days and those were not six full days either. Today is January 12, 2012! Yes that is what I said 6 days of furnace use in Winnipeg. Love the magazine and the clips, keep it up. Good Health!
Robert Koci
January 12, 2012
Brian:
That’s pretty impressive. Send me a pic of the centre and give me some of the build info. We would be interested.
Andrew Zwicker / Zwicker Custom Homes Inc.
January 18, 2012
Hello Robert: Thank you for posting this video. I have been following Mr. Hoyer’s project where and when I can, this video represents the culmination of his efforts and demonstrates the possibilities of efficient construction. I try to and would like to build every house using these principles. If only I could convince all of my clients the merits of building in this manner. To this end, I wanted to ask both you and Mr. Hoyer if it would be o.k to play the video for my clients in order to help convince them of the benefits and true rewards of energy efficient construction. Have a great day!
Sincerely
Andrew Zwicker
Robert Koci
January 18, 2012
The video is yours to use as you like, Andrew. And we’ll be doing a more comprehensive story on Reiner’s house in a future issue of Canadian Contractor, so watch out for it.
David Zwarych
February 9, 2012
Yeah, let’s talk more about the BENEFITS during the sales process…other than saving some money on your gas bill ( approx $1500/yr typical household).
For example, does an R50 insulation underslab allow your baby toddler to crawl on the non-carpeted, laminate wood basement floor in bare feet? What is the surface temperature of the floor compared to a conventional basement slab? Can insulation really save the costs of a $40,000 whole home radiant floor heating system with individual zone control thermostats? Is there any need to worry about setting back your thermostat to “save energy” in a Passivhaus….when there is virtually zero energy to be saved?
Success,
DaveZ
http://switchtozerofossilfuels.blogspot.com/