Passivhaus Design, Oxfordshire
This project has been designed to Passivhaus standard. Comprising 93 generously-sized retirement flats with hotel-quality lounges and common facilities, the 4 wings of the 3-storey building enclose attractively landscaped gardens.
For elderly residents it is essential that a comfortable environment is provided. Triple-glazed windows and the highly insulated, draught free construction ensures that the flats remain at even temperatures throughout the year. Filtered, pre-warmed fresh air provides excellent air quality in all flats.
The German Passivhaus approach to sustainable building design reduces running costs to a quarter of the typical newbuild equivalent whilst providing very high levels of comfort. Passivhaus design includes a scientific analysis of heat gains and losses, very high quality construction and the minimum of bolt-on eco-technologies.
Careful design of the building services is required for a building of this size in order to minimise heat gains. Similarly, careful window sizing, layout and shading is required to prevent overheating in the summer.
Larger multi-storey buildings are inherently more efficient in heat loss compared to detached houses and are therefore well suited to Passivhaus design