Quick question: would you prefer to live in a passive house or an active house?
What brought it all was my recent visit to the first certified active house known as the world.
It is built from a huge bay home and is located in a small residential area in etobiko, Ontario.
To be honest, I don't know what an active house is until I go to see it for the first time --
Explore its benefits.
This is what I learned.
On the most basic level, an active home uses a variety of new technologies, including windows, skylights, heating and air conditioning systems and materials, to promote energy efficiency and a more comfortable lifestyle.
Its key is to use natural light in the design, twostorey, wide-
Open space is widely used to maximize ventilation and reduce demand for energy
Mechanical system.
Think about it, families must meet a series of strict requirements in order to be truly friendly.
The concept of an active house, which began in Denmark, is the work done by an alliance of scholars, scientists, architects, engineers and builders.
The Great Bay has been a founding member since 2010.
In contrast, passive housing is the building standard originally developed in Germany, which can reduce the demand for heating by an astonishing 90%.
By insulating the house very well, almost air, energy efficiency is achievedtight —
The key difference is
The number and size of Windows are greatly reduced, especially on the sunny side of the house.
As they both promote more energy, the two are not completely competitive.
Efficient life.
Just they have a very different way to go there.
As for the active home I have visited, it is clear that this home is very different in construction and appearance from all the other homes around it.
It has a flat roof that looks taller than the nearby house with many large windows and skylights
It looks quite different from any other new home I 've been.
Internally, differences are more striking.
The living room, dining area and kitchen on the first floor are open concepts, and the layout does not hinder daylight; two-
The high floors of the foyer and lobby give a feeling of openness everywhere, and the generous use of large windows and skylights makes the place very bright.
It's also a lamp. filled, double-height C-
There is a shaped courtyard on one side of the house.
It's probably just a building detail, but there's a 40-
There is a foot tree inside, and the effect is quite dramatic. Also worth noting?
In the basement, the house is equipped with Tesla Powerwall, a rechargeable lithium
Ion batteries made by Tesla for the homeuse.
Batteries that store energy can let owners not
Emergency backup is provided.
That alone, I think it may be an important factor in changing the way people use energy.
It's one thing to talk about the benefits of the world's first certified active home, and actually living with it is another thing.
Ask Russell Ibbotson and his family for a long weekend in July 1 to enter the tech miracle.
Russell is a professional engineer and a member of the project team that designed and built the place, admittedly he is a bit technical
Geeks are excited about the prospect of the rich information this experiment will produce.
He told me that lifestyle will also be a big part of it, keeping a close eye on how his children cope with all the extra light and widthOpen play area.
This is a story that is well worth telling, and Russell and his family will capture the experience through a series of blogs and short films that will appear on active house. ca website.
This is an experiment worth seeing.