“Active House” is a new building standard that promotes energy saving, healthy indoor conditions with lots of natural light and ventilation from windows and skylights. The concept was developed by Danish skylight manufacturer Velux. Under the Active House standard, all energy required is supplied by renewable energy sources integrated in the building or from the nearby collective energy system and electricity grid.
Active Houses traditionally employ striking modern designs, usually incorporating a number of windows and skylights. This can present a problem as even the very best window is not as energy efficient as a well-insulated wall. Other green building concepts like the Passive House tend to make windows smaller and reduce skylights.
Therefore some of the most recent Active Houses are more restrained in their use of windows, like this one in Canada, designed by superkül. The house is positioned with the long roof slope and major glazing facing south to maximize the efficiency of the solar hot-water system and passive solar gain. The skylights and windows create naturally light-filled spaces and minimize the need for artificial light.
The shell of the house is a panelized prefab system from Brockport Home Systems, reducing material waste and energy usage.
The house features dual heat recovery ventilators, rainwater collection cisterns and solar thermal hot water.
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