New-Build Passive House (Passivhaus)| Architect for Norfolk Broads | Stalham, Norfolk

forresterarchitects have secured full planning approval for a new build house on the Norfolk Broads. The house will be designed to Passive House (Passivhaus) standards.

The Passive House (Passivhaus) concept aims to dramatically reduce the requirements for space heating and cooling whilst also creating excellent indoor comfort levels. The focus of the Passive House (Passivhaus) is to dramatically reduce the requirement for space heating and cooling, whilst also creating excellent indoor comfort levels.

This is primarily achieved by adopting a fabric first approach to the design, specifying high levels of insulation to the thermal envelope with exceptional levels of air tightness and the use of whole house mechanical ventilation. The heating requirement in a Passive House (Passivhaus) building is reduced to the point where a traditional heating system is no longer considered essential. Cooling is also minimised by the same principles and through the use of shading. Night purging and the use of natural cross-ventilation through open windows is encouraged during the summer months

The new house will be inspired by the light industrial forms which predominate the local surrounding area. The roof forms explored and developed further to provide a modern architectural solution which draws references from these vernacular forms and materials and how they are positioned in the landscape. The accommodation brief is expressed in an informal arrangement of ‘sheds’. The ‘sheds’ in their juxtaposition aim to contribute positively to the local character of the area and the wider environment.

The new build house is almost perfectly orientated benefiting from a South facing facade. To maximise further from the early morning sunshine the house will be orientated a further 10 degrees to the East.