Passive house stands for quality, comfort and energy efficiency. Passive house requires very little energy to achieve comfortable temperature all year round, making conventional heating and air conditioning outdated. Passive houses are not a brand name, but a construction concept that can be used by anyone with knowledge and skills. This is a house with a special construction that gives a significantly lower energy requirement than today's standard. The concept has been developed in Germany, where criteria for certification of passive houses have also been developed. Energy saving in a passive house is up to 90% compared with typical building stock and over 75% compared with average new builds. Extra heat insulation, good windows and good density reduce demand for the energy. Utilizing solar energy and heat recovery is also an important part of the concept.
Nearly 50,000 passive houses have been built around the world, the concept is very popular in Germany and Austria, but many houses have also been built in Sweden in recent years. The concept covers both homes, schools, kindergartens, office buildings, hospitals and sports halls.
It has been discussed both politically and in the construction industry to introduce passive houses as standard in Norway. There are many supporters of passive houses who want this standard to be required by law. Sintef Building and Infrastructure in Norway has stated that they want passive house standards and we think this will be a reality of a nearest future. Therefore, we have already started building houses that are in accordance with the passive house concept.