Passivhaus in Austria

Spring 2017

IN THIS ISSUE:

Leveraging Building Innovations for Housing Affordability
Combining Energy Efficiency and Disaster Mitigation Efforts in Residential Properties
Retrofits Improve Affordability and Resilience

Passivhaus in Austria

In the alpine climate of Austria, high-performance building technologies have been implemented successfully to offer resilience against cold climates.

Schiestlhaus, a Passivhaus-standard building in an alpine climate located on the Hochschawb mountain in Austria, was built to withstand extreme temperatures and operate year-round off the grid.

A Passivhaus is a superinsulated house that meets a strict airtightness standard of 0.6 air changes per hour at 50 pascals. The wood-framed home has double-stud walls that are 16 inches thick and have at least 10 inches of exterior rigid foam. The Passivhaus standard also calls for thick roofs and triple-glazed windows to protect against extreme cold.1

Peter Erler. 2011. “Passive Houses in a Cold Climate,” thesis, Copenhagen School of Design and Technology; Oluwateniola Ladipo. 2016. “Prioritizing Residential High-Performance Resilient Building Technologies for Immediate and Future Climate Induced Natural Disaster Risks,” dissertation, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 25, 57.

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