In general a Passive House building can be at cost parity with non-Passive buildings, though they can sometimes have a cost premium of up to about 8%. The exact number depends on several factors, though it is primarily dependent on the level of experience of the design and construction team.

The rigor of airtightness and energy recovery ventilation is what makes Passive House different and that means extra care must be taken during construction. We at KWH try to use traditional construction methods to achieve Passive House results whenever possible.

Since a Passive House building consumes a fraction of the energy of a conventional building, solar panels would cover a much larger percentage of the overall energy use as compared to photovoltaics on a non-Passive building. So a Passive building that also generates solar power can be net-zero or close to it.

There is no need for Passive House buildings to have smaller windows. However, windows are always the weakest point (with regard to airtightness and insulation) on a building’s envelope. A careful study of the size, orientation, shading and specification of the windows is necessary to determine the optimal size for views and daylighting. Generally triple-pane windows are specified for Passive Houses.

In order to get a building certified to the Passive House standard, a Certified Passive House designer needs to perform the study for the building. This is then communicated to a Certifier who after careful review of the construction process submits all necessary documentation to the Passive House Institute for certification. This process is a third-party assurance that the building has indeed been designed and constructed to the specified standard. Certification is not necessary, but it would likely increase a building’s resale value.