| With the current concerns about energy usage, the | | | | glass coatings, and glazed with special high R-value |
| cost of oil, and comparing the size of your carbon | | | | frames. |
| footprint to everyone else's, it is no great surprise | | | | These passive homes also require special ventilation |
| that we're seeing the spread of passive homes | | | | to help move fresh air into the home, heat it up, and |
| across the globe. | | | | circulate it. Because these homes are airtight, this is |
| Passively heated homes are designed and built with | | | | more important than in a conventional home. |
| concepts and materials that allow them to not usually | | | | Solar panels are often used on these types of |
| require an active heating or cooling system; some | | | | homes, as well as high efficiency appliances, and |
| passive homes do require a small amount of active | | | | sometimes earth warming tubes which capture heat |
| heating if they are located in areas that are above | | | | from the earth. |
| 60 degrees latitude because of colder temperatures | | | | The problems with passive homes are pretty few |
| and reduced amounts of sunlight in the winter. The | | | | and far between. There is an increased cost for |
| vastly reduced amount of energy required to heat or | | | | some of the materials needed to build the house |
| cool a passive home translates nicely into a far | | | | initially, but these costs are usually offset by the |
| reduced carbon footprint due to less use of | | | | greatly reduced cost of running the house. Builders |
| resources and less out of pocket costs for the home | | | | need to take great care in choosing materials and |
| owner. | | | | finishes that give off as low of a VOC emission as |
| Passive heated homes basically work by using a | | | | possible, however, due to the reduced air movement. |
| combination of techniques to keep the warmth in (or | | | | In general, the costs of building these passive homes |
| out) of your home while still allowing fresh air to | | | | is becoming more in line with the costs of building a |
| circulate. This is managed by using extra-thick | | | | traditional house. As the materials and products |
| superinsulation to reduce heat transfer though the | | | | needed to create these homes becomes more |
| walls, roof, and bottom floor of the home as well as | | | | available, we can expect the costs to likewise be |
| triple-pane windows with the dead air spaces filled | | | | reduced as well. |
| with argon or krypton gasses, covered with low-E | | | | |