We've covered what a Passive House is, thanks this one in Bethesda, but that doesn't mean we have a clue how to build one. Luckily, Northern Virginia's first Passive House to go under construction is finally starting to look like a house so we can gain some knowledge that way. We checked in with the developers last month, but they have updated their website with some pictures and we've pulled a few here to follow along with the progress. There's a gallery above, but after the jump is each picture with an explanation of how it relates to Passive House building.
Here is the slab that is wrapped with Stego Wrap—an air-tight, water-tight barrier that is hard to hammer a nail through.
On top of the Stego-Wrap is concrete.
Here are the SuperiorWalls. The house is finally looking like a house.
Here is a shot of the floor joist hangers, which are more detailed than a regular house. The Southern Exposure website gives a thorough explanation of how it works for a PassiveHouse as opposed to traditional building.
Window insulation is one of the most important parts of a successful Passive House. Here's the roll of 'tape' they use to seal the windows. It will expand once in place and they had a special installer fly out from Ohio to show them how to put it in.
Here is the tape after it is has expanded. The dents are where the window was.
· Southern Exposure Homes [Official Site]
· It's All About The Windows For Arlington's First Passive House[CDC]
· Arlington Gets In On Passive House Trend, Part One [CDC]
· All Other Passive House Coverage [CDC]
All photos from Southern Exposure Homes
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