Chicago winter without a furnace or gas bill: Passive houses make it possible and are slowly catching on

Canada allegedly holds claim to the first true

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passive house, then Europe took the idea mainstream before it eventually returned to the U.S. via the Urbana, Ill., Smith House in 2003.

"In a way it's come full circle," said Mike Knezovich, communications director at the Passive House Institute U.S. (PHIUS), based in Chicago. The organization's co-founder, Katrin Klingenberg, was the brains behind the Urbana prototype.

The idea is simple: airtight construction that leads to energy conservation and, in the ideal scenario, no carbon footprint. This is accomplished with extra insulation, highly efficient windows and an "energy recovery ventilator," which continuously pushes stale air out and brings fresh air in. The end result is a comfortable home with good air quality and far lower utility bills than a traditional build.

But even as the construction industry and homebuyers put more emphasis on eco-friendly building practices—and owners can vouch for the benefits—true passive houses are still relatively rare and have been slow to catch on.

"It's so unsexy," Tom Bassett-Dilley joked about the science behind building passive, noting it doesn't have the same flare as, say, solar power. The Oak Park-based architect, whose firm focuses on sustainable building, completed Chicagoland's first certified passive home in 2012 in River Forest.

To achieve PHIUS certification, a house must meet certain design criteria and energy targets—standards are updated every few years—and pass a variety of assurance/quality control tests administered by a third party. Illinois boasts 19 certified passive houses with an additional 10 under review.

"People always associate energy conservation with sacrifice, I think going back to Jimmy Carter wearing an extra sweater," Knezovich said. "But people that live in them love them."

https://phys.org/news/2019-05-chicago-winter-furnace-gas-bill.html