Taungurung Passivhaus
Residential: Single Dwelling
Certified Low Energy Building
Kyneton, Macedon Ranges, VIC, 2020
The clients were seeking a tree change — a move to a quieter, more rural way of life — to raise their young family. They possessed a strong desire for a highly efficient and sustainable home that settled into the landscape.
Their requirements for a low-maintenance home with an abundance of natural light required careful design consideration to maximise their modest budget. This Passivhaus has two ‘wings’ that align to the eastern and southern boundaries. This provides true north orientation to the living spaces with western views to the lake, and the bedroom wing has reduced glass areas facing northwest. This design approach provided the northern outdoor entertaining areas with privacy from the street, and a connection to the stand of existing trees on the north. The roof lines were sloped to maximise the orientation of the solar panels, and eave lengths were calculated to maximise the passive solar design.
The house used Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) which were prefabricated in a factory and installed by a crane on the site. The walls for this house were around 380mm thick to achieve almost three times more than your average residence in thermal resistance; this gives the young family a lifetime of thermal comfort, low energy bills, and low greenhouse gas emissions.
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AIRTIGHTNESS n50 ACH@50pascals: 0.45
HEATING DEMAND (kWh/m².yr): 19
COOLING DEMAND (kWh/m².yr): 10
HEATING LOAD (W/m²): 12
COOLING LOAD (W/m²): 18
PRIMARY ENERGY RENEWABLE DEMAND (PER): 87
PRIMARY ENERGY DEMAND: 41
RENEWABLE ENERGY GENERATION (PER): 57 -
PROJECT NAME: Taungurung Passivhaus
LOCATION: Kyneton, Macedon Ranges, Victoria
NCC CLIMATE ZONE: 7 - Cool temperate
NATHERS CLIMATE ZONE: 66
YEAR OF COMPLETION: 2020
PROJECT TYPE: New Build
RESIDENTIAL: Single Dwelling
CONSTRUCTION TYPE: Structural Insulated Panels
CERTIFICATION LEVEL/ ENERGY STANDARD: Low Energy Building -
PREFAB ELEMENTS: SIPS for walls and roof structure
MHRV SYSTEM: Zehnder, ComfoAir Q350
DOMESTIC HOT WATER SYSTEM: Air to Water Heat Pump - Reclaim
EXTERIOR WALL TYPE, U-VALUE: 265 mm Structural Insulated Panels, 0.146
FLOOR SLAB TYPE, U-VALUE: 100 mm Concrete Slab with 75mm XPS under slab insulation, 0.311
ROOF INSULATION TYPE, MANUFACTURER: R1.0 under roof insulation blanket
ROOF CONSTRUCTION: SIPS cladded with corrugated metal sheets
WALL FRAME TYPE, U-VALUE: 265 mm Structural Insulated Panels, 0.146
ROOF ENVELOPE U-VALUE: 0.126
GLAZING TYPE, MANUFACTURER, G-VALUE, U G- VALUE: Triple Glazed, Lightbridge 4E/12Ar/4/12ar/4E (36), 0.54, 0.7
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The tick-shaped floor plan of the home allowed the main Kitchen / Dining / Living spaces to all gain good solar access. The bedroom wing turns its back to the street to help shape / create the private open space.
Warm textured materials face the private open space, and more durable robust materials face the public realm. Raked ceilings and colourful joinery give the home a calm and warm feeling.
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High altitude of Kyneton means cold winters and hot summers. Limited access to solar gains and opening the main living space to the views on the south west were contributing factors to the irregular floor plan. It also creates a private open space for the family near a busy street and a predominantly north south oriented block of land. Achieving a certified Passivhaus on a limited budget was a major success for this project.
Project Members
ARCHITECT/ PASSIVHAUS DESIGNER: Maxa Design
BUILDER: Sanctum Homes
PASSIVHAUS CERTIFIER : Detail Green
INTERIOR DESIGNER: HeHe Design
STRUCTURAL ENGINEER: Astleigh Consulting Engineers
WINDOWS: Blue Sky Windows
HRV: Fantech
AIRTIGHTNESS MEMBRANE: ProClima Extasana
ROOFING, WALLS: Structural Insulated Panels
BLOWER DOOR TESTER: Passive Tech
PHOTOGRAPHER: Marnie Hawson
Awards
Winner, New House $750k-$1m, 2023, Design Matters Awards