Are PassivHaus' The Way Forward To Zero Carbon?

Passive houses are a German design but can have a British location with a tropical climate, how is this possible? Because PassivHaus' are super efficient and their construction makes for warmer homes which translates into lower energy bills for the homeowner. Sounds too good to be true doesn't it. So if a PassivHaus offers this why aren't all new builds built this way?

Passive houses, as they are known in the UK, were designed in Germany in the 1990's by the PassivHaus Institute. Since then more than 30,000 homes, schools and offices have been built to their standard, although most of the builds have been in Germany and Austria. One of the first certified PassivHaus' in the UK was a three bedroom house in Denby Dale, Yorkshire and was completed in May 2010. The owner of the house says that it is as easy to run as any house as the technology is in the building of it. The PassivHaus is ideal for new builds as the high levels of energy efficiency are embedded into the house when it is being built. The end product is a house which uses 90% less energy than a standard house. The owners admit that the only big difference between their house and a normal one is the bills.

The first gas bill that the couple had for the house was just £26 for the quarter and the electric bill was even lower at £17. Compare these bills to the couple's last ones when they lived in a 300 year old terraced house where their bills were £1,800 a year and you can really notice the difference, as the owner said the difference was "phenomenal".

So what sets a Passive House apart from a typical eco-house which is becoming popular now? A PassiveHouse has no obvious green giveaways as it is the invisible components of the house that make it green. A PassivHaus works like a tea cosy, wrapping the house in continuous insulation rather than just the loft and walls. The company also insists on stringent levels of air tightness to create minimal thermal bridging or "the tea cosy effect". Like other eco houses a PassivHaus is designed to optimise the heat generated from the sun and they also have a MVHR system installed. This system provides the house with fresh air and helps to warm it by recovering heat from the extracted air and transferring it to the incoming air. Heat from inside the house, generated from humans or cooking etc. . is then retained within the building. Therefore this means that the house needs very little heating or air conditioning.

The owner of the house said that when the house was being built he visited it at night, it was -14C in the garden but the house was 10C. The Denby Dale PassivHaus is a pioneering project as there was, at the time, nothing similar in the UK. They visited ones in Austria instead and found them modern and light. It is possible to import them from Germany but builders over here are not familiar with erecting them and planning can be an issue. So the house was built locally with the stone from the builder's yard up the road and this house has cavity walls so it is like a traditional British house but with a Passive twist. The budget was £141,000, which proves those eco houses are not just for the wealthy. They have been tried and tested for twenty years and have proven methodology in achieving low energy buildings.

Why You Can Look Forward to Green Homes in Malaysia

Gone are the days when the concept of 'green living' were only reserved for the conservationist groups and tree huggers. What started as an alternative lifestyle movement has become a pivotal effort to conserve Earth's depleting resources in a bid to create sustainability and a healthier environment. We have started living our green lives but have you given much thought as to whether your home should do the same too?

A sustainable property employs a few methods to reduce pollution, emissions and unnecessary waste. Many forward-thinking property developers in Malaysia have taken to creating sustainable communities and selling the concept of a green lifestyle, in their projects. Many downstream property companies have also begun embracing this new paradigm by actively conducting Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs that contributes towards a sustainable environment.

In an age where preservation is imperative to the Earth's subsistence, eco homes are fast taking over the market in Malaysia, not only for its increasing trend but also its contribution to long-term investment, and the fact that the country possesses the ideal location and climate for green homes. Today you can find such communities blossoming in various parts of the country such as Setia Eco Park, 11 @ Mont Kiara and Hijauan Residence, all located within Kuala Lumpur's vicinity. Urban developer YTL Corp has commissioned Bird Island in Kuala Lumpur as the proposed site for the YTL Green Homes Competition, which challenges international world-class architects to create the most ground-breaking and environmentally-friendly home ever built.

It was announced that Kuala Lumpur will host the 3rd International World Class Sustainable Cities Conference (WCSC 2011) this coming 20th and 21st of September 2011. The conference will showcase a number of successful green practices that have been implemented around the world, tobe considered for future development projects across the country. A local municipal council based in the state of Selangor called Majlis Perbandaran Petaling Jaya (MBPJ) have deliberated on the possibility of awarding RM500 rebates to homeowners who partake in eco-friendly practices at home. This includes discounts for energy-conserving home upgrades like solar-powered water heaters or even cycling to work. This initiative was recommended by the Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry's Low Carbon Cities Framework and funding for this project will be channelled from the PJ Sustainable Development Trust Fund, which will require RM50,000 for the project to take off after a proper assessment has been regulated.

The concept of eco-friendly homes are increasing in popularity in Malaysia. If you already own a property, you can make conscious choices on your lifestyle to create a green home; or if you are currently looking to buy or build property, you can begin looking into making the right choices by being mindful of the consequences of your development, as well as the effects the property has on its surrounding environment. Either way, you are working towards the future of Malaysian homes and living.

Why you can look forward to Green Homes in Malaysia

Gone are the days where the concept of "life" green were only reserved for conservation and tree huggers groups. What began as a movement of alternative life became a pivot to conserve resources depleting of Earth to create a healthy environment and sustainability. We started to live our lives green but you given much thought as to whether if your home should be same too?

A sustainable property uses several methods to reduce pollution, emissions and unnecessary waste. Many forward-thinking of property developers in Malaysia have taken to create sustainable communities and to sell the concept of an ecological lifestyle in their projects. Many property downstream companies began to embrace this new paradigm by actively conducting programs of social corporate responsibility (CSR) that contributes to a sustainable environment.

At a time when preservation is imperative for the subsistence of the Earth, eco homes are fast taking on the market in Malaysia, not only for its upward trend, but also its contribution to the long-term investment and the fact that the country has the ideal location and climate for green homes. Today, you can find these flowering communities in various regions of the country as Setia Eco Park, 11 @ Mont Kiara and the Hijauan residence, all located in the vicinity of Kuala Lumpur. Urban developer YTL Corp has commissioned Bird Island in Kuala Lumpur as the site proposed for the competition of YTL Green homes, which presents world-class architects to create the most innovative and environmentally friendly home environment ever built.

It was announced that Kuala Lumpur will host the 3rd International class sustainable cities World Conference (WCSC 2011) this coming September 20-21, 2011. The Conference will present a number of successful ecological practices that have been implemented worldwide, tobe considered for future projects of development across the country. A local Council based in the State of Selangor, known as Majlis Perbandaran Petaling Jaya (MBPD) deliberated on the possibility of granting rebates RM500 owners unite in green practices at home. This includes discounts for the conservation of energy upgrades home solar water heater or same bike to work. This initiative has been recommended by the energy, green technology of the Ministry of water low carbon cities framework and funding for this project will be sent the PJ Sustainable Development Fund Trust, which will require RM50, 000 for the project to take off after that a proper assessment has been regulated.

The concept of green homes are more popular in Malaysia. If you already own a property, you can make conscious choices about your life style to create a Green House; or if you currently need to purchase or construct property, you can begin to seek to make the right choices by being aware of the consequences of your development, and the effects of that property has on its surrounding environment. In any event, you are working towards the future of Malaysian and living homes.