Heat, hydro savings a bonus

Surfaces, even a concrete floor in the winter, don’t go below 17 degrees Celsius.

And although the house is near busy Hillside Avenue, traffic noise isn’t a problem. The triple-paned windows and thick insulation make the 1,465-square-foot house cosy and quiet.

The long-term cost savings that come with a Passive House are also important to the young couple. Although it may cost between 10 to 20 per cent more to build, the cost of actually running the home after completion are minimal.

“I like the price of running our house. We have small hydro bills. All of our taps and fixtures are low flow, so our water bills are low. It makes me feel good to know we’re doing our part to reduce consumption,” Blake said.

When explaining what a Passive House is, Barry generally starts with the heat and hydro savings.

“I go to points I know will have the most relevance to people. The biggest draw is the greatly reduced heating cost, but there are many more benefits.”

Some Passive Houses pay only $100 a year for heating.

In order to be designated a Passive House, the building must meet specific standards which are rigorously tested.

It was an exciting challenge for Cassidy, a building inspector. He was very involved in doing the house modelling and documenting what was needed for Passive House certification.

“I loved it, and I thought people could learn from my experience.”

Cassidy has since started Adapt Energy Advising, an energy consulting business providing Passive House and other types of energy modeling services.

“Some people build a house just to live in. We built a house to live in that’s also taken us on a new life path.”