Passive House Days: November 9 & 10
We invite you to visit Midori Haus, the first Passive House in Santa Cruz County during the 2013 International Passive House Days.
Dates/Times
9-November-2013 (Sat) 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
10-November-2013 (Sun) 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
See the tour flyer for details.
What is Midori Haus? Midori
Haus is an example of how
a 90-year old building can be both beautiful and ultra energy efficient. We kept the original footprint of the
3-bedroom, 2-bathroom California bungalow originally built in 1922. During 2012 it was retrofitted to
Passive House standards with the aim to combine extreme energy efficiency and
comfort of Passive House with the aesthetics of Arts and Crafts style.
Haus is an example of how
a 90-year old building can be both beautiful and ultra energy efficient. We kept the original footprint of the
3-bedroom, 2-bathroom California bungalow originally built in 1922. During 2012 it was retrofitted to
Passive House standards with the aim to combine extreme energy efficiency and
comfort of Passive House with the aesthetics of Arts and Crafts style.
What is Passive House?
Passive Houses stay
at a comfortable temperature year round with minimal energy inputs. Buildings make efficient use of the sun
and heat recovery so that conventional heating systems are unnecessary. The materials and systems are modeled
to a stringent performance standard using PHPP (energy modeling software) that
aims to limit the annual energy
demand for primary heating and cooling of the house 15 kWh/m2 (1.4kWh/ft2
or 4.75kBtu/ft2) per year.
This energy target is about 80% less than what conventional homes use for heating and cooling.
Passive Houses stay
at a comfortable temperature year round with minimal energy inputs. Buildings make efficient use of the sun
and heat recovery so that conventional heating systems are unnecessary. The materials and systems are modeled
to a stringent performance standard using PHPP (energy modeling software) that
aims to limit the annual energy
demand for primary heating and cooling of the house 15 kWh/m2 (1.4kWh/ft2
or 4.75kBtu/ft2) per year.
This energy target is about 80% less than what conventional homes use for heating and cooling.
About the Author
Chie Kawahara
Chie is one of the co-creator of Midori Haus. When she is not sharing her stories of transforming an old house and giving tours, she enjoys trail running and hiking.
Chie and Kurt,
Thank you so much for having your open house and sharing all info you have all discovered on your passive house home building journey. Golden Love invited me and I loved what you all have done–I only wish we had more time to see all the features in your home–maybe another time. Anyway lots of food for thought for a green home we are planning to build next year.
Hi Will,
We're happy to share our home building journey and results with you. I'm glad to hear that you've gathered lots of food for thought at the tour. We've benefitted from other people opening their doors for us to learn from them. Tours and home visits are great way to clarify and discuss what you like and don't like with your partner. Keep feeding on ideas to build your own flavor of green home that resonates with your values.
Simply Awesome!