Hütt 01 PassivHaus : A Carbon Zero Home

Year: 2021

Type: residential passive house

Size: 180sqm

The Hütt 01 Passivhaus is a carbon zero family home located in Melbourne, Australia. It is a piece of inspiring contemporary architecture that sets a positive example for regenerative urban densification, reconnecting a forgotten piece of land with its environment. Regenerative design, Passivhaus &biophilic design principles are core values of this project, together with being energy-efficient, carbon-neutral/negative, and an easily maintainable near-net-zero-energy approach. The home demonstrates that sustainability and zero carbon architecture are easily accessible for today’s lifestyle in the middle of the inner-urban jungle.

The house combines functional playfulness and attention to detail with innovative sustainable construction techniques and materials. It showcases new technologies like CLT with low VOC finishes, natural wood-fiber insulation,thermal-bridge-free high-performance windows, heat-recovery ventilation, a super-airtight building envelope, green walls and planters, roof gardens,heat-recovery shower, aquaponic system and more. It obtains “Passivhaus Premium”(highest possible) certification. It utilizes high-efficiency appliances with heat pump technology, solar photovoltaic and battery storage, integrated active shading, and recycled/natural material throughout. A green roof and rain garden assist with stormwater retention as part of the Water-Sensitive-Urban-Design concept which has been calculated to retain and use over 90% of stormwater on site.

Sustainability was central to the design, an integral component of this holistic approach. The house has been designed to inspire others. A playful, luxurious & fun home that demonstrates how we can build better houses in Australia. How a sustainable design approach & Passivhaus can offer a luxury lifestyle home while offering urban densification on small footprints close to public transport/infrastructure. Passivhaus was key to achieving a near-net-zero energy and carbon-neutral home. This long-established building standard has substantial real-life data supporting it, thus providing peace of mind that actual performance and energy use match projected data. We know the building physics work (e.g.condensation can be a problem in energy-efficient non-Passivhaus homes if not correctly designed). This prototype prefab Passivhaus Premium doesn’t require heating or cooling for most of the year while incorporating many aspects of sustainability and regenerative design. It achieves an A++ rating on the LETI scale and is a Passivhaus Premium.