Mlecnik, E (2013) Improving passive house certification: Recommendations based on end-user experiences. Architectural Engineering and Design Management, 9(4), pp. 250-264. ISSN 1745-2007
Abstract
The house construction sector in Europe is facing the need to meet stricter energy requirements. For example, some customers are demanding passive houses with almost no demand for space heating. Passive house quality assurance systems have been introduced to certify the energy performance of such houses. The aim of this study was to identify opportunities for improving passive house certification in line with customer's comfort expectations. Questionnaires, site visits and interviews were carried out to identify and assess the comfort concerns of owner-occupiers in certified single-family passive houses in Flanders, northern Belgium. The results show that certified passive houses in Flanders are well rated and perceived as very comfortable. However, there were some cases where comfort concerns were expressed related to perceived flaws in the design or construction of the building services. In particular, the study recommends incorporating criteria for the planning and installation of user-friendly ventilation systems into passive house certification and providing end-users with better information.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | certification; comfort; end-user; passive house; passivhaus; poe |
| Index terms: | user experience, Flanders, energy performance, Passivhaus, house construction, comfort, questionnaire, space heating, passive house, ventilation, quality assurance, energy requirement, Belgium, owner, passive house certification, certification, Europe, interview, building service |
| Subjects: | health safety and environment, Geography, physical geography and landforms, energy efficiency, quality assurance, administrative processes, sociology, occupational health and safety management, engineering systems, mechanical systems, user-centered design, air quality, construction type, data collection methods, energy systems, environmental policy |
| Topics: | Design Practice, Quality Management, Contract Administration, Health and Safety, Research Practice, Geographical Context, Engineering Principles, Stakeholder Management, Construction Technology, Sustainability |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here