Love the attention to reporting the details about passive design. Given the site has been graded flat I wonder why Steve decided on a suspended timber floor on subfloor framing rather that a concrete floor that is typically much cheaper and would provide some heat retentive thermal mass.
Hi Beng, There's a few reasons for choosing a suspended timber floor. 1. The site has been cut and filled to create the building platform. Where craig and I are standing outside the Passive House there is 2.4m of fill. The driven pile is 7m long! 2. To achieve the required U-Value (1/R-Value) of the floor to meet the Passive House standard a concrete floor would require additional insulation and thermal breaks at the slab edge. A concrete slab straight on the ground would have an R-value of under 2 and the suspended timber floor is between 6 and 7. - Huge increase in performance! An insulted concrete slab with similar performance (R6-7) would be a very similar cost in $/m2 3. Then there is the environmental cost - the carbon footprint of the concrete slab is higher than the suspended timber floor and it has no embodied carbon. There's some great PH details in this handbook that give cost and carbon footprint and storage - d39d3mj7qio96p.cloudfront.net/media/documents/ER70_High_Performance_Construction_Details_Handbook-PHINZ-LR12313.pdf
@@stevehughes5748 Thanks Steve. yes I suspected it had a lot to do with soil bearing capacity that didn't meet insitu good ground per NZS3604:2011. And to get engineered certified fill 2.4m deep plus insulation for a slab would tip the expense and performance scale towards a suspended floor. Thanks again!
My response is also the soil type and weather. I know the Coromandel very well. It’s not an easy terrain to build on. We have very similar conditions up here in the Far North (ex Waikato) sandwiched between so close between two oceans, we get extremes of weather. Having a dry, sheltered, weather tight house is so important. I am so glad we are on piles, not concrete. To be able to step up, out of the sodden wet clay is great. Having a protected covered entrance into our, off the grid house is a relief, especially when the rain is blowing horizontally into the building.
Was a RAB like ecoply used on this build? Is there any place for an insulated RAB in NZ (IBS RigidRAP®-XT) like they use in the States e.g Huber ZIP-R sheathing.
Isn't it a fantastic set up? That's a great question - this is Steves website: buildgood.co.nz/ He has some great content including a podcast on his passive house journey it might have some information about that in there.
I enjoyed "checking out" Steve's place. It was great day
Fabulous! Impressive! And a very well told story 🙂 Thanks for sharing this most worthy journey
Awesome set up, giving me many ideas, thanks for sharing
Thanks! We really love sharing all these unique builds and interesting stories, so it's great to see people enjoying them.
I love everything they have done here, well done!❤
Pretty awesome set up, ay?
Love the attention to reporting the details about passive design. Given the site has been graded flat I wonder why Steve decided on a suspended timber floor on subfloor framing rather that a concrete floor that is typically much cheaper and would provide some heat retentive thermal mass.
Good question. Hopefully Steve see's this comment and can answer it for us
Hi Beng,
There's a few reasons for choosing a suspended timber floor.
1. The site has been cut and filled to create the building platform. Where craig and I are standing outside the Passive House there is 2.4m of fill. The driven pile is 7m long!
2. To achieve the required U-Value (1/R-Value) of the floor to meet the Passive House standard a concrete floor would require additional insulation and thermal breaks at the slab edge. A concrete slab straight on the ground would have an R-value of under 2 and the suspended timber floor is between 6 and 7. - Huge increase in performance! An insulted concrete slab with similar performance (R6-7) would be a very similar cost in $/m2
3. Then there is the environmental cost - the carbon footprint of the concrete slab is higher than the suspended timber floor and it has no embodied carbon.
There's some great PH details in this handbook that give cost and carbon footprint and storage - d39d3mj7qio96p.cloudfront.net/media/documents/ER70_High_Performance_Construction_Details_Handbook-PHINZ-LR12313.pdf
@@stevehughes5748 Thanks Steve. yes I suspected it had a lot to do with soil bearing capacity that didn't meet insitu good ground per NZS3604:2011. And to get engineered certified fill 2.4m deep plus insulation for a slab would tip the expense and performance scale towards a suspended floor. Thanks again!
My response is also the soil type and weather.
I know the Coromandel very well. It’s not an easy terrain to build on.
We have very similar conditions up here in the Far North (ex Waikato) sandwiched between so close between two oceans, we get extremes of weather. Having a dry, sheltered, weather tight house is so important.
I am so glad we are on piles, not concrete.
To be able to step up, out of the sodden wet clay is great. Having a protected covered entrance into our, off the grid house
is a relief, especially when the rain is blowing horizontally into the building.
Would love more details about the heat recovery ventilation unit?
This is the model that Steve has, the page includes specs and an explainer video: www.stiebel-eltron.co.nz/lwz-70-e
Awesome ❤
Amazing
Was a RAB like ecoply used on this build? Is there any place for an insulated RAB in NZ (IBS RigidRAP®-XT) like they use in the States e.g Huber ZIP-R sheathing.
Kia ora Steve and Whanau! Such an awesome and peaceful location, great choice. Just wondering how you go obtaining the land clearing consents.
Isn't it a fantastic set up?
That's a great question - this is Steves website: buildgood.co.nz/
He has some great content including a podcast on his passive house journey it might have some information about that in there.
Hope you all are ok after the recent flooding and cyclone
Glad to report that they're doing fine! Their progress on their off-grid journey has slowed down a little due to the weather but they're A-okay 🥳
i wants one!! x
What would it cost to build something like this
Heya if you are talking about the passive house, definitely get in touch with Steve: buildgood.co.nz/
He will have great insight.
Love your stuff. We have a RUclips channel 360peaksnz for off grid life in New Zealand. Your videos inspired us to take the leap.
So they have a walk in wardrobe but there's no bedroom for the kids????
The girls get the studio to themselves once they move into the new passive house :)
@@GridFreeStore wow 😳😢