Hiley Road

Passivhaus Retrofit

This Victorian mid-terrace house was in need of a revamp, so the owner decided that this was the opportunity to upgrade to a highly thermally efficient, comfortable eco-house, showcasing what can be done to this common house type. This solid brick walled house had old, leaky windows, was cold, draughty and generally uncomfortable, and there was significant mould growth in some areas. The owner considered that if you are going to improve the thermal performance, why not go all the way and upgrade to Passivhaus. There were obviously many limitations – the orientation was fixed with the front facing west which is not ideal, the windows need to remain similar to retain the street scene, and the foundations had not been built with thermal bridge free details and could not easily be changed.

Overcoming these restraints, the home is now warm, draught free and definitely not mouldy. It is now certified as a Passivhaus, and was presented as part of the 2016 International Passivhaus Conference.

To read more about Hiley Road please read our case study here