Any interest in a Passive House build thread?
Discussion
Dr G said:
Which 'plot' in the render is going to be yours? The dining area surrounded by glass looks like it's going to be an amazing inside/outside space.
Ours (I'm very pleased to say) is the single house on it's own. Part 3 of the build thread- demolition of the old and plans of the new- will be coming very soon. Our house is a different design, a tiny bit larger and of course is set apart from the others (but is closer to the apartment development on the other side. I agree with Dr G, the winter garden should be a lovely place to be in the summer. But it is more of an enclosed exterior space rather than an all year round room.We also changed the interior layout a fair amount from the original architect's plan, as you'll soon see!
The technology sounds interesting and have bookmarked!
I can’t get on with modern design though and I don’t like the idea of sharing a garden with neighbours who can see into your house! But I suppose in Switzerland it’s different, the Germans are rather like that, don’t seem to value privacy as much.
Good luck and enjoy
I can’t get on with modern design though and I don’t like the idea of sharing a garden with neighbours who can see into your house! But I suppose in Switzerland it’s different, the Germans are rather like that, don’t seem to value privacy as much.
Good luck and enjoy
Lord.Vader said:
The technology sounds interesting and have bookmarked!
I can’t get on with modern design though and I don’t like the idea of sharing a garden with neighbours who can see into your house! But I suppose in Switzerland it’s different, the Germans are rather like that, don’t seem to value privacy as much.
Good luck and enjoy
I agree about the garden- but it's highly likely that each garden will have some sort of boundary- the architect preferred to leave this off to make it look a little more appealing/bigger...I can’t get on with modern design though and I don’t like the idea of sharing a garden with neighbours who can see into your house! But I suppose in Switzerland it’s different, the Germans are rather like that, don’t seem to value privacy as much.
Good luck and enjoy
Build Thread Part 3: New Plans and Demolition
As mentioned in a reply to a previous post, our house (EFH 5) is the one on it’s own; it’s a slightly different design/layout, and is a tiny bit bigger. Total living space is about 200 m2.
Overview of the new development:
Our house: 3 floors- we modified the original plans to include an additional shower room on the 1st floor; we also moved the kitchen out further into the dining room as the original plan had a ridiculously small kitchen area. With these amendments signed of, this is what’s being crafted in finest Swiss Concrete:
Basement- entrance from shared underground garage; laundry room, cellar, technical room (heating, power, water etc.), shower room and large spare room/office
Ground floor- entrance, open plan living/dining room kitchen; winter garden and outside storage room. The ground floor is going to be tight for space, but there's nothing we can do about that!
1st floor- 2 children’s bedroom, shower room, parents’ room with en suite bathroom
We thing we’ve added a few nice touches here and there that match our needs and add a little more interest- the aim was to diverge from the standard appearance of many Swiss shoe-box new builds. Time will tell if we’re successful!
Whilst all of these plans were evolving, demolition of the old house began. It really was not in good shape. I’m pleased to say that at least the roof tiles were recycled; the rest was demolished incredibly quickly by a bright orange digger (the kids loved it):
This was the old house's annex; the metal poles mark out the dimensions of our house. Yes indeed, our new home is about he same size and the old wood shed!
The orange digger:
Then within about 2 weeks, the house was gone and digging of the foundations began:
And the basic layout becomes a lot clearer. This is actually happening! Our plot is the dugout section toward the back. In the background, you can see some of the new apartment development. These are no ordinary flats; althought here are a couple still available, most of them have sold. These apartments are the most expensive apartments on record here- 3 million CHF each. Frankly ridiculous if you ask me.
And then, drilling the bore hole for the geothermal heating began:
Up next in part 4, pouring of concrete…
As mentioned in a reply to a previous post, our house (EFH 5) is the one on it’s own; it’s a slightly different design/layout, and is a tiny bit bigger. Total living space is about 200 m2.
Overview of the new development:
Our house: 3 floors- we modified the original plans to include an additional shower room on the 1st floor; we also moved the kitchen out further into the dining room as the original plan had a ridiculously small kitchen area. With these amendments signed of, this is what’s being crafted in finest Swiss Concrete:
Basement- entrance from shared underground garage; laundry room, cellar, technical room (heating, power, water etc.), shower room and large spare room/office
Ground floor- entrance, open plan living/dining room kitchen; winter garden and outside storage room. The ground floor is going to be tight for space, but there's nothing we can do about that!
1st floor- 2 children’s bedroom, shower room, parents’ room with en suite bathroom
We thing we’ve added a few nice touches here and there that match our needs and add a little more interest- the aim was to diverge from the standard appearance of many Swiss shoe-box new builds. Time will tell if we’re successful!
Whilst all of these plans were evolving, demolition of the old house began. It really was not in good shape. I’m pleased to say that at least the roof tiles were recycled; the rest was demolished incredibly quickly by a bright orange digger (the kids loved it):
This was the old house's annex; the metal poles mark out the dimensions of our house. Yes indeed, our new home is about he same size and the old wood shed!
The orange digger:
Then within about 2 weeks, the house was gone and digging of the foundations began:
And the basic layout becomes a lot clearer. This is actually happening! Our plot is the dugout section toward the back. In the background, you can see some of the new apartment development. These are no ordinary flats; althought here are a couple still available, most of them have sold. These apartments are the most expensive apartments on record here- 3 million CHF each. Frankly ridiculous if you ask me.
And then, drilling the bore hole for the geothermal heating began:
Up next in part 4, pouring of concrete…
Dr G said:
What's the roof material?
Solid concrete! Our favourite Swiss houses are built like nuclear bunkers. In fact, every home had to have a nuclear bunker in it as a building requirement, up until about 8-10 years ago...To be a little more accurate about the roof, it's a flat roof in concrete, damp-proof layer, Minergie-P standard insulation, then topped with bitumen and gravel. On top of all this will be the solar panels and of course drainage (which is hidden- no external guttering)
The sidewalls extend ~70 cm above the flat roof, so all of the solar panels are hidden (unless you are looking down!)
OP: development looks really good!
Looking at your floorplans, you may wish to review your lighting points if they're for the sparks?
Central lights in bedrooms don't really work, IME - you end up lighting the duvet cover, not the floor you're walking on - so maybe offset towards the wall more, away from the headboard?
Also lighting areas / floors in a grid pattern "because people do". You can end up with a lot more fittings thatn are needed, and focussing on parts of the room, or even directly overhead on the sofa, or kitchen, where you don't want it. Our kitchen lighting, for example, looks crazy from the plan, but works very well in practice as it's NOT on a clear grid pattern - just from experience
Sure!
First year we found the whole HVAC malarkey very expensive!
Paid estimated DD ea. 2 months to the supplier and ended up with a stonking bill after the 1st year.
Took a year to cover arrears on electricity DD, then worked out how to use the system better!
Explanations from supplier/installer weren't that great - water temp too high, ventilation on too high = €€€€€€!
In terms of internal temps now, the house is a constant 22-23C in every room. Wet UFH keeps the floors warmer, not hot, but OK for barefeet if you want to, and all the floors are ceramic tiled. UFH runs from about 05:00 to 20:00 daily. Ventilation is IN/OUT, but a little biased towards out.
In the Spring/Summer (begin April to end Sep) the UFH is off, solar panels are on for hot water, and ventilation is OUT only. Internal temps can rise to around 28-29C, but we prefer opening windows tha living in a sealed box - which is what the builders / energy peeps *expect* of you!
Our house is A rated. New builds on our zone now are AAA, and their build costs increased by far more than any potential savings will generate!
(Don't expect savings unless you get special energy rates or rebates).
Looking at your floorplans, you may wish to review your lighting points if they're for the sparks?
Central lights in bedrooms don't really work, IME - you end up lighting the duvet cover, not the floor you're walking on - so maybe offset towards the wall more, away from the headboard?
Also lighting areas / floors in a grid pattern "because people do". You can end up with a lot more fittings thatn are needed, and focussing on parts of the room, or even directly overhead on the sofa, or kitchen, where you don't want it. Our kitchen lighting, for example, looks crazy from the plan, but works very well in practice as it's NOT on a clear grid pattern - just from experience
Whitean3 said:
RC1807 said:
Yep, interested
(We have one, too! Moved in in 2013. )
I'd be interested to hear your experiences too then, regarding summer and winter variations in temperature!(We have one, too! Moved in in 2013.
)First year we found the whole HVAC malarkey very expensive!
Paid estimated DD ea. 2 months to the supplier and ended up with a stonking bill after the 1st year.
Took a year to cover arrears on electricity DD, then worked out how to use the system better!
Explanations from supplier/installer weren't that great - water temp too high, ventilation on too high = €€€€€€!
In terms of internal temps now, the house is a constant 22-23C in every room. Wet UFH keeps the floors warmer, not hot, but OK for barefeet if you want to, and all the floors are ceramic tiled. UFH runs from about 05:00 to 20:00 daily. Ventilation is IN/OUT, but a little biased towards out.
In the Spring/Summer (begin April to end Sep) the UFH is off, solar panels are on for hot water, and ventilation is OUT only. Internal temps can rise to around 28-29C, but we prefer opening windows tha living in a sealed box - which is what the builders / energy peeps *expect* of you!
Our house is A rated. New builds on our zone now are AAA, and their build costs increased by far more than any potential savings will generate!
(Don't expect savings unless you get special energy rates or rebates).
RC1807 said:
Sure!
First year we found the whole HVAC malarkey very expensive!
Paid estimated DD ea. 2 months to the supplier and ended up with a stonking bill after the 1st year.
Took a year to cover arrears on electricity DD, then worked out how to use the system better!
Explanations from supplier/installer weren't that great - water temp too high, ventilation on too high = €€€€€€!
In terms of internal temps now, the house is a constant 22-23C in every room. Wet UFH keeps the floors warmer, not hot, but OK for barefeet if you want to, and all the floors are ceramic tiled. UFH runs from about 05:00 to 20:00 daily. Ventilation is IN/OUT, but a little biased towards out.
In the Spring/Summer (begin April to end Sep) the UFH is off, solar panels are on for hot water, and ventilation is OUT only. Internal temps can rise to around 28-29C, but we prefer opening windows tha living in a sealed box - which is what the builders / energy peeps *expect* of you!
Our house is A rated. New builds on our zone now are AAA, and their build costs increased by far more than any potential savings will generate!
(Don't expect savings unless you get special energy rates or rebates).
Very interesting insights, thanks RC! I actually hadn't considered the need to accurately set everything up in this way, so it's good to be aware of potential pitfalls. Fortunately we have a fantastic project manager on this build, so I'm pretty sure he'll be able to ensure the parameters are reasonable- this is not his first Minergie-P development. First year we found the whole HVAC malarkey very expensive!
Paid estimated DD ea. 2 months to the supplier and ended up with a stonking bill after the 1st year.
Took a year to cover arrears on electricity DD, then worked out how to use the system better!
Explanations from supplier/installer weren't that great - water temp too high, ventilation on too high = €€€€€€!
In terms of internal temps now, the house is a constant 22-23C in every room. Wet UFH keeps the floors warmer, not hot, but OK for barefeet if you want to, and all the floors are ceramic tiled. UFH runs from about 05:00 to 20:00 daily. Ventilation is IN/OUT, but a little biased towards out.
In the Spring/Summer (begin April to end Sep) the UFH is off, solar panels are on for hot water, and ventilation is OUT only. Internal temps can rise to around 28-29C, but we prefer opening windows tha living in a sealed box - which is what the builders / energy peeps *expect* of you!
Our house is A rated. New builds on our zone now are AAA, and their build costs increased by far more than any potential savings will generate!
(Don't expect savings unless you get special energy rates or rebates).
I'm totally with you about windows open in the summer- I know form our current place that you have to manage it a little bit to make sur the temps don't creep up- as if they do, you'll never cool things down until the autumn!
As for the electro plans- these are already signed off. Actually we're reasonably happy with the plans- our bed for example is backlit and we have other occasional lamps; the layout of our bedroom is fairly similar to why we currently have and we're happy with it. Likewise, the kitchen- the spots should be directed to where we will be working in the kitchen. The ground floor lighting is overkill, I know; but is all switchable and dimmable. We'll have to see how often we need to put the lights on, given that the whole side of the building is floor-to-ceiling glass!
Build Thread Part 4: Concrete, LOTS of concrete!
OK, still playing catch up as part 4 began September/October time. A lot has happened on the build, but there’s not much photo documentation- sorry!
As both my wife and I are both working and we have to deal with 2 small children, the opportunities to visit the build site are limited, even though it’s close by. So I’ll let the pictures do the talking; quite difficult to get a decent view, as our build is at the back of the building site; and a lot went on whilst I was on business in India and then on our family holiday…
Floor of the communal garage initiated; our basement is more or less in place- the grey concrete ‘box’ at the back:
Better view- with the entry in to the house from the garage:
Then fast forward again a couple of months, and things have really progressed- the basic shell was more or less in place by Christmas:
View from what will be our garden:
And another:
Other activity in October/November was putting our current place on the market- trying to make it look even semi-decent is a nightmare when you have 2 messy boys! But very pleasingly, we’d agreed a sale for our asking price within 2 weeks, with a deposit paid. Even better, we agreed a moving date in July 2018, meaning there will be no messing about with temporary accommodation or putting furniture into storage etc. Legal documents all signed in November, so a huge weight of our minds. We now know that all the finances are in place.
Coming up in part 5, and into January 2018: Our first chance to go into our future home. Quite a shock!
OK, still playing catch up as part 4 began September/October time. A lot has happened on the build, but there’s not much photo documentation- sorry!
As both my wife and I are both working and we have to deal with 2 small children, the opportunities to visit the build site are limited, even though it’s close by. So I’ll let the pictures do the talking; quite difficult to get a decent view, as our build is at the back of the building site; and a lot went on whilst I was on business in India and then on our family holiday…
Floor of the communal garage initiated; our basement is more or less in place- the grey concrete ‘box’ at the back:
Better view- with the entry in to the house from the garage:
Then fast forward again a couple of months, and things have really progressed- the basic shell was more or less in place by Christmas:
View from what will be our garden:
And another:
Other activity in October/November was putting our current place on the market- trying to make it look even semi-decent is a nightmare when you have 2 messy boys! But very pleasingly, we’d agreed a sale for our asking price within 2 weeks, with a deposit paid. Even better, we agreed a moving date in July 2018, meaning there will be no messing about with temporary accommodation or putting furniture into storage etc. Legal documents all signed in November, so a huge weight of our minds. We now know that all the finances are in place.
Coming up in part 5, and into January 2018: Our first chance to go into our future home. Quite a shock!
Part 5: First view inside: It’s really tiny!
Come January 2018, the site was closed for building work, giving us a chance to have a nose about inside. Initially very exciting to get a first glimpse of the new home, we entered through the half-finished garage, into the basement. Dark and very wet here, with everything open to the elements.
Then up the stairs to the ground floor:
Seeing a building in a raw state can be quite a shock- the expanse of bare brick and concrete, puddles of dirty water and mess everywhere can make the whole place look very small.
Despite having all the dimensions, and with most of the rooms similar size and shape to our current place, it all looked like an 8/10ths scale model. Cue panic, and a return to site the following day with tape measure to check everything is the size it is supposed to be!
Here we see the open space living/dining room, leading to the wintergarden. All dimensions were correct, within millimetres.
Floor to ceiling windows all down the garden side and at the end should give us a lot of light and hopefully make things feel a bit larger. It will be tight with our existing furniture, but it does all fit!
To the right of the previous photo is the open space kitchen area. This is a lot smaller than our current kitchen, and was a real challenge to get us all the storage and worktop space we needed. We had to extend the kitchen area into the dining room to give us a small, 10m2 space.
Upstairs again, to the 3 bedrooms. All the bedrooms have large windows and some very nice views over the city (Son no. 1); next door’s garden and outdoor pool (Son no. 2) and a building site (Our bedroom!)
Bedroom 1:
Our en suite bathroom:
I appreciate that the photos aren’t all exciting at this point, as it is very difficult to get a feel for the size and shape etc.
At this point, I can also touch upon the wonderful, yet also horrific experience of having to spec EVERYTHING- from flooring to tiles to kitchens and bathrooms, to colours and finishes. It’s great to have this freedom, but so hard to decide and have to make compromises based on budget and differences in personal taste. Also challenging when you’re doing all of this off a plan and not an existing building. And whatever you do, don’t try to do it with your children in tow. It’s a nightmare! Thankfully, we now have just about everything locked down….
We’re more or less up to date now; coming up in Part 6- we have windows! Drove past the site this afternoon to see the latest progress. Very excited to see how this changes the appearance and look/feel inside. Photos to come.
Come January 2018, the site was closed for building work, giving us a chance to have a nose about inside. Initially very exciting to get a first glimpse of the new home, we entered through the half-finished garage, into the basement. Dark and very wet here, with everything open to the elements.
Then up the stairs to the ground floor:
Seeing a building in a raw state can be quite a shock- the expanse of bare brick and concrete, puddles of dirty water and mess everywhere can make the whole place look very small.
Despite having all the dimensions, and with most of the rooms similar size and shape to our current place, it all looked like an 8/10ths scale model. Cue panic, and a return to site the following day with tape measure to check everything is the size it is supposed to be!
Here we see the open space living/dining room, leading to the wintergarden. All dimensions were correct, within millimetres.
Floor to ceiling windows all down the garden side and at the end should give us a lot of light and hopefully make things feel a bit larger. It will be tight with our existing furniture, but it does all fit!
To the right of the previous photo is the open space kitchen area. This is a lot smaller than our current kitchen, and was a real challenge to get us all the storage and worktop space we needed. We had to extend the kitchen area into the dining room to give us a small, 10m2 space.
Upstairs again, to the 3 bedrooms. All the bedrooms have large windows and some very nice views over the city (Son no. 1); next door’s garden and outdoor pool (Son no. 2) and a building site (Our bedroom!)
Bedroom 1:
Our en suite bathroom:
I appreciate that the photos aren’t all exciting at this point, as it is very difficult to get a feel for the size and shape etc.
At this point, I can also touch upon the wonderful, yet also horrific experience of having to spec EVERYTHING- from flooring to tiles to kitchens and bathrooms, to colours and finishes. It’s great to have this freedom, but so hard to decide and have to make compromises based on budget and differences in personal taste. Also challenging when you’re doing all of this off a plan and not an existing building. And whatever you do, don’t try to do it with your children in tow. It’s a nightmare! Thankfully, we now have just about everything locked down….
We’re more or less up to date now; coming up in Part 6- we have windows! Drove past the site this afternoon to see the latest progress. Very excited to see how this changes the appearance and look/feel inside. Photos to come.
Croutons said:
Where in CH is this?
And dare we ask the budget?! Appreciate it's quite a different market to the UK!
It's just outside Basel in one of the most desirable locations; you don't get much for your money here- so yeah, cost is huge vs m2 living space. Building land is very strictly controlled here, so the price of the land is already ridiculous, before you start building something. Budget for this build should come in around 1.8M CHF all in- the land alone was 750K; I'm trying not to think about this too muchAnd dare we ask the budget?! Appreciate it's quite a different market to the UK!
Fixtures and fittings will be done to a very good (for Switzerland) standard, without being even remotely ridiculous, as you'll see over the next couple of months.
I don't think you can compare to the UK really.
Whitean3 said:
nadger said:
Looks great Op! Makes my little effort pale into insignificance ;-) Looks like it’ll be a lovely place to live!
Thanks! Makes me feel the same about this build when I read Harry Flashman's build thread! Whitean3 said:
nadger said:
Looks great Op! Makes my little effort pale into insignificance ;-) Looks like it’ll be a lovely place to live!
Thanks! Makes me feel the same about this build when I read Harry Flashman's build thread! In terms of the bare concrete everywhere, don't be discouraged, you'll get there in your case without the biblical heating bills my leaky old pile gives me. And frankly yours is a lot more interesting as you're not adapting/renovating, but going from scratch. Even if the basic building is someone else's design, the touches are all yours.
I too specced all fittings myself, and did all the design. It's hard work, and Lady F and I had to accept that decisions need to be fast and final. And there are a couple of things we regret (but insignificant, thankfully). My wife is good at letting me get on with it - I would take say 10 options, cut it down to three, and get her to make a final decision. Meant that I shaped the build and designed options I liked (and knew she would too), but left final decision to her. Means she felt engaged and involved, but only had to make some fast decisions at the end of the process.
I wish I could have done an off-plan eco house; it's my dream to do so one day. Had our house been grim, it is exactly what I would have done. However, it was an old Victorian worth saving, so that's what we did. Following this with great interest and a bit of envy!
Edited by Harry Flashman on Monday 26th February 13:43
Whitean3 said:
Croutons said:
Where in CH is this?
And dare we ask the budget?! Appreciate it's quite a different market to the UK!
It's just outside Basel in one of the most desirable locations; you don't get much for your money here- so yeah, cost is huge vs m2 living space. Building land is very strictly controlled here, so the price of the land is already ridiculous, before you start building something. Budget for this build should come in around 1.8M CHF all in- the land alone was 750K; I'm trying not to think about this too muchAnd dare we ask the budget?! Appreciate it's quite a different market to the UK!
Fixtures and fittings will be done to a very good (for Switzerland) standard, without being even remotely ridiculous, as you'll see over the next couple of months.
I don't think you can compare to the UK really.
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