The Passive Rowhouse Manual was prepared by the Green Building United Passive House Community Council (PHCC) as part of its 2018-2019 Demonstration Project.
The primary objective of this document was for the design and construction community to utilize it as a reference tool when preparing for and implementing rowhouses renovations. As part of the PHCC’s outreach, Paul Thompson, past PHCC Co-facilitator, presented ‘Current Trends in Passive Rowhouse Design: The Passive Rowhouse Manual’ and participated in a panel discussion about the future of Philadelphia rowhomes at ‘American Rowhouse City: History and Adaptation in Philadelphia’, held on Friday, October 7 and Saturday, October 8, 2022. The conference was organized by the Graduate Program in Historic Preservation at the Weitzman School of Design, University of Pennsylvania, and the Association for Preservation Technology – Delaware Valley Chapter.
The presentation outlined the content and history of the Passive Rowhouse Manual. Throughout its 9 in-depth chapters and supplementary materials, the Manual focuses on critical issues to consider when renovating a rowhome to achieve Passive House performance. The chapters include Opportunity Seeking, Building Enclosures, Connection, Materials, Windows + Doors, Energy, Heating + Cooling, ERV + DHW Systems, and Testing, Balancing + Verifying. The Appendix is a Site Opportunity and Constraint Worksheet, a valuable tool for gathering and evaluating the project before beginning a Passive House renovation.
If you would like a copy of the Manual, please download it here.
The Passive House Community is dedicated to making Passive House design and construction mainstream and is available to present an ‘Introduction to the Manual’ or an ‘Introduction to Passive House’ talk to your organization. We can provide a brief PowerPoint introduction to the manual with presentation notes for your use.
Please contact GBU if your organization would be interested, or if you have any questions about implementing, training or education about Passive House. More information about the Passive Community and upcoming events, including the monthly PHCC meetings, is available here.
The next meeting will be held on November 9th at the GBU office. Come join us! RSVP here.
