Offsite Sussex success

Offsite timber frame construction has helped deliver a selfbuild home located in rural Sussex in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The 4-bedroom house utilises an 'upside-down' design, with living areas on upper floors to take advantage of the views and enable easier access to upper garden area, due to the sloping site. The timber-clad  house takes a simple agricultural form, which has helped simplify the detailing. 

Key stats Construction: Timber frame TFA:  207 m2  GIFA:  230 m2  Form factor: 3.1 Certified: Passivhaus,  2021

 

 

 

Ventilation & summer comfort strategy

• Glazing to the south and west elevations has been sized and positioned appropriately to minimise summer solar gain.
• External shutters (150 mm timber slats with 10 mm gaps between them) are used on the largest windows on the East and South elevations that close automatically when the internal temperature exceeds 25^oC. 
• .A large central rooflight that can be opened in hot weather, provides high levels of manual ventilation. 
• The house is an upside-down house, with living accommodation on the first floor and bedrooms on the ground floor. The ground floor is typically about 1^oC to 2^oC lower than the first floor throughout the year, which is ideal for sleeping. 
• The MVHR system operates with a summer bypass mode. 

 

Construction 

The offsite timber frame was manufactured in a factory to the bespoke design. MBC Timber Frame provided the MBC Passive foundations, and walls & roof with cellulose insulation. 

 

Designed energy performance
Airtightness n50 (≤ 0.6ACH @ 50 Pa)	0.2 @ 50 Pa
Space Heating Demand (≤ 15 kWh/m².a)	15 kWh/m².a
Heating Load (≤ 10 W/m²)	11 W/m²
Primary Energy Renewable (PER) Demand (≤ 60 kWh/m².a)	40 kWh/m².a
Primary Energy Renewable Generation	28 kWh/m².a

 

Key team  Architect: Koru Architects Passivhaus Designer/ Consultant: Jim Miller Design      Contractor: Object Assemble Timber frame: MBC Timber Frame Passivhaus Certifier: Etude

 

Discover more

Dont miss the opportunity to visit this scheme this November! Oakhill Passivhaus and several other Passivhaus projects generously open their doors to the public. The International Passivhaus Open Days is an excellent chance to meet those involved, get your burning questions answered, & experience the Passivhaus quality & comfort yourself!

 

Further information 

Oakhill Passivhaus

Passivhaus goes Personal

Passivhaus Open Days 2023

How to build a Passivhaus: Good practice guide

1st October 2023

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Get involved with the UK Passivhaus community

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