Source: Treehugger

serenity

Passive Houses are often modestly sized; Under the Passivhaus, or Passive house concept, (explained here in 90 seconds) low levels of energy consumption or air leakage are permitted, and the high quality windows and doors are expensive. They are often simple forms, because every bump and corner is a possible source of heat loss; that’s why consultant Bronwyn Barry calls them #BBB: Boxy But Beautiful™.

serenity1

And then there is Serenity. No, not our favorite spacecraft, but certainly out of this world, landing somewhere in the Nottingham countryside to house an “affluent, twenty-something couple” who wanted an “Iron Man-style luxury home.” Underneath those mushroom caps are an entertaining hub, a family hub, a games hub and an annex.

serenity2

Estimated to cost about seven million pounds (US$ 11,100,000, not including the collection of supercars stored behind the waterfall) this 16,000 square foot extravaganza would usually be on TreeHugger so that I could whine on about wretched excess while muttering “come the revolution….” However Baca Architects, Passivhaus consultant Etude and environmental engineer Kaizenge are using some of those guineas for good, aiming for ye olde European-style Passivhaus certification and level 5 under the British code for sustainable homes.

On top of the house, the roof is covered with building-integrated photovoltaics, enough to generate 15,000 kWh in a year. In the middle, it has acres of glass “solar oriented to provide a balance between passive solar gains and overheating.”

Read more @ Treehugger