====== Certification as Quality Assurance ======

The Passive House and EnerPHit Standards excel due to their extremely high energy savings in comparison with ordinary new constructions or retrofits. They are the world’s leading standard for energy-efficient construction. The savings in heating costs of a Passive House building are usually over 80 % in contrast with the national statutory standards for new constructions. The heating demand is less than 15 kWh/(m²a) in the Passive House, based on the "heated/cooled usable area" (treated floor area TFA, roughly: the living area).

The principles and methods needed to build a Passive House or retrofit to the level of [[:certification:enerphit|EnerPHit]] are publically and freely accessible. The essential tools necessary for this, such as most importantly the [[:planning:calculating_energy_efficiency:phpp_-_the_passive_house_planning_package|PHPP]], are also available on the market. There are many and increasing [[Certification:Passive House suitable components]] available – for central European climate zones as well as for other climates around the world. The skillset needed to design and construct a Passive House can be acquired by architects, engineers and tradespeople e.g. through “learning by doing” or through specialised [[education_training|training]]. 

The Passive House concept as such is //intentionally// not protected - information is freely available to anyone. As such, everyone is free to build a Passive House or EnerPHit on his/her own responsibility. The Passive House Institute (PHI) strongly recommends that an experienced [[Certification:Certified Passive House Designers|Passive House Designer or Consultant]] be consulted, at least in an advisory capacity, especially for the first projects. As additional quality assurance measure, PHI furthermore encourages projects to apply for certification as a quality approved [[Certification:Certified Passive Houses|Certified Passive House]]. This third party independent check of all design and construction evidence reduces risk provides security that a project will actually meet the energy performance and comfort expectations in-use (and not just on paper).\\

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===== See Also =====

[[Certification:certified_passive_houses|Building Certification]]

[[Certification:passive_house_suitable_components|]] 

[[education_training|]]