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planning:calculating_energy_efficiency:phpp_-_the_passive_house_planning_package:phpp_8

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PHPP 8

Worldwide applicability, added functions, improved user-friendliness and compatibility

Validated calculations of demand for cooling and dehumidification

Based on physical principles, the Passive House concept has largely remained unchanged. Dynamic simulations confirmed that calculations of demand for heating energy correspond very well, as did repeated reviews of real, built, and carefully measured projects over the years. PHPP 2007 introduced the first calculations of the demand for cooling energy on a monthly basis, which various international studies have since also confirmed. For PHPP 8 (2013), the Passive House Institute could establish that the calculation algorithms for the frequency of excess temperatures and demand for cooling & dehumidification produce reliable results based on comparative parameter studies with dynamic building simulations. The shading calculation and the behavior of components with less insulation in lower latitudes were also analyzed and confirmed.

Expanded input of passive cooling strategies

To take account of the various international strategies for passive cooling, various ventilation concepts for basic summer ventilation were added to the SummVent spreadsheet. Now it is possible to directly enter ventilation from a simple extract air system or even windows – a realistic ventilation strategy in a lot of regions around the world due to the local climate conditions – in addition to the already available night ventilation strategies.



Especially in the climatic zones for which there are no comprehensive recommendations for energy-efficient concepts and Passive Houses, the PHPP provides a straightforward energy balancing software and therefore constitutes a reliable starting point for the development of new efficiency concepts and the design of pilot projects.

PV estimates, solar heating support, and heat pump calculations

The PHPP is also affected by the ongoing progress towards a sustainable energy supply. Now, calculations that used to have to be made outside of PHPP – such as expected solar power production from photovoltaics or the mean annual performance of heat pumps – can be calculated directly on designated PHPP spreadsheets. The specific power delivery from (downhole) heat exchangers (geothermal) can now also be directly assessed in PHPP. In addition to the existing calculation of solar hot water, a way of estimating solar heating support was also integrated.

Especially in the climatic zones for which there are no comprehensive recommendations for energy-efficient concepts and Passive Houses, the PHPP provides a straightforward energy balancing software and therefore constitutes a reliable starting point for the development of new efficiency concepts and the design of pilot projects.

Component list

In light of the constantly growing number of product certifications, the current availability of specific data on certified Passive House components is becoming increasingly important. To ensure that the component lists integrated in the PHPP are up-to-date regardless of program updates, a central component sheet that can be regularly updated was created. The component sheet contains all of the specific information on:

  • Wall and building systems or floor slab insulation systems
  • Glazing
  • Unordered List ItemOrdered List ItemWindow frames, post-and-beam façades, skylights, and roof windows
  • Unordered List ItemCompact heat pump units

User-friendliness and compatibility

To further improve user-friendliness and make the user interface easier to navigate, a number of entry areas were restructured and expanded. In addition, the PHPP was tested in other spreadsheet programs and operating systems, such as in Excel on Mac OS and in OpenOffice, to fix the problems that used to occur and make it possible to use PHPP calculations on various platforms around the world. The PHPP is still based on Excel, and the algorithms – which are open by principle – have been retained; the result of the calculation is immediately available without a noticeable delay. The data interface that has proven so successfully also allows the results to be used in other software applications. Architects, engineers, and energy consultants are thus able to optimize design and components based on clear numbers.

To simplify the process of entering data into PHPP and to provide preliminary feedback on the performance of the design within Sketchup PHI developed the “designPH” plugin.

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See also

List of all released conference proceedings of the 17th International Passive House Conference 2013 in Frankfurt

Conference Proceedings of the 17th International Passive House Conference 2013 in Frankfurt

planning/calculating_energy_efficiency/phpp_-_the_passive_house_planning_package/phpp_8.1411057157.txt.gz · Last modified: 2014/09/18 18:19 by 127.0.0.1