Michigan Passivhaus - Fine Homebuilding FHB Logo Facebook LinkedIn Email Pinterest Twitter Instagram Plus Icon Close Icon Navigation Search Icon Arrow Down Icon Video Guide Icon Article Guide Icon Modal Close Icon Guide Search Icon Skip to content
Main Menu
Subscribe

In every issue you'll find...

  • Expert insights on techniques and principles
  • Unbiased tool reviews
  • Step-by-step details to master the job
  • Field-tested advice and know-how
Subscribe Now!
Subscribe
  • How-To
  • Design
  • Tools & Materials
  • Videos
  • Blogs
  • Forum
  • Magazine
  • Members
  • FHB House
  • Podcast
  • Join
  • Log In
Main Menu Subscribe
  • Award Winners
  • |
  • About
  • |
  • Videos
  • |
  • Readers’ Choice
    • 2020 Readers’ Choice
    • 2019 Readers’ Choice
    • 2018 Readers’ Choice
    • 2017 Readers’ Choice
    • 2016 Readers’ Choice
    • 2015 Readers’ Choice
    • 2014 Readers’ Choice
    • 2013 Readers’ Choice
  • |
  • 2021 Call for Entries
2014 Houses Awards Gallery

Michigan Passivhaus

By gkragler, member
Article Image
Entry porch

The Jung Haus is built on a beautiful rural property in northern Oakland County Michigan in the previous location of an old homestead that has long since been removed. This 21st century farmhouse pays homage to its predecessor in many ways, not least of which is its capacity for self-sufficiency. Designed and certified to the German “passive house” standard, the most rigorous energy performance building standard in the world, the Jung Haus also met the owners requirements for a traditional design approach and aging in place features for their only effort at building a home of their own.

The owners wanted a home that would provide good views of the rolling property including a pond to the south and a lake in the distance to the north. The building was sited close to the location of the original farm house (that burned down in the late 1950s) to do just that. They also preferred a more traditional design to the more modern style that is often associated with energy efficient buildings. Super insulation, good solar exposure, water management, low maintenance building features, and aging in place design were all priorities in the detailed program they provided to the architect.

The design team had listened carefully to the owners’ desires for the home and delivered a plan for two buildings, the main house and a two story garage with a studio apartment, that answered the requirement that the home should look like “it had always been there, an ageless quality with efficient use of space.” The 2000 square foot house (not including crawl space) has three bedrooms and two full baths and future laundry hook up on first floor designed for aging in place. The house also includes a conditioned crawl space suitable for storage and storm shelter. A basement or crawl space is not typical in Passive House projects, the majority of which have been constructed on insulated slabs. But this was a nonnegotiable feature of the Jungs’ requirements so the design team made it work. The covered front porch contributes to the sense of timelessness of this house and welcomes visitors with a comfortable place to sit and visit when the weather is fine or to make the transition from inside to outside when the weather is harsh.

The second floor includes a small library with built-in shelves for favorite books and lovely views to the north of the property, a main bedroom, a bedroom space used as an office, and a generous main bath with quality cabinetry and tile work to complement the first floor aesthetics.

Custom quarter sawn white oak kitchen cabinetry and bathroom vanities with wood harvested from managed northern Michigan forests and white oak floors finished as nicely as the woodwork testify to the power of designing for quality rather than quantity. Building a smaller, well-designed house makes more of the construction budget available to more beautiful, durable fit and finish.

The final product was not achieved without compromise. The Jungs had originally insisted on a small wood stove in the first floor living room. After much deliberation, it was eliminated since we could not figure out a way to meet the air tightness and thermal insulation standards required for Passive House certification with a leaky stove damper. The square footage of glazing on the north, east, and west walls that provide the great views also required thicker walls and additional insulation in the roof to meet the stringent Passive House heating and cooling load requirements. This balance was eventually achieved and the result is a very comfortable home with excellent natural light and stunning views in every room in every season.

The construction and commissioning of a passive house was not only a first for Michigan but also a first for all of the trade’s people who built it. The framing crew embraced the challenge of adding air tightness to their agenda of good building practice in addition to plumb, level, and square. Air sealing details at window and door openings and necessary penetrations through the airtight layers at each level of the building became the concern and the gold standard of performance for every trade. From the carpenters to the cleaning crew, every person who participated in this project took pride in their contribution to this historic building and most wanted to know why we don’t do this more commonly.

One of the biggest challenges for this project, as it may be for all first adopters of the Passive House standard in the United States, was the question of the most efficient, cost-effective space conditioning strategy. While Passive House design promises survivability even in the event of no energy input (this house can maintain a temperature of at least 50 degrees on the coldest day in a Michigan winter with the heat from a breathing human body and a candle), we are increasingly concerned with keeping ourselves cool in the humid Midwest. For the Michigan design we worked with colleagues in Cleveland who designed the Smart Home for a traveling exhibit on climate change in collaboration with the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. An air tightness level of 0.4 ACH at 50 Pascals requires heat recovery ventilation to maintain comfort and good indoor air quality.  For the ventilation system a Zehnder Comfoair 350 was used. The mechanical heating and cooling was provided by two separate one-ton Mitsubishi minisplit heat pumps supplied by wall-mounted cassettes, one on each floor. Although many object to the wall mounted head that conditions air inside the building, once installed and adjusted, these units and their associated condensers are incredibly quiet and efficient. Once the ERV was balanced and the minisplit units properly adjusted, we found that indoor comfort was excellent and as predicted, the first floor unit satisfies the heat demand without help from the upstairs unit and, vice versa, the upstairs unit satisfies the cooling demand without help from the lower unit. Real time energy consumption data linked to weather data will be collected during the next year to verify the performance of the primary energy systems in this house.

Sign up for eletters today and get the latest how-to from Fine Homebuilding, plus special offers.

Sign Up

Entry porch

View from pond

Kitchen

Dining

Bath

Get home building tips, offers, and expert advice in your inbox

×
X
X

New Feature

Fine Homebuilding Forums

Ask questions, offer advice, and share your work

View Comments

  1. MartinHolladay_GBA | Sep 04, 2013 03:23pm | #1

    Thanks for posting this description of the Jung Haus. I'm glad to hear that two minisplit units are keeping the occupants comfortable.

  2. Mnaber | Jan 25, 2015 03:52pm | #2

    I live in Erie PA, could you share what engineering firm in Cleveland you worked on this with... Cannot find anyone here in Erie.

  3. User avater
    silaswren | Apr 17, 2015 01:30am | #3

    Great display ..

  4. richardsharmen | Apr 25, 2015 05:07am | #4

    Thumbs up for the work

  5. User avater
    aaronhall9 | Apr 29, 2015 06:54am | #5

    Amazing!!

  6. smithhanson | May 14, 2015 08:37am | #6

    I really like it.. Well done

  7. alanperez | Jul 09, 2015 04:13am | #7

    This is very nice. Awesome place, awesome architect.

  8. EdwardJenkins | Jul 31, 2015 03:56am | #8

    Very creative work.. Really good

  9. Mace57 | Aug 06, 2015 02:31am | #9

    Any comments regarding the reliability if the Mitsubishi heat pumps?

  10. User avater
    jamiecook674 | Dec 03, 2015 07:02am | #10

    Great home building design...

  11. User avater
    leotamicheals | Dec 08, 2015 06:19am | #11

    Great designing of this house..

  12. User avater
    RandiKHill | Jan 20, 2016 11:32am | #12

    Brilliant Project.

  13. User avater
    LukeGriffiths12 | Feb 10, 2016 01:27pm | #13

    Great project.Loved it.

  14. tpmike | Mar 10, 2016 02:52am | #14

    Beautiful, well done!!

  15. veldascott | Mar 26, 2016 12:41am | #15

    Very impressive.

  16. Stullhee5 | Jan 18, 2017 08:06am | #16

    It's great

Log in or create an account to post a comment.

Sign up Log in

Become a member and get full access to FineHomebuilding.com

More 2014 Houses Awards Gallery

View All
View All

Up Next

Featured Story

blower door test

The Blower Door: Why Isn't It Called the Sucker Door? And Other Tough Questions

In this archived webinar, building-science expert Peter Yost shares what he's learned over years of using blower doors, IR cameras, and other diagnostic tools so you can make the most of your test results.

Featured Video

SawStop's Portable Tablesaw is Bigger and Better Than Before

The 10-in. Jobsite Saw PRO has a wider table, a new dust-control port, and a more versatile fence, along with the same reliable safety mechanism included in all SawStop tablesaws.

Related Stories

  • Keep Craft Alive: Josh Salinger, Construction Business Owner

  • Old-World Craftsmanship

  • Longer-Lasting Wood Posts

  • Phenomenal Fenestration

Discussion Forum

Recent Posts and Replies

  • |
  • |
  • |
  • |
  • |
  • |
View More Create Post

Highlights

  • Fine Homebuilding All Access
  • Fine Homebuilding Podcast
  • Tool Tech

    Plus, get an extra 20% off with code GIFT20

  • "I have learned so much thanks to the searchable articles on the FHB website. I can confidently say that I expect to be a life-long subscriber." - M.K.

    Get home building tips, offers, and expert advice in your inbox

    Sign Up See all newsletters

Video

View All
  • flared cedar shingle siding detail

    How to Install Flared Sidewall Shingles

  • FHB Podcast 317

    Podcast 317: Natural Air Changes, Flashing Windows in Brick Walls, and Cleaning Construction Messes

  • FHB Podcast 316: Pro Talk With Dennis Bessette

    Podcast 316: PRO TALK With Dennis Bessette

  • FHB Podcast, Episode 315

    Podcast 315: Perfect Roofs, Heated Decks, and Multifamily High Performance

View All

BOOKS, DVDs, & MERCH

Shop the Store
  • 2020 Fine Homebuilding Archive

    Buy Now
  • Code Check Building 4th Edition

    Buy Now
  • Fine Homebuilding Magazine Slipcase

    Buy Now
  • Musings of an Energy Nerd

    Buy Now
  • Shop the Store

Fine Homebuilding Magazine

  • Issue 297 - February/March 2021

    • Foundations for Success
    • Staircase Renovation
    • Ditch the Hose
  • Issue 296 - Dec 2020/Jan 2021

    • Insulating Glass Keeps Getting Better
    • Simple Way to Make Old Walls Straight and Plumb
    • Making Sense of Minisplits
  • Issue 295 - Kitchens & Baths

    • Condo Kitchen Reimagined
    • Row-House Remodel
    • Rise of the IAQ Monitor
  • Issue 294 - Oct/Nov 2020

    • Schoolhouse Reimagined
    • Tool Test: Folding Sawhorses
    • A Better Way to Build Tall Walls
  • Issue 293 - Aug/Sept 2020

    • A Practical Guide to Fall Protection
    • Installing Frameless Cabinets
    • Make Any Tablesaw Safer

Fine Homebuilding

Follow

Newsletter

Get home building tips, offers, and expert advice in your inbox

Sign Up See all newsletters

Membership & Magazine

  • Online Archive
  • Start Free Trial
  • Magazine Subscription
  • Magazine Renewal
  • Gift a Subscription
  • Customer Support
  • Manage Preferences

Taunton Network

  • Green Building Advisor
  • Fine Woodworking
  • Fine Gardening
  • Threads
  • About
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Privacy Policy
  • Careers
  • Copyright
  • Terms of Use
  • Accessibility

© 2021 The Taunton Press, Inc. All rights reserved.

    Main Menu

  • How-To
  • Design
  • Tools & Materials
  • Video
  • Blogs
  • Forum
  • Reader Projects
  • Magazine
  • Members
  • FHB House
  • Podcasts

  • FHB Podcast
  • ProTalk
  • Account

  • Log In
  • Join

    Podcasts

  • FHB Podcast
  • ProTalk
  • Popular Topics

  • Kitchens
  • Business
  • Bedrooms
  • Roofs
  • Architecture and Design
  • Green Building
  • Decks
  • Framing
  • Safety
  • Remodeling
  • Bathrooms
  • Windows
  • Tilework
  • Ceilings
  • HVAC

    Magazine

  • Current Issue
  • Past Issues
  • Magazine Index
  • Subscribe
  • Online Archive
  • Author Guidelines

    All Access

  • Member Home
  • Start Free Trial
  • Gift Membership

    Shop the Store

  • Books
  • DVDs
  • Taunton Workshops

    More

  • FHB Ambassadors
  • Reader Projects
  • Podcast
  • Customer Support

    Account

  • Log In
  • Join

Newsletter

Get home building tips, offers, and expert advice in your inbox

Sign Up See all newsletters

Follow

Join All Access

Become a member and get instant access to thousands of videos, how-tos, tool reviews, and design features.

Start Your Free Trial

Subscribe

FHB Magazine

Start your subscription today and save up to 52%

Subscribe

We hope you’ve enjoyed your free articles. To keep reading, become a member today.

Get complete site access to expert advice, how-to videos, Code Check, and more, plus the print magazine.

Start your FREE trial

Already a member? Log in