Concrete Helps Chicago Area House Earn Coveted Greenbuild Designation

The Portland Cement Association (PCA) participated at last week’s Greening the Heartland Conference, showcasing the first house in Chicago certified to meet the stringent U.S. performance requirements of the Passive House Institute. The 3,600 square foot home, built in River Forest, IL, features insulating concrete forms, supplemented with additional insulation to achieve the required high insulation values mandated by the program. The monolithic exterior concrete wall assembly also contributed to measured air tightness 35 percent better than required while enhancing the overall durability of the home.

Requirements of Passive House are based on construction standards first developed in Germany. The River Forest design follows recommendations by capturing sunlight in winter, shading its impact in summer and maintaining an extremely tight exterior envelope to limit loss of conditioned interior air. Two small ductless heat pumps replace a traditional furnace or air conditioner to provide heating and cooling for the entire home. Passive house designs typically reduce energy consumption for space conditioning by approximately 90 percent compared to conventional construction.