Earn 1 LU/HSW per module
Cost: Free
Attend: Online
Registration for this course provides access to all four courses in the Passive House Series. See the schedule below.
The Airtightness course is the first instruction of the Passive House Fundamentals Series. Participants will learn the basics of achieving a continuous airtight barrier in buildings—essential to driving down heating and cooling demand and achieving Passive House certification. A good airtight layer also keeps out pollution, pests, and allergens, and mitigates moisture and mold issues, ensuring excellent indoor air quality and protecting the integrity of building components.
Instructor: George Kontaroudis, AIA, LEED AP, CPHD, Senior Project Manager, Morris Adjmi Architects
Other Courses in the Series
Building upon our one-hour Passive House Primer, the Passive House Fundamentals Series takes a closer look at the key principles of the high-performance building standard: airtightness, energy recovery ventilation, insulation & thermal bridging, and windows & doors. The course is ideal for engineers, architects, tradespeople, and other building professionals.
9/13, 9-10am: Energy Recovery Ventilation
Passive House buildings use balanced ventilation systems with energy recovery to provide a constant flow of fresh, filtered air while continuously exhausting stale air. These systems are ultra-efficient and can recover up to 90% of the heat energy lost in typical buildings. Just as important, these constant fresh air systems ensure that occupants stay comfortable and enjoy excellent indoor air quality, keeping spaces free from odors, pollution, allergens, and other contaminants.
9/20, 1-2pm: Insulation & Thermal Bridging
This course covers the basics of Passive House insulation materials and techniques that improve thermal comfort, cut energy costs, enhance resilience, and extend the lifespan of building components. The module also explains the principles behind thermal bridges – conductive spots that undermine the thermal performance of a building– and offers solutions to take care of them.
9/27, 9-10am: Windows & Doors
Learn how to select and install high performance window and door products without compromising aesthetics in this seminar. This introductory course is appropriate for learners of all levels and covers basic strategies to achieve energy, comfort, and acoustic benefits associated with Passive House construction.