Pheasant Hill Homes Ltd. is a green high-performance custom home builder on Central Vancouver Island.
They are in the midst of renovating a home in Comox and bringing it up to the “net zero home” energy standards.
As defined by the Canadian Home Builders’ Association, net zero homes produce as much clean energy as they consume. They are up to 80 per cent more energy efficient than typical new homes and use renewable energy systems to produce the remaining energy they need. Every part of the house works together to provide consistent temperatures throughout, prevent drafts, and filter indoor air to reduce dust and allergens. The result: exceptional energy performance and the ultimate in comfort – a home at the forefront of sustainability. (CHBA, http://www.chba.ca/)
Last month, Pheasant Hill Homes Ltd. invited Capital Home Energy from Vancouver to come to the Comox build to conduct a pe-drywall air leakage test, which is also referred to as a ‘Blower Door Test.’
Key Comox Valley building inspectors and professionals were invited to observe the test from an educational standpoint. Air leakage is detected by depressurizing the home to quantify the ACH (air changes per hour).
Capital Home Energy taped up an exterior door and attached their blower door fan to begin the air leakage test results. The Comox property exceeded expectations, as well as the BC Step Code targets (Step 5 = 1 ACH), net zero home target (1.5 ACH) and passive house target (0.60 ACH) with an unbelievable result of 0.58 ACH @ 50Pa.
An infrared thermal camera was also used during the test in order to identify the location of small air leakage points throughout the building. Pheasant Hill Homes is excited about this result and producing a net zero ready home in the Comox Valley.
For more information regarding Pheasant Hill Homes and building high performance homes see their website: www.BuildBetterHomes.ca