We built a Passive House on a Budget. TOP TIPS

Great to hear an architect talking about this. Where the great design smarts go towards efficientcy and cost effectiveness. Demonstrating that high performance and quality construction is within reach of those with a budget.

I really liked your description and your style. I would liked to have seen more about the actual design of the house. More on the floor plans. You could perhaps have had shots of the house as you were talking. Only minor points. Overall a very informative video.❤

00:19 — Tip 1: Pick an experience passive house designer/architect 00:45 — Tip 2: Get a builder involved early 01:13 — Tip 3: The size of the house is going to have the biggest impact on budget 02:21 — Tip 4: Try and come up with a fairly simple floor plan 03:06 — Tip 5: Work to standard material sizes 05:07 — Tip 6: Save money on the roof structure 06:02 — Tip 7: Save money on cabinetry 07:06 — Tip 8: Work with a limited material palette 07:45 — Tip 9: Think about the external additions to the home

Great vid, as usual, Ben. I like your explanation to non-builders like me of the simple principles of affordable design. More strength to your channel!

Great video - Congratulations ! Some very simple ideas to achieve the passive house standards ...

Watching from Texas Gulf Coast. Newly subscribed. Just keep repeating those same tried & true techniques while adapting them to the site specifics. Carry on.

Great tips! Thanks

Very good video and presentation. Exactly what you said is....exactly!!!...what i recommend. Currently building a 300sq.meter home in Magill , Adelaide where i had first view of the plans at $30k into the design process. Practical amendments were advised by us to the client, all of which are being implemented, with a substantial cost saving. I ballparked about $50 k plus!!! And they will end up with a better house. And that is with using VERY!!! EXPENSIVE tripple glazed UPVC windows and sliding doors

Glad i stumbled upon your channel, Ben. Very useful information. I'll look through your other vids but are you doing any Enerphit work?

Hey Ben, just want to say that I really appreciate all of the video content you've been putting out. I'm an unqualified building designer in regional NSW and 'as affordable as possible passive house' is exactly what I've been trying to get my head around for a while now. Would you perhaps be able to share the wall and roof system you've used on this project? Have you used the external wood fibre panels on this project as well just with battens and cladding on the walls instead of a lime render, or is there a more cost effective option (assuming the actual design etc is all optimised)? Thanks heaps! Ben H

Love your work!! Any chance you'd want to help on a new build on the Olympic Peninsula?

Hi Ben, I’m loving your mix of ‘Lean’ and Passive house designs, thanks for sharing on YT. My wife and I recently sold and are looking to build. We’re getting prices between $2.5-3k/sqm (Dec 2023, NthQLD). I’m guessing the passive house technology drastically increases the square meter cost, can you share a rough ballpark of the square meter cost to go passive or even ‘Lean’?

Hi, Can you share how much this house cost comparatively and does your firm do drafting work for houses outside WA?

Of your tips only tip 1 applies only to Passivhus. All others apply to any house. I was hoping to hear more of the construction types that are least expensive.

Is it passive solar as well?

To save money, I’m thinking about hiring someone from a service like Upwork to do the initial design of a house then bring it to a passive house architect to refine. The Upwork architect would design layout and exterior. Do you think this could work? What should I look for ? What format should they give me the design in so that someone else could easily use? Thanks would you design a house in the states?

Hi Ben, Do you have a price tag on this budgeted build?

In EU, UK, all windows are made to order, so no standard sizes.

Great video, full of very useful, practical info - thank you for posting. Well worth incorporating these features as part of a standard build in hot climates. We used a very similar approach for our house, from design through to construction. Ours isn't a passive house, but is both aesthetic and practical for a tropical climate. Using the right materials and a functional design made a considerable difference to the overall cost and comfort during mid-summer. Total cost AUD$220.0K for a 220m2 home. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dm37L-9qGLs