What Is Passive House? This Washington Duo Explains

As climate consciousness increases, many designers are looking close to home for solutions. Passive House is a building certification focused on reducing energy use for heating and cooling. More than that, it is a philosophy about how to design buildings—especially residences—that can work with natural forces to reduce our reliance on mechanical systems. In Washington, Artisans Group Architecture + Planning is leading the charge, having specialized in designing high-performance homes for over a decade. Luxe sat down with co-founders Tessa Bradley and Roussa Cassel to learn more.

What is Passive House?

TB: Think of Passive House as turning your home into a cooler: It keeps the cozy in during winter and the heat out in summer. Standard windows are replaced by triple-paned tilt-and-turn windows, and thicker walls minimize thermal bridging. We also use heat recovery air delivery systems to bring in continuous fresh filtered air.

Why are you passionate about passive design?

TB: We marry our art as creatives with cutting-edge building science to create residences that are transcendent and healthy. Early on, Passive House-certified homes weren’t always known for being attractive, but we strive to create stunningly beautiful dwellings that just happen to be Passive Houses.