The housing development on the former distillery site in Port Dundas (Glasgow), owned by Scottish Canals is the largest Passive House development in Scotland to date.
Designed by Collective Architecture, the development of 90 ‘mid-market’ rental homes for social landlord West of Scotland Housing Association (WSHA), was completed in 2024. The 7,605m2 project incorporates a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom flats in a combination of four-storey and seven-storey blocks.
Incorporating low-carbon air source heat pumps and PVs, the project aims to tackle fuel poverty and contribute to the Scottish government’s target for emissions from heating buildings to reach net zero by 2045
The project incorporated all components as per the Passive House methodology:
– Superinsulation all round, thermal bridge free
– Air tightness of 0.6 ach @50Pa
– Triple-glazed PVC windows, made of recycled materials throughout.
– Passive House MVHR
– Solar PV
– Hot water heat pumps
– 68% on-site energy generation
The ventilation strategy was whole house MVHR, based on Zehnder’s ComfoAir 180 LuxePH, a Passive House certified MVHR systems.
The ducting system incorporates galvanised steel ducting (Lindab SAFE) with best performing LRCA silencers, and quality semi-rigid 75mm radial ducting. As such the ducting system is quiet, hygienic, has low pressure drops and is fully cleanable.
The system was designed and supplied by PAUL Heat Recovery and installed by Malcolm Macarthur & Son Ltd.
Strategically installed in kitchen cupboards, the intake and exhaust duct length was cut to the minimum. This is one of the stipulations to optimize the real-life efficiency of MVHR systems. Also no cupboard space was used up by this configuration.
Operational energy Block A: 14.45 kWh/m²/yr, Block B1: 13.00 kWh/m²/yr, Block B2: 18.00 kWh/m²/yr
Total energy load Block A: 9.84 kWh/m2/yr, Block B1: 9.00 kWh/m2/yr, Block B2: 10.00 kWh/m2/yr
Overall area-weighted U-value Roof: 0.083 W/m2K, Wall: 0.147 – 0.205 W/m2K, Floor: 0.378 – 0.496 W/m2K
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