Certified Passive House Consultant Training Coming to Atlanta

Offered in Partnership with PHAAtlanta.org, the Local Passive House Chapter.

Phase1:October 15-19, 8:30-5:00

Phase 2: November 5-8, 8:30-5:00

Exam (optional) on November 8

MD Tech Training Center, 3580 Pierce Dr, Suite 160  Chamblee, GA  30341

Download additional training information:

1. 1. •Sample Course Agenda (PDF)
2. 2. •Instructor Roster
3. 3. •Application Form/Experience Requirements
4. 4. •Exam Information

If you have questions about upcoming trainings or would like to apply, please contact us at:

training@passivehouse.us (Subject: “Consultants’ Training”)

The PHIUS 9-Day Certified Passive House Consultant Training program is now approved for GBCI CE Hours in addition to AIA CES and BPI continuing ed credits.

Certified Passive House Consultant Training Coming to Atlanta

Offered in Partnership with PHAAtlanta.org, the Local Passive House Chapter.

Phase1:October 15-19, 8:30-5:00

Phase 2: November 5-8, 8:30-5:00

Exam (optional) on November 8

MD Tech Training Center, 3580 Pierce Dr, Suite 160  Chamblee, GA  30341

Download additional training information:

1. 1. •Sample Course Agenda (PDF)
2. 2. •Instructor Roster
3. 3. •Application Form/Experience Requirements
4. 4. •Exam Information

If you have questions about upcoming trainings or would like to apply, please contact us at:

training@passivehouse.us (Subject: “Consultants’ Training”)

The PHIUS 9-Day Certified Passive House Consultant Training program is now approved for GBCI CE Hours in addition to AIA CES and BPI continuing ed credits.

Tuesday, November 15th, 2011
6:30-7:00 Mingle & H’orderves
7:00-8:00 Lecture Presentation

Southface Eco Office
241 Pine Street, Atlanta, GA 30308

$20 per Ticket    

$25.00 per Ticket at the door (Cash, Check, and Credit Card will be accepted)

“A Passive House is a very well-insulated, virtually air-tight building that is primarily heated by passive solar gain and by internal gains from people, electrical equipment, etc. Energy losses are minimized. Any remaining heat demand is provided by an extremely small source. Avoidance of heat gain through shading and window orientation also helps to limit any cooling load, which is similarly minimized. An energy recovery ventilator provides a constant, balanced fresh air supply. The result is an impressive system that not only saves up to 90% of space heating costs, but also provides a uniquely terrific indoor air quality. ” ~ Quoted from www.passivehouse.us

Lecture Presenters

Builder Jeff Dinkle, LEED AP, CPHC, CPHD

Jeff Dinkle, LEED AP, CPHC, CPHD, brings over two decades of experience in sustainable construction and renovation to his board service at the National Passive House Alliance. Founder and owner of Eco Custom Homes and its parent company ICON Development Corporation, Jeff has become a recognized leader in Atlanta’s green building scene. He holds degrees in economics and sociology from Emory University, has trained in Earthcraft principles at Southface, and serves on the board of the Green Building Council (part of The Greater Atlanta Home Builders Association). Through Eco Custom Homes, he builds and renovates very efficient high-performance structures that embrace comfortable and healthy living.  He currently is the only person in the SouthEast Certified as a Passive House Consultant both in the US and Internationally.

Architect David Bitter, AIA, LEED AP

Originally from Ohio, David has been a resident of Georgia since his 240Z broke down in Atlanta in 1985. He brought with him degrees in Civil Technology from the University of Toledo and Architecture from the University of Cincinnati along with seven years of college teaching experience in Architectural Technology.

As a practicing architect, he has worked on projects of all types and sizes; from 14th Street Playhouse, to Underground Atlanta, the LEED silver DeKalb Juvenile Justice Center to the $5.5 billion Dulles MetroRail Project (to name a few).

David is an active member of a number of professional associations including the American Solar Energy Society, the Living Building Community and the Passive House Alliance. He recently received certification in Permaculture Design and Helped build a straw bale cottage in Tennessee. As a skilled photographer he has covered teh Adopt A Grandparent Program’s main events for the last 20 years.

David is looking forward to the opportunity to design and build a sustainable “ecovillage” using the principles, practice, and methods associated with permaculture and pasive house design. He is hoping that he will then be able to relax and reacquaint himself with his somewhat neglected Flamenco guitar.

Architect Michael Fletcher, AIA, LEEP AP

Michael Fletcher is a registered architect with more than 24 years of experience in the design and construction industry, and has experience in a wide range of projects.  His design approach is based in the belief that the same Principals of Ecology that govern the delicate balance in the natural world are essential to our social communities, and that architecture should engage with and adapt to both society and nature, forming a dynamic built environment interdependent with its surroundings.

In 2006, Michael founded the architectural design firm, Ecologics Design, LLC out of the desire to improve both our social and ecological communities through the built environment.  He continues to practice this philosophy by pursuing projects that promote positive social and environmental change through architecture, primarily in the fields of education, community outreach and affordable housing.  Recent work includes LEEDing Edge (Atlanta’s first LEED Platinum-Certified Home), the Eco-Playhouse for Home-Aid Atlanta, and shipping-container house designs for Alternative Sustainable Housing Options in Atlanta.

Michael has established a strong commitment to community and the environment as an active Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) accredited professional and member of the American Institute of Architects. Mike has also taught several classes on green building design and construction, and believes that research and education are critical to social and environmental responsibility in today’s business practices.

Energy Expert Bruce Kitchell

BSEE from Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN.

I have spent a large part of my professional career as a Control Engineer blending control system technology with computer engineering and technical support of computer systems.    An opportunity to start a business with my relatives in Slovakia building wooden homes shifted my professional interests to the arena of Building Science.

At WHC, s.r.o we were building low energy wooden homes.  But I wanted to do more – comfort and energy conservation was my focus.  I learned about the Passive Haus movement in Germany and wanted to bring its benefits to Slovakia and to the US.

I have trained at the Passive House Institute in Urbana, IL and also at the PHI in Darmstadt, Germany.  In order to learn more about the construction industry in the US, I have trained at Southface in Atlanta, GA

I am a certified HERS rater, BPI analyst and Energy Star V3 rater.   Currently I am working on my Earthcraft Technical Advisor certification.  I am involved in the Energy Star V3 field certification of about one hundred new homes each month in the Atlanta Metro area.

My goal is to incorporate current green building practices in the US with the Passive House principles to create a healthy living environment that uses dramatically less energy for the population of the Southeastern US.

The event should be a wealth of knowledge for anyone interested in an ultra high performance  home.  Passive House SE is also a sponsor of this event.

See the linked flyer for more information.  April GBC meeting flyer

Evangelista owns 411 Energy Services LLC, a company that specializes in energy audits and insulation retrofitting, so cutting back on energy costs and helping the environment with green technologies was important to him. When local homebuilders would not allow Evangelista to install his own insulation, he decided to go all-out and build New Jersey’s first ever passive home.

“It’s a super-insulated building that uses one-tenth of the energy to heat and cool it as a traditional building,” Evangelista said of the planned Pine Avenue house.

The two-story 4,400-square-foot home will be just the 17th of its kind in the nation. It will look and function just like a normal home, but can achieve an overall energy savings of 60 to 70 percent and a heating and cooling energy savings of 90 percent. Those numbers can increase to 100 percent once a small solar array is installed on the roof, Evangelista said. At that time, the house will achieve “net zero” status, meaning no energy will be used from the electric grid to power the home.

“It basically operates at a level of carbon neutrality, which means it doesn’t use energy at all because the solar generates more energy than you consume,” he said.

The main feature of a passive home is that it’s airtight. The style is popular in Europe, but has yet to catch on in America, where citizens are less concerned about energy costs, Evangelista said. The passive house is so well sealed and insulated it does not need a traditional heating or cooling system, a feature that saves money for Evangelista and saves the environment from harmful carbon emissions.

“The primary factor is making the house airtight,” Evangelista explained. “The second factor is just very well insulated walls and ceilings.”

The walls of the home will be 13 inches thick, a vast increase over typical home walls, which measure at around 4 inches; and windows and doors will be thicker and sealed more efficiently than in a traditional house.

Evangelista said just a few tea candles would be enough to warm the home if he were feeling a bit chilly, but he plans to install a small heat pump that can also function as an air-conditioning system in case he needs to adjust the temperature inside. Even on the coldest of winter nights, the pump would only need to run for about 30 minutes.

Most of the time, Evangelista said that pump will not be needed, as the house comes complete with an “energy ventilation recovery unit.”

The unit exchanges inside air with outside air, but makes sure to maintain the temperature of the house with a heat exchanger.

For example, Evangelista said if the temperature inside the house is 70 degrees and the temperature outside is 30 degrees; the 30-degree air coming back into the house would undergo a heat transfer with the inside air and enter the home in the 60-degree range. It is that kind of technology that makes the passive home so efficient.

While a house built to such standards will cost around 7 to 15 percent more than the average home, Evangelista said the energy savings over time make it worth the extra expenditure.

“The goal is to try to be as efficient as possible,” he said. “With a passive home, instead of having low energy bills I will have no energy bills.”

Evangelista said he designed the home himself and hired architect Bill Severino of Little Ferry to develop the actual plans.

Construction is set to begin in the next few weeks, and Evangelista said the house should take around six months to complete. He is currently in talks with three other potential home owners who are considering a passive house, including another in Egg Harbor Township.

For information on Evangelista’s project and to learn more about passive homes, seewww.njpassivehouse.com.

Original Post by Jordan Wompierski, Shore News Today
Zero energy bills goal for planned ‘passive’ home – Shore News Today