128 | Passive house delivers the ‘wow factor’ “It’s the elite level of passive house, the highest standard you can reach in New Zealand.” iCreate Building and Renovations T T Kelly Deeks BUILDING High-performance construction specialist iCreate Building and Renovations has reached a major milestone with the completion of its first certified passive house, an architecturally ambitious three-storey home tucked into a steep Parnell site. The project marks a new level of technical achievement for the Auckland company, which has specialised in high-performance builds for several years, but has never before delivered a passive house of this calibre. Owner Daniel Ward says the project required full alignment with both council compliance and the extensive documentation demanded for passive house certification. “We’re a certified passive house building company, so we had to advise on every regulation, every thermal reading, every airtightness test, and all the extra technical reporting that goes with achieving this gold standard,” Daniel says. “It’s the elite level of passive house, the highest standard you can reach in New Zealand.” The iCreate team worked closely with architect and certified passive house designer Darryl Sang on their first project together, to deliver what Daniel describes as a challenging but rewarding build that has already earned strong feedback from both architect and client. With the three-storey home being constructed along a narrow, sloping driveway leading to a steep, retained site, the project required crane lifts, complex sequencing, and significant attention to detail around 6WUXFWXUDO 6WHHO )DEULFDWRUV IRU 5HVLGHQWLDO &RPPHUFLDO ([FHOOHQW :RUNPDQVKLS 3URPSW 6HUYLFHV *XDUDQWHHG LQIR#GHOHQJLQHHULQJOLPLWHG FR Q] 'HOODQG 021 164 4951 ampainters@hotmail.com A Business Built on Referrals Painters RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL FIXING, PLASTERING&PAINTING structural loading. Large cantilevers, extensive floor-to-ceiling glazing, and the home’s tight urban footprint added to the project’s difficulty. “Logistically it had everything – busy road access, close neighbours, big trees, multiple retaining cuts, and a very architectural design,” Daniel says. “But when you stand at the bottom of the property and look up at the finished house, it’s a real wow factor.” The home’s performance features include rainwater-capture feeding the toilets and laundry, full solar integration, and a mechanical ventilation system that continuously filters fresh air in and extracts stale air out. Daniel says this results in a healthier indoor environment, particularly beneficial for people with asthma or allergies. “Passive houses maintain a clean, constant temperature and very low CO2 levels. They’re great in cold climates, but just as effective in tropical ones – they’ll sit comfortably at whatever ambient temperature you set, yearround,” he says. One of the standout innovations on the project is the triple-glazed joinery supplied by Eco Windows. The German-designed system provides airtight performance and extremely low thermal bridging, eliminating the condensation issues common in standard New Zealand window systems. “These units are recessed, airtight, and installed in a completely different way,” Daniel says. “They keep the heat in during winter and out during summer, and they don’t create the moisture problems seen with other systems.” Daniel credits the success of the build to the strong communication among the project team and iCreate’s long-serving crew, many of whom he has trained from apprentices to qualified builders. One of the team’s longestserving members, Matt Treadaway, has recently joined Dan as a partner in iCreate. “We’re a family-oriented company, and most of our team have been with us for many years,” he says. “We work hard, we support each other, and our clients feel that. Trust and clarity of communication are everything.” iCreate specialises in high-end architectural construction across Auckland Central, West Auckland, Rodney and the North Shore. Daniel brings more than 25 years of experience to the business, along with passive house construction qualifications and a commitment to staying ahead of new building systems, regulations, and technologies.
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