With buildings accounting for 40% of carbon emissions in the Western world, and 30% of buildings having deficient indoor climates, we sought to create a carbon-neutral building that would benefit from solar energy, both actively by producing electricity and solar heat and passively by benefitting from the heat of the sun.

Courtesy of AART Architects

Architects: AART Architects

Location: Lystrup, Denmark

Area: 200.0 m2

Project Year: 2008

Engineer: Esbensen Consulting Engineers

Developer: VKR Holding

Builder: Velfac and Velux

Courtesy of AART Architects

Text description provided by the architects. With buildings accounting for 40% of carbon emissions in the Western world, and 30% of buildings having deficient indoor climates, we sought to create a carbon-neutral building that would benefit from solar energy, both actively by producing electricity and solar heat and passively by benefitting from the heat of the sun.
Courtesy of AART Architects

Situation

Courtesy of AART Architects

Together with engineers, manufacturers and researhers, we came up with the design for Home for Life ? an active house producing more energy than it consumes. With an expected energy surplus of 9 kWh/m2/year, it takes Home for Life approximately 35 years to produce the same amount of energy that was used to produce its materials, and by that time, the house will ...