ᐅ KfW 55 standard with a timber house – U-values: wall 0.18 W/m²K – roof 0.16 W/m²K

Created on: 24 May 2015 10:20
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-Markus-
Hello,

While looking for a building partner, my wife and I found a local carpentry company that makes a very good impression on us and with whom we can well imagine collaborating.

What we like is the ecological construction method. In addition, the provider offers the installation level that I absolutely require, which other modular home manufacturers usually do not, or only include in the more expensive passive house walls.

The price also seems reasonable—especially since the above-mentioned ecological construction method reduces our land cost through a funding program.

My goal is to have a KfW 55 house—not (only) because of the funding, but also for permanently low operating costs. Again noted here: achieving the KfW 55 standard would make the land significantly cheaper.

The U-values upon inquiry are:
- Exterior wall: 0.187
- Roof: 0.166

In addition to geothermal energy, a controlled residential ventilation system is planned.

Are these U-values still considered standard today? I think the roof is quite good, but the exterior wall is only average compared to other providers.

Thanks and best regards
-Markus-
F
Frank78
24 May 2015 12:26
If I remember correctly, only the values of the building components are used for the transmission loss, while for the energy demand, ventilation losses and circulation losses are also included...

The values wouldn’t be completely different, just a little lower. 🙂
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-Markus-
24 May 2015 12:29
Ok, that means with a brine-to-water heat pump and controlled residential ventilation with heat recovery, there should be fewer issues regarding the Q-factor.

For the heat transfer coefficient (HT), the building envelope plays a bigger role. I think using different windows (the ones calculated currently are just at the limit with a U-value of 1.3 W/m²K) could improve the results.

An HT of 0.306 (I misread earlier) is still acceptable without problems. However, according to my research, the 2016 energy-saving regulation requires 20% below 0.4, which equals 0.32. I’m not sure how good it is that new constructions are just barely meeting this limit...

Best regards,
-Markus-
L
Legurit
24 May 2015 12:40
You want to achieve KFW55 because of the plot, right? So, we need a significantly better value than 0.306 for KFW55...

Heat transmission loss H'T
[W/(m²·K)]
Reference building
0.359
Actual value
0.246
KFW-EH 70 (KFW)
0.305
KFW-EH 55 (KFW)
0.251
KFW-EH 40 (KFW)
0.197
F
Frank78
24 May 2015 12:41
I simply got all the insulation upgrades from my builder for the additional material cost – he said the labor would be the same anyway. So, everywhere it's WLG032 instead of 035, the basement insulation is 20mm (¾ inch) thicker all around, and the roof will be fully blown with wood fiber insulation.
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-Markus-
24 May 2015 12:43
All right. I’ll keep the HT in mind and will specifically ask the supplier about it.

Thanks and best regards
-Markus-
L
Legurit
24 May 2015 12:45
But as mentioned before: it strongly depends on the component ratios. A glass house can also have a heat transfer coefficient (HT) of 0.7 and meet KFW 55 standards...