The Passive House Planning Package (PHPP) is the building energy modelling software used to design Passive House buildings and it is an essential part of the building design process.
With the PHPP you can create a complete building model and use it to determine the energy performance of both the whole building and its individual elements. Every design change will be instantly displayed and you will be able to efficiently rule out non-compliant designs and optimize the building performance.
The reliability of the calculation results and ease of use of this planning tool has already been experienced by several thousand users. In the context of accompanying scientific research in several completed projects in various climates, measured results were compared with the calculated results. In the process, a high correlation could be demonstrated between the demand calculated using the PHPP and the consumption ascertained through scientific monitoring projects. With careful planning of building efficiency, there will be no performance gaps.
With the PHPP you will be able to:
- Determine the most suitable form of the building and the impact of design choices on energy efficiency
- Calculate the required performance level of individual components such as wall insulation, windows, etc. and their influence on the energy balance of the building in winter and in summer
- Calculate the heating and cooling load, the frequency of overheating and dehumidification demand
- Determine the size, layout and required performance of mechanical systems
- Calculate the demand for renewable primary energy (PER) per year and the primary energy demand (PE) of all energy services in the entire building
- Evaluate different design options based on the life-cycle costs
- Verify whether the building meets certification criteria for Passive House buildings and EnerPHit retrofits
System requirements and License Type
The PHPP is based on an MS Excel workbook in the xlsx/xlsm format. Microsoft Windows XP (or higher) and Microsoft Excel 2007 (or higher) are system requirements. On Macintosh, PHPP works with Excel for Mac 2011 (or higher). As far as the authors are aware, the PHPP can also be used with current versions of OpenOffice or LibreOffice. However, depending on the platforms used and their programming, there may be a limited functionality of the calculation tool or the implemented macro tools.
PHPP is only provided as a single-user license, including a detailed manual. With the license, the PHPP user obtains a registration code which is used to register the PHPP license. Based on this registration, the user will receive updates to the calculation tool, or upgrade discounts for new versions of PHPP or designPH.
DesignPH is a plugin for SketchUp which simplifies the process of entering data into PHPP and provides preliminary feedback on the performance of the design within SketchUp.
The software provides an intuitive graphical user interface to create a 3D model of the building. With designPH, you can define the different building model components and run an analysis to estimate the energy performance of the building. This facilitates a more effective iterative design process, which will allow you to get an immediate idea of the building’s energy performance and rule out poorly performing design options. The entire project can then be exported to PHPP for detailed design, refinement, and certification.
The main features of the designPH plugin for SketchUp are:
- Work with a new or existing SketchUp model (some simplifications may be required)
- Project data input and 3D display of the building envelope
- Schedules of areas, windows/doors and TFA components and recognition of external shading objects
- Automatic analysis and simplified calculation of the space heating demand
- Tools to insert and edit window & door components, with user-defined properties or from the Passive House database
- Simple energy balance within the tool and warnings about high-levels of glazing that would lead to overheating
- 3D editing and optimization of the building design
- Building model export to PHPP
Pricing
PHPP
The Passive House Planning Package (PHPP) is an easy to use planning tool for energy efficiency for the use of architects and planning experts.
PHPP and DesignPH Bundle
Combining both designPH and PHPP will facilitate your design and give you the possibility to make faster optimizations of your project.
DesignPH 2.0
The designPH plugin for SketchUp will simplify the process of entering data into PHPP and it will provide preliminary feedback on the performance of the design within SketchUp.