Intus Windows, of passive house compliant windows, says that the passive house movement in Washington DC started with the Empowerhouse project.

NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, August 31, 2015 /EINPresswire.com/ -- “Throughout the DC metro area, passive house construction has been on the rise, helping families to take advantage of the benefits of energy efficiency,” says Aurimas Sabulis, managing director of Intus Windows (http://www.intuswindows.com/), a worldwide leader in the manufacture of energy-efficient window products. “In the last few years, affordable housing using energy efficient construction has sprung up across the city.”

It all started a few years ago, according to Sabulis, when the house that would become Washington DC’s first Passive House won first prize in the Affordability category of the 2011 Solar Decathlon. In December of 2012, the project, known as Empowerhouse, officially earned the status of Washington DC’s first Passive House.

“The house's energy-saving design meant a brighter future for the family that moved in,” says Sabulis.

According to Sabulis, The US Solar Decathlon is a biannual event that challenges university teams to design and build the best energy-efficient houses judged on a set of 10 criteria. The team behind Empowerhouse partnered with Habitat for Humanity in Washington DC to further develop its model as part of the charity’s affordable housing scheme. Completed in December 2012, it became the first house in the nation's capitol to be built to Passive House standard. Homes built to Passive House standards in the US consume 90 percent less energy than typical houses.

Empowerhouse was designed and built by a team of students and faculty from Parsons the New School for Design; Milano Institute of International Affairs, Management and Urban Affairs at the New School; and Stevens Institute of Technology. The one-bedroom, 900 square-foot demonstration house was built at a cost of just under $230,000.

“After the event, which took place on the Mall in Washington DC, the home was moved to the historic Deanwood neighborhood of the city,” Sabulis said. “There, in collaboration with Habitat for Humanity’s program for affordable housing, it was altered to accommodate a larger family. A second story was built, expanding it to a 1,300-square-foot, three-bedroom home.”

DC Habitat and its volunteers then built a matching house next door, creating a two-family duplex. Since then, DC Habitat has begun work on six more energy-efficient townhomes that will follow the same Passive House design standards as the Empowerhouse, he explained.

“The first passive house family have said that the new house has not only helped her family save money, but has given them the chance to enjoy a healthy environment,” Sabulis said. “The current home's thermally efficient building methods, such as the “super insulation” and triple-glazed windows, keep the internal temperature stable and comfortable while the solar panels produce the necessary energy for heating and power.”

The owner of the home also cites the positive financial impact as a result of having no energy bills.

Intus Windows (http://www.intuswindows.com/) is a pioneer in manufacturing and distributing super energy-efficient windows and doors in the United States. Driven by technology, innovation, and continuous progress Intus Windows energy-efficient windows, doors, and curtain walls lines will fit any commercial, residential or industrial application, and they are Passive House Certified and suitable. For the past 21 years the company has manufactured and installed more than 800,000 windows and doors all over the world, with main export markets in Scandinavia, Central and Eastern Europe. Today, with a manufacturing facility in Lithuania, Intus has entered into the super energy-efficient window market here in the United States. For more information, call 1-888-380-9940.

Ema Klimaite
Intus Windows
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