When Maine builder Jesper Kruse began marketing a type of high-efficiency home called a passive house a dozen years ago, the dwellings appealed mainly to a small cohort of committed environmentalists.
It’s a niche no more. Today, demand for passive houses is rising sharply as homeowners contend with climate-driven extreme weather and governments move to decarbonize buildings, which account for 13% of the United States’ greenhouse gas emissions.
Passive building involves a set of design principles and a certification standard for structures that achieve extreme energy efficiency through construction techniques that seal them in an airtight envelope, reducing energy consumption for heating and cooling by as much as 75%.
