We have been on site for just over a week now with our first Passivhaus project - our Harpenden EnerPHit. The guys from Jigsaw have been cracking on with the ground works and the area for the new reinforced slab to the extension as well as the patio beyond it has been excavated leaving a large pile of earth in the front garden!
Next step is to lay the drainage pipes and dig, form and refill the soakaway and that's about it for the groundworks. When digging to find the services (gas, electricity, BT cable and water) we have uncovered the depth of the existing foundations which, somewhat unbelievably, actually makes our job of detailing and minimising thermal bridges in this area easier!
So really it's so far so good!
The next stage will be to take down the existing curtain walls and drive the digger into the house to take up the existing floor, a prospect I know our clients are excited about!
The gas connection will also be capped off shortly and the electricity meter relocated so that the next stage of works can be carried out as easily as possible.