Prefab Home kits are ideal for Passive House or LEED certified homes

Écohabitation the French language Quebec affiliates of EcoHome, in conjunction with experienced Architects & Kit home manufacturers, have launched a series of Canadian Manufactured stylish & affordable, prefabricated sustainable green kit homes that are able to meet Passive House certification standards in North America and attain LEED V4 Platinum Certification in cold climates like Ontario, New York, Vermont, Maine or New Hampshire. 

The ribbon was cut on the first prefab kit house model at Expo Habitat 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada where the Eco-Habitat S1600 model (owned by Ecohome co-founder Emmanuel Cosgrove) was assembled in its entirety in the Montreal Stadium, allowing visitors to walk through and experience the quality and style of a prefabricated Architect designed LEED / Passive House panelized home first-hand. There is a whole range of different high-performance kit home models available and more under development - we at EcoHome are  working dilligently at building all the English information on these exceptional & affordable homes...

This LEED & Passive House ready Prefab Kit Home is optimized for cold climates in Canada and Northeast US 


This high performance sustainable kit home model was designed by PARA-SOL Architects, built by Bâtiment Pré-Fab, and assembled by NG3 Construction with the collaboration of the EcoHome & Écohabitation engineers.

The design of the Eco-Habitat S1600 prefab Passive House & LEED standard kit home is optimized for performance & energy efficiency, but to ensure sustainability also meets rigorous environmental standards to provide a high efficiency home with a low environmental footprint, along with a comfortable and healthy non-toxic indoor air quality & environment for the home-owners and their families. 

Below is a list of the sustainable & high-performance kit house components & features that Emmanuel chose for his prefab LEED & Passive House home kit - These prefab home kits are configured to individual building lots & owner preferences:

Prefab LEED & Passive House Kit Homes for Sale Northeast USA, Quebec & Ontario
Prefab LEED & Passive House Kit Homes for Sale Northeast USA, Quebec & Ontario - Get More Info Here

Insulated Slab-on-grade Prefab kit

In it's final destination in the cold climate of Wakefield Quebec, the finished Eco-Habitat S1600 kit house sits on a slab on grade form kit from Legalett with 6 inches of seamless insulation under the slab and on the exterior vertical surfaces. As the ground beneath this prefab kit house is expansive clay, a raft slab-on-grade design with solar radiant heating was chosen to avoid the costly process of soil remediation that would have been required to build a standard footing and frost wall, or the expense and complication of building and insulating a basement properly. Raft slabs distribute the weight evenly over the entire surface of the floor rather than having the weight rest entirely on the perimiter footing; this allows for more affordable foundation construction on problem soils like expansive clay or peat.

Chosen Slab-on-Grade Form Kit Brand :

Legalett frost protected shallow foundation forms - with solar heated radiant floor - see this one go together here:

This is the solar heated floor slab-on-grade foundation form kit being assembled for this LEED & Passive House ready prefab kit home, see many more sustainable home building tips & guide videos for LEED, Zero Energy & Passive House on the EcoHome YouTube channel here

Super-insulated wall assembly, in kit form

The prefab high-performance walls of this Passive House & LEED ready home kit are made almost exclusively using ecological materials from natural sources: double-stud wood framing, recycled paper (cellulose insulation), and wood fiber insulation panels

  • Double-framed wall construction with two offset rows of 2x4s studs injected with high-density cellulose insulation that will not settle over time
  • The panelized prefab wall assembly was designed to dry outward, with glued, stick-on vapor-permeable WRB membranes (Weather Resistive Barriers) protecting the wall from the elements.
  • Insulation levels are almost twice the standards required under Part 11 of the Quebec Building Code
  • Wood fiber insulation boards on the exterior as a continuous insulation layer

Chosen High-Performance Wall Brands :

Dörken Delta membranes
Climatizer Insulation, high density cellulose insulation

High-efficiency doors and windows

High Performance Windows & Doors are an essential part of all homes when building new or renovating, & especially when going for Passive House certification & DesignsPassive Solar heating designLEED certified homes & Zero Energy Homes all of which is accomodated in the design of the EcoHome prefab kit homes which incorporate the following.

Chosen Triple-Glazed Window Brand:

Elite doors and windows

Low-maintenance exterior cladding & roofing

Sustainable homes have to also be durable, so the Eco-Habitat S1600 prefab Passive House & LEED standard kit home is carefully finished with materials proven to be eco-friendly and durable for a long and maintenance-free lifespan.

Chosen High-Performance Cladding & Roofing Materials Brands :

Maxi Forest, white cedar coating
Ideal roof, metal cladding
Maçonnex, metal coating

Non-toxic materials for walls & ceilings

Materials for the interior were specifically chosen to maintain a high standard of clean indoor air quality, formaldehyde-free, low-environmental impact, durability and easy maintenance. 

Chosen Non-Toxic Interior Finishes Brands : 

Columbia Forest Product, plywood
Maxi Forest, natural wood planks
Formica, laminate

Clean indoor air quality and ventilation

Both the EPA & Health Canada recommend healthy Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) for the short and long-term health of homeowners and their families. Beyond carefully selecting the materials in a kit home for a healthy interior air quality, we also need to maintain that quality by bringing in and conditioning the interior air in homes in an energy efficient way. This includes the venting of toxic and harmful gasses like carbon monoxide combustion from fires and stoves, Formaldehyde from pressed-wood products, such as particleboard, plywood, and fiberboard; glues and adhesives; permanent-press fabrics; paper product coatings; and certain insulation materials. We also need to controll the interior humidity of a home to prevent mold formation.

  • Energy recovery air exchanger : Allows for a high level of heat and moisture recovery while providing fresh air
  • Range hood for exhausting cooking pollutants (including ultrafine particles)
  • Bathroom fans to manage moisture and prevent the risk of mold growth
  • Central vacuum removes dust and helps reduce allergy symptoms

Chosen ERV & Ventilation Brands :

Venmar, air exchanger, bathroom fan, range hood, central vacuum

Healthy interior finishing options

Beyond aesthetics, many of the detail finishing inside modern sustainable homes needs to be chosen with IQA in mind as well as recyclability for a reduction in end of lifecycle impact.

  • Metal stair railings, emission-free and recyclable
  • Edible plants in built-in planters, like living green walls promote well-being in addition to providing a healthy source of food and visual interest to the interior

Chosen Healthy Interior Brands :

Gourmet landscape, edible plants
Soud'Art, metal railing and railing

High-efficiency top-up heating systems

There are three high-efficiency top-up heating systems in this LEED & Passive House rated kit house, because as much as this high performance home is designed using Passive Solar design principles there are always periods of the year in cold northern US States like New York, Vermont, Maine or New Hampshire and in Canada in Quebec & Ontario where the sun doesn't shine and we need to keep warm. As this kit house is also a test model for EcoHome, we took the opportunity to try out the following high efficiency heating options so we can measure their efficiency and write about them, but chances are your kit home will only need one of these heat sources:

*See our how-to installation video of the solar air heated floor that this house will rest on

The Wakefield House Solar Air Heated Floor © Ecohome

Chosen High Efficiency Heating Brands :

Legalett Solar Air-Heated Slab-on-Grade Form Kits
Powrmatic heat pump
DF-Jade House, (Pacific Energy Fireplaces & Stove), Wood Stove and (The Grill Bowl), Grill

High-efficiency plumbing and water fixtures

Clean water is essential for life, but most people in North America don't think much about the water they use for drinking, food preparation, and sanitation. Freshwater scarcity manifests itself in the depletion of groundwater, and the drying up of rivers and lakes upon which people depend for irrigation to grow their food. The intersection of water scarcity, food security, and a changing climate on top of it all raises a suite of water concerns for our futures that careful choices of plumbing fixtures and fittings can contribute to help improve the sustainability of our homes.

  • Water-efficient fixtures in EcoHome prefab kit homes use only 50% of equivalent new homes in North America
  • High efficiency washing machine
  • Condensing dryer that does not exhaust heat to the outside and avoids the need for a dryer vent
  • Gray water heat recovery unit : Waste water from the upstairs shower preheats cold water destined for the water heater and recovers approximately 50% of energy with passive operation that requires no maintenance and has no moving parts.

Chosen High Efficiency Low Flow Plumbing Brands :

American Standard, DXV, Grohe, faucet
Germain Larivière, washer and dryer
Ecodrain, gray water heat recovery

Healthy, durable & eco-friendly flooring materials

Back to internal air quality, flooring materials have been chosen for ease of keeping clean and allergen free, while being toxin-free also to avoid off-gassing into the home.

Chosen Eco-Friendly Flooring Brands :

Forbo Flooring Systems, Marmoleum

Healthy Kitchen Construction

That beautiful new kitchen with the granite counters that you're looking forward to owning in your new house can be one of the main sources of toxic formaldehyde and other red-listed chemicals in the home - unless that is you choose formaldehyde-free kitchen components - which of course EcoHome's Director Emmanuel did. 

Chosen Non-Toxic Kitchen Materials Brands :

Cosentino kitchen countertops
Program workshop, counter
Columbia Forest Product, Plywood Boxes + Cabinets
Formica, laminate on doors of cabinets + cabinets
American Standard, DXV, Grohe, faucet

Flame retardant-free non-toxic furniture

Chosen Non-Toxic Furniture Brands :

Luwiss, sofas & bench

Charging station for electric vehicles

It is estimated that a family of five living in this location would require about $3 a day for their entire transportation needs - which we feel should be taken into account when calling homes Zero-Energy. A hyper-efficient house such as this could be fitted with solar PV panels and can save enough energy to offset the energy needed for charging the best electric cars, which can reduce an individuals personal carbon footprint by as much as 90% 

Chosen EV Charger Brand :

Rematek energy charging station for electric vehicles

Wastewater treatment / Septic system

The EnviroSeptic Enhanced and Certified Wastewater Treatment System Does not generate filter media or other substrate in the maintenance of waste

  • No pumping system or other mechanics are necessary for operation
  • Operates without energy 

* The clay soil of this building lot required an advanced water treatment system, those standards were met by this wastewater treatment system 

Chosen Wastewater Treatment System Brand :

DBO Expert,  wastewater treatment systems

Prefab LEED & Passive House Kit Homes for Sale Northeast USA, Quebec & Ontario
Prefab LEED & Passive House Kit Homes for Sale Northeast USA, Quebec & Ontario - Get More Info Here

Now you know more about the EcoHome idea for Sustainable prefab Passive House & LEED ready kit homes with healthy interior finishing, you can always read more about Passive House certification in North America here, in the EcoHome Green Building Guides, from North America's favorite sustainable building website, EcoHome.