Lilu’s House – The Passive Home of the Future

Lilu’s House: communications and automation

What makes Lilu’s House truly unique is its ability to communicate to, control and automate all of its systems holistically. From data measurements to energy management, everything in this house works in collaboration. Certified by Energiehaus, Lilu’s House has an advanced system of sensors and detectors that allow the monitoring of temperature, humidity, CO2, VOCs, particulate matter and formaldehyde. But that’s not all: Lilu’s House goes further by integrating the ventilation, heating, cooling, shading, photovoltaic energy production and lighting systems in a single, cohesive unit.

The key to success lies in solving a common challenge for passive houses: the need for efficient communication between different systems. Installing the Loxone Miniserver as the brain of the automation system allows all the intelligent elements to work in harmony, avoiding unnecessary consumption and guaranteeing a comfortable environment. It is no longer just a well-built house, but a home that evolves and adapts to the needs of its residents automatically.

The cohesive and automated management of data collection, along with the automated operation of the ventilation, energy production, air conditioning and lighting systems are the key to Lilu’s House, guaranteeing optimum performance and exceptional energy efficiency.

In addition, the minimized time and wiring spent on the installation debunk the myth that integrating automation into a building is nothing more than an overly-expensive extravagance – it proves that considering installation in the planning phase to optimise all costs is crucial.

Automating energy management for a sustainable future

The ability to access and analyse data is critical at Lilu’s House. From room temperature to air quality and energy consumption, everything is recorded and made available to companies and universities seeking to better understand energy-efficient buildings and their behaviour.

Consumption control is not limited to just energy: it includes appliances, HVAC systems and many other functionalities, ensuring holistic energy management. Automation in Lilu’s House goes beyond comfort and convenience. The building’s automated energy management is based on the accurate measurements of data and the ability to adapt to various conditions with the shared primary goal of maximising efficiency.

• Ventilation system: As soon as the CO2 reading exceeds 1000ppm or the humidity in the air exceeds 65%, the automation system activates the ventilation at a higher power.
• Temperature management: Ensures the stability of constant optimum comfort temperatures set according to time and/or presence. The system uses the most economical operation modes for to each occasion to reach or maintain the target temperature.
• Load management: The Loxone system shifts consumers during the day according to the amount of energy produced by the photovoltaic panels or according to the hourly electricity tariff.
• Automation of the smart blinds: Adjusts the venetian blinds depending on the position of the sun, the interior and exterior temperature and the time of day to avoid overheating.

The home that cares for your health

Focusing on health and wellbeing, the team carried out a detailed study of radiation:

• Natural radiation: Hartmann lines and their crossing points were analysed to identify areas with higher telluric or geopathogenic energy. This helps to avoid placing beds and furniture in harmful areas. 
• Artificial radiation: The lighting is operated with 24V DC to avoid the generation of electromagnetic fields. The sockets are also equipped with shielded cables to minimise radiation. Particular attention was paid to the lamps chosen for the home, especially for places such as the bedside table.

Loxone elevates the living experience at Lilu’s House 

• Control of the external humidity entering the building is crucial as the home is located in a warm Mediterranean climate and close to a river. Depending on the outside temperature, inside temperature and relative humidity, a bypass is continuously connected and disconnected, allowing air to enter directly from outside if this improves the condition of air in the house. At the same time, a duct expels the excess humidity to help prevent condensation.
• Automated irrigation prevents the watering system from switching on if it has rained in the last few hours or if rain is forecasted for the next few hours.
• The installation includes a security system with audio alerts (messages that play when potential incidents or oversights are detected) and notifications via the Loxone App. Instant warnings for possible leaks, unexpected temperature changes and other discrepancies will instruct the home to act automatically by, for example, closing the valves to help prevent further water damage.
• Loxone automates indoor and outdoor lighting. The lights indoors follow the circadian cycle and are activated and regulated according to presence and brightness to avoid always having the lighting on at maximum power. Outdoor lighting is operated according to brightness and time of day. In addition, if the windows are opened at night, the interior lighting changes to red tones to prevent insects from coming in.

With the Loxone automation system, Lilu’s House has been able to consume less than expected by the Passive House Planning Package, especially during the summer months, when the anticipated consumption was significantly higher. The study is still in progress, monitoring monthly consumption for at least one year to obtain an even more representative data set. 

A passive house automation system integrated with Loxone can address all Passivhaus criterias and provide the purest quality of life and the highest levels of convenience and comfort inside the building through intelligent automation. With intelligent automation by Loxone, the human factor is minimised and the occupants can rely on the truly efficient active operational system to take care of everything.