'Heynlinkindergarten' Primary School Königsbach-Stein
Morlock Architecten
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Status:
Realized
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Education type:
Municipal Education
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Education level:
Primary Education (pre-school + primary)
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Address:
Reuchlinstrasse, 75203 Königsbach-Stein
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Client:
Municipality of Königsbach-Stein
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Keywords:
Low-energy building
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Programme:
classroooms, entrance area, communal space
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Area:
925m2
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Number of classrooms:
4
Passive house standard for a renovation project
This small school was the result of the renovation and extension of a single storey building that was built in 1965 as a primary school together with the rest of the school complex. Since then the building has been used as a children’s day care centre. The building, made of reinforced concrete, with only 2 cm of interior insulation, was renovated and extended with an additional storey. On the ground floor there are now three areas for the nursery school children, with direct access to the outdoor space, a kitchen with limited space for eating and a classroom for intensive and individual supervision. On the additional first floor there are two classrooms for primary education, together with space for physical exercise, music and out-of-school activities.
The council had earlier built a project with 8 passive house residential units with the same architect, and after this experience wanted to apply the passive house concept in this renovation project. A timber frame was used to raise the building, with a 45 cm thick outer wall insulated with cellulose and hemp wool. The existing facades were given a 25 cm thick layer of insulation. The building was windproofed and all the windows were fitted with thermal window profiles and triple glazing. Ventilation with heat exchange was installed which also gives the additional comfort of a permanent good air quality. Instead of using ordinary ventilation tubes, tubes made of fabric were used in the classrooms. These textile tubes are easier to clean than ordinary air channels.
However, there are limits to the passive house standard in a renovation project and these limits were tackled in a realistic way. It was not possible to insulate the existing basement in order to comply with the passive house standard. Only a limited layer of insulation could be placed on the floor of the ground floor so that all the existing interior doors could be retained. The added glass staircase is also unhea²ted and was therefore not included in the passive house concept. Furthermore, no ground source heating was put in place because the existing school grounds of the kindergarten were to be preserved. However, because of the passive house concept, the existing heating system, which is part of that of the main building, could be kept. Despite the extension of the building with a complete storey, the energy requirements after the renovation were so low that this was possible.
Timber frames are suitable for adding another storey to an existing structure because of their light weight. At the same time, the period of construction can be very limited because of the possibility of prefabricating the frame, and the works lead to minimum nuisance for the school. In this case, the top storey was put in place in two weeks and the works lasted only six months. The timber system meant that extra measures were required for fire safety. An external passageway was placed along the southern elevation to allow for evacuation through the windows of the first floor in the case of fire. This construction was combined with outside sunscreens. These provide effective shade in summer and prevent overheating. By adjusting the angle of the slats it is still possible to benefit from solar gains in winter as much as possible. Because the sun is very low in winter it can still shine into the classrooms through the slats.