Living Places Living – Learnings
Our homes are important to our overall well-being. Since we spend 90% of our time indoors, the way we build and live directly impacts our physical and mental health. With the building industry responsible for nearly a third of global CO2 emissions, there's an urgent need for low-carbon solutions to be implemented and scaled.
In 2021, we embarked on an exciting open innovation journey to revolutionize building practices towards sustainability and decarbonization. This initiative builds on over 20 years of VELUX's experience in creating demonstration buildings that explore the future of healthy living through full-scale experiments.
The result is Living Places – a more sustainable approach to building and transforming homes that benefit both people and the planet. Developed by VELUX in partnership with EFFEKT and Artelia, Living Places showcases that it's possible to build homes with an ultra-low carbon footprint and a healthy indoor climate using standard materials, methods, and technologies available today. Demonstrating that we don't have to wait for future technology – the time for action is now!
Living Places is part of the ‘Build for Life’ initiative by VELUX, a pioneering, multidisciplinary effort aimed at leading the building industry to show how rethinking buildings can help solve some of the global climate and health challenges we face.
Take a virtual tour of Living Places Copenhagen.
The Experiment
Living Places Copenhagen showed that it is possible to build houses with an ultra-low carbon footprint using readily available materials and technology.
To test the impact of the Living Places concept on occupants, we invited nearly 100 guests from 12 countries over a 2-month period to live at Living Places Copenhagen.
This experiment builds on years of research led by VELUX in scientifically monitoring 7 previous model homes to better understand how building design impacts residents' comfort and satisfaction while assessing indoor environmental quality and its effects on well-being.
The results are based on data collected while the homes were occupied, focusing on guest experiences in the Hygge House (timber frame construction) and Haven House (CLT construction). The data sources come from environmental sensors, a guest questionnaire and personal testimonies.
The study examined the houses' indoor comfort performance in terms of indoor air quality, thermal comfort, natural light levels and noise. It also explored guests' perceptions of the houses’ physical and functional comfort, such as the layout, their experiences with the community and their overall satisfaction with the houses.
Integrating indoor climate data with the everyday experiences of the guests enabled us to gain a holistic understanding of how the houses function, helping to bridge the knowledge gap between simulated and actual building performance.
Sensors in Haven House
Haven House ground floor
Haven House first floor
Haven House second floor
Sensors in Hygge House
Hygge House ground floor
Hygge House first floor
Hygge House second floor
People and Planet Method
The performance of Living Places is monitored and evaluated with the People and Planet Method. The method shows how well a building integrates each of the three main Active House principles: Comfort, Energy and Environment in the building’s design. While each Active House criterion contributes to the well-being of people and the planet, the Living Places concept has adapted this model to emphasize the interconnectedness between comfort, energy, and environment to create healthier living environments.
As an offshoot of the Active House Radar (https://www.activehouse.info/), the People and Planet Method summarizes the overall performance of the Living Places houses. It shows the integration of comfort (People), energy efficiency, and environmental performance (Planet) that can be used as a baseline for the future.
Haven House
Hygge House
Disclaimer:
(1)People and Planet Method (radar of the building's design stage for the People, Energy and Planet principles)* (Artelia, 2022)
*Note that the radar shows the score attributable to annual performance from simulations and calculation assessments.
(2)People and Planet Method (radar of the building's operation stage for the People principle)**
*Note that the radar - of the building's operation phase for the People principle - only reports summer performance based on data obtained from hourly house monitoring in July and August 2024.
Acoustic quality during operation is assessed according to the Noise Rating (NR) system developed by the International Organisation for Standardisation, which applies dB correction factors to represent acceptable dB levels in indoor environments.
Daylight during operation is assessed as an estimation of the Daylight provision according to EN 17037.
Learnings
In the Living Places Living experiment, guests' satisfaction, home attachment, and comfort (both functional and physical) were thoroughly evaluated to explore how optimising our building designs can enhance the quality of our indoor environment and positively influence residential satisfaction and a stronger sense of home attachment.
The methodology for assessing guests' satisfaction, home attachment, and comfort was founded on a combination of scientific research and practical evaluation. It draws from the model proposed in the scientific paper "Well-being at home: a mediation analysis of residential satisfaction, comfort, and home attachment" by Bernd A. Wegener and Peter Schmidt, published in the Journal of Housing and the Built Environment on September 9, 2021 and the “VELUX RenovActive - user experience and post-occupancy evaluation. Final Report on the Sociological Monitoring.” from May 2017 – June 2019. This approach integrates data from environmental sensors and resident surveys to provide a comprehensive understanding of how indoor climate and building design impact resident well-being.
During July and August, the indoor temperature was within the European Standard (EN 16798-1:2019) Category I, 89% of the time in the timber frame house and 90% of the time in the CLT house.
This result is based on monitoring conducted during July and August 2024 while the houses were occupied. Environmental sensors and the smart home solution, VELUX ACTIVE, were used to gather data on indoor temperatures. Calibrated environmental sensors, strategically placed in habitable rooms, recorded temperatures at 10 minute intervals, both day and night. The data was then analyzed using statistical software to determine how often the temperatures fell within the comfortable range defined by Category I of the European Standard (EN 16798-1:2019), which represents the highest level of thermal comfort for residential buildings.
Even though the experiment took place in the summer months, 97% of Living Places Copenhagen guests agree that the temperature inside the houses was comfortable throughout the day and night, simply by using automated dynamic shading and window openings for natural ventilation.
This result is based on a survey conducted between July to August 2024, completed by guests after their stay in the Living Places houses. The environmental monitoring also showed that the indoor temperature met Category I of the European Standard (EN 16798-1:2019) 89% of the time in the timber frame house and 90% in the CLT house. The VELUX ACTIVE smart home solution, which automates skylights and blinds based on real-time data, played a key role in maintaining these comfortable conditions.
The indoor air quality during July and August, using CO2 concentration values as an indicator of indoor air quality, was, on average, for 86% of the time, less or equal to 750 ppm in the Hygge House and 89% of the time in the Haven House corresponding to the European Standard Category I (EN 16798-1:2019).
This result is based on monitoring conducted in the two houses using environmental sensors and the VELUX ACTIVE smart home solution. CO2 levels were measured with calibrated environmental sensors placed in habitable rooms, recording data at 10 minute intervals. The data were analyzed to determine how often CO2 levels stayed within the comfortable range of Category I of the European Standard, which should not exceed 380 ppm above outdoor levels in bedrooms and 550 ppm above outdoor levels in living rooms. The analysis focused on data from July and August 2024, when the houses were occupied. The results indicate a healthy indoor environment. The European Standard (EN 16798-1:2019) was used as the basis for measurement, ensuring air quality suitable for sensitive individuals.
Designed to optimize daylight and natural ventilation, 83% of Living Places Copenhagen guests favoured spending time in rooms with more natural light while also finding it easy to adjust the shadings to ensure an optimal indoor environment (90%).
This result is based on a survey conducted between July and August 2024, where guests staying in the houses were asked to complete a survey after their stay. The question within the survey on guests’ Functional Comfort, asked to what extent they agreed with statements about preferring rooms with more natural light and the ease of adjusting shadings. This approach ensured a comprehensive understanding of guests’ experiences and preferences regarding daylight and shading adjustments.
The design of the house and indoor environment has a strong positive impact on guests’ well-being, with over 70% of Living Places residents reporting improved mood, increased relaxation, and a sense of connection to nature while experiencing minimal negative effects.
This result is based on a survey conducted between July and August 2024, where guests staying in the two Living Places houses were asked to complete a survey after their stay. It aimed to estimate the impact of house design and indoor environment on residents’ well-being. The methodology captured both qualitative and quantitative data to provide a comprehensive understanding of guests’ experiences. It included questions on residential satisfaction, such as improved mood, increased relaxation, or negative effects like feeling too hot or cold while sleeping, experiencing headaches, fatigue, or a lack of privacy. This mixed-method approach ensured a holistic view of the effects of house design and indoor environment on guests’ well-being.
References
-
Well-being at home: a mediation analysis of residential satisfaction, comfort, and home attachment Bernd A. Wegener & Peter Schmidt
-
What is NExT? A new conceptual model for comfort, satisfaction, health, and well-being in buildings Sergio Altomonte, Seda Kaçel, Paulina Wegertseder Martinez , Dusan Licina
Deep dive into the Living Places Copenhagen Case Study
Deep dive into the Living Places concept with details on transformative partnering, the methodologies, principles, and prototypes.
Designing for Disassembly
Living Places is designed for disassembly with its use of prefabricated, modular elements. The design-for-disassembly approach promotes easy repairs, upgrades, and recycling, thereby extending lifespans of elements and reducing waste. By focusing on reusability and resource efficiency for sustainability, it ensures that the most easily replaceable components have the shortest lifespans, aligning maintenance with the overall longevity of the product.
Get the Living Places book
Discover the recipe for Healthy Buildings with the Living Places Book – an open-source manual filled with tools and insights that share the knowledge gained by all partners throughout the entire Living Places experience.
Discover Living Places Copenhagen from an architect’s point of view
Learn more about Living Places Copenhagen in this captivating short documentary by Architecture Hunter, featuring the founding partners of Triptyque Architects who share their reflections while testing the concept in real life
Hear from our guests
Discover the human aspect of architecture by listening to this collection of quick-fire conversations with Living Places Copenhagen guests.
Find out their favourite things about the homes, what surprised them during their stay and discover what it’s like to wake up with daylight and fresh air, to live in connection with the outdoors, and to spend quality time in a space made for everyday life.
Conversations with the experts
How can we better understand Living Places? Dive into the topics of sustainability, indoor climate, and healthy homes from inside Living Places where we hosted conversations with journalists, researchers and experts in the building industry.
Listen as they share insights from their professional practice and reflect firsthand on the qualities of daylight, fresh air, temperature, and acoustics in the homes.
Behind the scenes with our guests
See the stunning content captured by guests during their stay on social media.
The Guestbook
The words speak for themselves – take a look at the thoughts, memories and experiences left behind by the Living Places guests who have shared their personal insights into their time spent in the homes.
Get in Touch
Are you a professional in the building sector and would like to explore the possibilities to collaborate with VELUX about the Living Places Concept?