Initial data on environmental performance from Ireland’s first PassivHaus Pharmacy is looking very promising. We know it is only the first two months, but we are so proud of this project we had to share it with you anyway!

The pharmacy is currently operating without additional heating or cooling besides the PAUL HRV ventilation system operating in Summer bypass mode, and supplemental natural ventilation through open doors and windows.

The graph shows two months of data, with internal temperatures in blue, (degrees Celsius) and external in red. The blue varies by about one degree between night and day, with a max of 23.5 and a low of 20, average 21 degrees. The external temperature meanwhile fluctuates from 7.5 to 25 degrees, an average about 15 degrees, an average daily swing of ten degrees.

For more images and information see here.

And here is the client report on perception of comfort;

No. 53 is such a pleasure to work in.  It ticks all the boxes, as they say. Even on a very busy day, we all remark on how the day has flown by. Our tiredness levels after a busy day are reduced, perhaps due to the airiness of the new pharmacy or the lack of fluorescent lights, or probably both.

The sense of newness is still here in that it feels a little indulgent to be working in a passiv haus structure and I don’t think that will wane over time; especially with the winter approaching. The most common reaction from the public is one of wonder as they look up immediately as their sight is drawn to the high ceiling, the wood, the brightness, and the really good idea to extend the glass over the “cat & kitten” door.  So now  the customers all remark on the view of Old St. Mary’s Church.  I didn’t realise how much the architecture of the town, really does matter to the Clonmellians.

They all remark how the pharmacy has a ‘city-feel’ to it. However, as I keep saying, it is the use of all the wood that gives the pharmacy that natural feel… rather than too much glass or steel. It doesn’t feel clinical like many pharmacies do. If I compared it to say, working in a hospital with white walls and floors etc. Well, this is different – it has become a very contemporary but a very pleasant environment to work in.

We are thrilled with it. The feeling of lightness, natural brightness, airiness is prob due to a number of factors but maybe mostly to the high curving ceiling at the entrance.