Passive house Hjulstad is a wooden family home located on the arctic circle in Mo I Rana, Norway.

The house is situated ona southward orientedhillside overlooking the fiord and oriented to the sun where it accumulates the sun’s radiation. The orientation of the building createsa natural outdoor microclimate that shelters from the different winds and provide good outdoor spaces through the different seasons of the year.

Due to the cold climate the clients wanted to minimalize heat loss of the building envelope. The structure consist of a double 2”4” frame with 300 insulation in between to ensure minimal thermal bridge. The house is built in accordence with Norwegian passive house standard.

The passive house is a 2-story house. The ground floor consist of a hall, kitchen, living room, bathroom and the master bedroom. The kitchen is the central focus of the ground floor with big windows to the garden. The family wanted the kitchen to be the main social space of the house. Here everybody gathers for breakfast. lunch and dinner.

The upper floor consist of a living room, and 3 children bedrooms. The bedrooms are kept minimal in size and the living room plays the role of the childrens playground.