Is it possible to install a stove in a passive house?

For passive houses, the installed power may not exceed 10 W per square meter (heating load). Better thermal isolation results in a lower heat demand. A normally heated house will easily need 20 - 35 kW peak power during the coldest days of the year. For low energy houses, 10 kW usually suffices. Passive houses need only 1-2 kW.

Therefore, the house will easily become too hot when installing a stove or fireplace in a low energy or passive house. Most stoves produce 8 kW or more, where a living room in a low energy houses needs a mere 3 kW to maintain 20 degrees while it's -10 outside. Passive houses need only 10 W/m2. A variation may be a pellet stove, which gives the bulk of its heat to the sanitary hot water boiler, while allowing a romantic flame in the house.

Fireplaces need to be avoided from a thermal viewpoint, since more heat escapes through the chimney than is generates for the room. Fireplaces are a negative energy supplier, even with a valve. In addition, the requirements for air tightness in passive houses cannot be reconciled with open chimneys.

Source: Passiefhuis - Platform