Twenty terrace houses without heating system has been built in Sweden. The houses are extremely well insulated and very airtight. They are also quipped with a high efficiency ventilation heat recovery system. The total electricity consumption and the air temperature in two positions has been monitored for each of the houses on an hourly bases. Further has the environmental conditions, i.e. outdoor temperature, wind, sun etc been monitored. In six of the houses separate measurements of electricity consumption for ventilation and hot water has also been performed.
In conventional construction, the ventilation air enters a building through a combination of ‘desired’ pathways, via opened apertures, such as a window, vents, and ‘undesired’ pathways, via cracks such as around external openings, joints between building
The Airinstruct project objective was to understand the thermal performance of ventilated building components, namely ventilated roof, ventilated wall, solar roof and dynamic insulation.
Attempts to determine the influence of the installation of highly insulated windows and central heating systems on indoor climate, and mite-allergen (Der f 1) and mould spore concentrations. A before and after study was carried out on 98 apartment bedrooms, with measurements taken of air exchange rate, temperature and humidity. A lifestyle and housing conditions questionnaire was undertaken by the occupants and dust on carpets and mattresses was analysed for mould spores and Der f 1.
In a laboratory chamber experiment, acoustic and thermal fibreglass insulation materials used in HVAC systems were colonized with fungi, which produced odour-giving volatiles. Suggests that these volatiles may be implicated in experience of indoor air quality and sick building syndrome symptoms.
Describes a research and development project that has been started in order to generate design guidelines for PER walls. The three tasks covered are computer modelling, experimental evaluation and development of design guidelines. Describes the results of the experimental evaluation of an exterior insulation finish system. The systems were evaluated for air leakage characteristics, pressure equalization response and water penetration. Concludes that a wall designed to PER principles is more able to resist rain penetration.
Reviews the use of spray-polyurethane-foam insulation in buildings and discusses how their characteristics influence their field performance. Recommends that when used as an air barrier, polyurethane foam may crack on joints subjected to shrinkage or by structural deflection. To maintain the integrity of the air barrier, one should attach a strip of peel-and-stick membrane to both sides of the joint.
States that to be effective, insulation must be installed correctly. Studies have shown that even small imperfections in how insulation is installed will significantly reduce its performance. There are problems associated with the settlement of loose fill insulation, and batt insulation can also sag and create voids - especially if they are not the full depth of the wall, of if they are narrower than the framing space into which they are put. Insulation installers usually work on a piecework basis, so have an incentive to cut corners.
The brief for this university campus design required a low energy building for the business school and the education faculty, with a wide variety of room sizes and functions. The work included ensuring that the European Commission (Thermie programme) and the British Ministry for Energy DTI financed the low energy strategy. The energy strategy is based on a well-insulated building, a low energy ventilation system, passive solar energy gain, using direct daylight, using a building-integrated photovoltaic system. The buildings are very compact and well insulated.
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