The importance of internal heat gains for building cooling design

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the effect of internal heat gains on the cooling load of a building. The house occupied by three adult men is selected as the case study for paper. The house is in the third floor of the apartment. The apartment has four flats and it has no insulation around the external walls. The heat dissipation from lighting devices, electrical equipment and the occupants are calculated by using the DesignBuilder v4 Beta release simulation program. The temperature of the house is observed during three weeks by using hobo data loggers and calibration of the measurements is made with respect to weather data file of the flat. Detailed schedule based on time of operation and occupancy is prepared to get more accurate results. Annual energy consumption and cooling load of the house is determined by using the dynamic simulation program.