Sustainable Energy-Plus houses - Part2 SDE2014

This study documents the approach and the results of different analyses concerning a plus-energy, single family house. The house was designed for an international student competition, Solar Decathlon Europe 2012 and after the competition it was used as a full-scale experimental facility for one year. During this period, different heating and cooling strategies were tested and the performance of the house regarding the thermal indoor environment and energy was monitored.

The project was carried out in four phases: the design and pre-competition period, the competition period (17th-28th of September 2012), the measurements in Bjerringbro from 26th of September 2013 to 1st of October 2014, and the investigations of the improvement possibilities in the building and HVAC system design.

The experiences and the results revealed that it is possible to build plus-energy houses that are aesthetically appealing, energy efficient, environmentally friendly and have a healthy and comfortable indoor environment. Though, this requires careful and detailed design, operation, and good craftsmanship (air-tightness, building envelope, lowered thermal bridges, etc.). Even though it might be possible to improve the energy performance of the house with some changes after the construction, this is not the optimal situation. This house diverged from the ideal situation, due to the high heating and cooling demand. It should be noted that with less heating and cooling demand, it would be possible to achieve plus-energy targets with less area of active components (e.g. photovoltaic/thermal panels).

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