HEATING & COOLING EFFICIENCY

(area of impact: Energy)

The modern home consumes electricity for cooling and either electricity, natural gas or fuel oil for heating. The cooling loads in California are generally the largest electrical loads in the home. The efficiency of the building envelope and the efficiency of heating and cooling equipment are the primary focus of the state mandated efficiency standards in California. Features of the home such as high mass surface, interior and exterior shading, insulation values, radiant barriers, attic venting, whole house ventilation, high efficiency glazing, and smart thermostats are ways to impact heating and cooling efficiency given a certain building size, orientation, and windows and wall pattern. These are factors that are given for an existing home. For new homes, control over orientation, passive gain, material selection, prevailing ventilation patterns and other passive measures can be used. This is a large topic and is the focus of architecture of the home, as well as the mechanical systems. It is also one of the most impactful with respect to resource consumption.