Houston residential energy consumption. Final report

Technical Report · Fri Oct 01 04:00:00 EDT 1976

OSTI ID:5590593

Reed, J E; Barber, J E; White, B

Energy requirements for heating and cooling single - family, townhouse, low - rise, and high - rise structures in Houston, Tex., were analyzed, using 1959 as a typical weather year for the area. Structural parameters considered important in defining the residences were construction details, dimensions, and materials. Energy consumption parameters (heating and cooling equipment, types of fuels and energy used, and appliances and their energy consumption levels) and lifestyle parameters (thermostat set points, relative humidity set points, type and number of appliances, daily profile of appliance use, and use of ventilation fans) were also viewed as important. Annual heating and cooling loads and associated energy requirements were calculated for each of the four characteristic residences using a computer program with subroutines for computing hourly load contributions throughout the year due to conduction, convection, air infiltration, radiation, and internal heat gain. As expected for the warm Houston climate, cooling loads were much larger than heating loads for all residences. Both structural and comfort control system modifications were made to conserve energy, with the following results: single - family and townhouse residences consumed 46 percent, low - rise residences consumed 50 percent, and high - rise residences consumed 54 percent less energy than the characteristic residence. Supporting data, layouts of the residential structures, and references are included.

• Research Organization: Department of Housing and Urban Development, Washington, DC (USA)
• OSTI ID: 5590593
• Report Number(s): PB-300027
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
320101* -- Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization-- Residential Buildings-- (-1987)
AIR CONDITIONING
BUILDINGS
COOLING LOAD
ENERGY CONSUMPTION
HEATING
HEATING LOAD
NORTH AMERICA
RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS
SOUTHWEST REGION
SPACE HEATING
TEXAS
USA
VENTILATION