Persistence of savings in multifamily public housing

Conference · Wed Apr 01 04:00:00 EST 1992

OSTI ID:6777301

Ritschard, R; McAllister, A

In a previous study of 43 retrofit cases in multifamily public housing, it was found that initial energy savings did not always persist into the second and third post-retrofit years in the cases where there were at least two years of post-retrofit data. In this study, we revisit the topic of persistence of savings in low-income multifamily buildings by collecting additional energy consumption data from many of the 43 retrofit cases analyzed in the previous work. These new data, in most cases, cover the second through fourth years of post-retrofit energy performance, weather variations, and occupancy patterns. We include only those retrofit cases where there has been no new installation of conservation measures. A utility bill analysis was conducted using the Princeton Scorekeeping Method (PRISM). The analysis considered climate variation, type of building and occupant, type of conservation measure, and pre-retrofit energy use. We found that the extent to which savings persist depended on the type of conservation measure installed. Generally, energy savings from equipment measures (i.e., heating controls, new boilers, solar hot water systems, etc.) that require ongoing maintenance were less likely to persist beyond the first post-retrofit year. Shell measures (including window replacements), on the other hand, maintained their savings over several post-retrofit years.

• Research Organization: Lawrence Berkeley Lab., CA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: DOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: AC03-76SF00098
• OSTI ID: 6777301
• Report Number(s): LBL-32170; CONF-920828--27; ON: DE93004722
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
320105* -- Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization-- Building Services-- (1987-)
APARTMENT BUILDINGS
BOILERS
BUILDINGS
CALIFORNIA
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
EFFICIENCY
ENERGY CONSERVATION
ENERGY CONSUMPTION
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
NEW JERSEY
NEW YORK
NORTH AMERICA
RELIABILITY
RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS
RETROFITTING
USA