Abstract

AbstractCurrently, there are many initiatives to thermally insulate buildings on the assumption that the more insulated the building is, the more efficient in terms of energy conservation it will perform. Many assessment systems assume a linear relationship between building insulation and energy conservation. The drawback of such hypotheses is that they ignore the effect of occupants’ behaviour in their conclusions. In this study, the authors will examine the effect of people’s behaviour, particularly windows’ opening, as a behavioural pattern of occupants. It aims to study the impact of occupant’s behaviour on energy consumption of residential buildings and to identify the key factors that influence occupants’ behaviour; thus, providing ideas for improving energy efficiency by suggesting enhanced policies, approaches and techniques. The findings suggest that occupants’ behaviour could have a greater influence on the energy efficiency of buildings in some cases when compared with their thermal insulation due to opening of windows in cold weather which causes air infiltration.

Highlights

  • Age group 18–25 26–34 35–44 45–54 55–64 65–74 keep windows open when the heating system is on, this will have a negative effect on the energy conservation due to air infiltration

  • Energy efficiency is one of the key aspects related to fuel poverty, as a household’s fuel costs can be reduced based on increasing its energy efficiency [12]

  • Energy efficiency of buildings is influenced by several factors such as quality of the building envelope, wall insulation and occupant’s behaviour

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Summary

29.1 Introduction

The UK government has committed to reduce its carbon footprint to nearly zero by the year 2050 [1]. In this context several initiatives have been planned or taken place, such as the Green Deal, for insulating

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29.2 Methodology
29.3 Survey Details
29.4 Results and Discussion
29.5 Conclusion
Climate change
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