Abstract
A matched pair of 1930s semi-detached houses, in original condition and un-refurbished in terms of energy efficiency, were employed to measure the energy savings that might result from the use of zonal space heating control (ZC). The houses were adjoined and had the same synthetic, yet realistic, occupancy schedule, the same new central heating system, and were exposed to the same weather conditions. In one house the space heating was controlled conventionally (CC) according to minimum requirements in UK Building Regulation Part L1B for existing dwellings, whereas in the other house ZC was used to heat the rooms only when they were ‘occupied’. Over an 8-week winter test period, the house with ZC used 11.8% less gas despite 2.4 percentage points drop in average daily boiler efficiency. Although zonal control reduced the mean indoor air temperature of the whole house by 0.6°C, it did not reduce the average air temperature in rooms during the hours of active ‘occupancy’. Normalisation and extrapolation of the results shows that, compared to CC, ZC could reduce annual gas demand for space heating by 12% in most regions of the UK, and that ZC would be a more effective energy efficiency measure in homes in the cooler, more northerly regions of the UK.
Highlights
This paper presents, what is believed to be, the first controlled comparative study of zonal heating control (ZC) systems in UK houses
The control system for a central heating system with a combi boiler that complies with UK Building Regulations for existing dwellings [3] includes: a programmable room thermostat (PRT), usually located in the main living area or hallway, thermostatic radiator valves (TRV) fitted to each radiator except the radiator in the space where a PRT is located, and a by-pass valve usually located in the boiler (Fig. 1)
If a room with ZC became occupied during a ‘heating on’ period, the programmable thermostatic radiator valves (PTRV) would enable flow to the radiator to bring the room temperature up to the set-point (Fig. 5, dining room, living room and bedroom evening heating on periods)
Summary
This paper presents, what is believed to be, the first controlled comparative study of zonal heating control (ZC) systems in UK houses Such systems have the potential to reduce the fuel used for space heating, which accounts for 66% of all energy use in the UK residential sector [1]. The control system for a central heating system with a combi boiler that complies with UK Building Regulations for existing dwellings [3] includes: a programmable room thermostat (PRT), usually located in the main living area or hallway, thermostatic radiator valves (TRV) fitted to each radiator except the radiator in the space where a PRT is located, and a by-pass valve usually located in the boiler (Fig. 1). 70% of the existing UK housing stock do not reach the minimum levels of controls specified in the current Building Regulations: 33% do not have room thermostats, which could cause excessive room temperatures; 40% have no TRVs, which means there is no individual control of temperatures in different rooms and the whole house is often heated to the same temperatures [4,5]; and more dramatically, 4% of houses with a boiler have no controls at all [4]
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