4 research outputs found
Measured Impacts of Air Conditioner Condenser Shading
A study has been conducted by the Florida
Solar Energy Center (FSEC) to examine if space
cooling energy savings can be achieved from shading
of residential air conditioning (AC) condenser units.
The investigation consisted of before-and-after
experiments conducted on three homes over a two
year period. A recent EPA study recommends
shading of exterior AC condensers, using landscaping
or other means, as a method to reduce space cooling
energy use (Akbari et al., 1992)
Roof solar reflectance and cooling energy use: Field research results from Florida
Traditionally, architects have recognized that reflective building colors can reduce building thermal loads. Experiments in Florida have examined the impact of reflective roof coatings on air conditioning energy use in a series of tests on occupied homes. The experiments were conducted on nine residential buildings from 1991 to 1994 using a before and after test protocol where the roofs were whitened at mid-summer. Measured air conditioner electrical savings in the buildings during similar pre-and post-weather periods averaged 19%, ranging from a low of 2% to a high of 43%. Utility peak coincident peak savings averaged 22% with a similar range of values. Cooling energy reductions appear to depend also on initial ceiling insulation level and roof solar reflectance, air duct system location and air conditioner sizing
Towards Zero Energy Demand: Evaluation Of Super Efficient Building Technology With Photovoltaic Power For New Residential Housing
The performance of a project designed to test the feasibility of designing and testing efficient residential buildings with integrated photovoltaic (PV) generation systems was reported. The objective of project was to demonstrate the ability to reduce space cooling loads and to bring the house utility coincident peak demand close to zero. When the PV electric generation was included during the peak period, the PVRES home net demand was found to be 199 W