Experiencias obtenidas a partir de monitorización energética de viviendas rehabilitadas en el País Vasco

Resumen

For years the Basque Government, through the Department of Housing and Architecture, has promoted programs to help the integral refurbishment of dwellings. These efforts have been carried out in different projects throughout the three provinces of the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country. Thermal parameters (relating to interior air temperature, indoor relative humidity, and heating consumption) in a significant number of refurbished dwellings are monitored. While the goal of constructing nearly zero-energy buildings lies in the near future, the means of improving existing building parks are pending. Refurbishment is an excellent way of enhancing energy efficiency in existing buildings, taking into account changing and increasingly demanding regulations. For this reason, refurbishment should not be carried out as specific solutions which could quickly become obsolete. More information is needed to develop a solution that has longer lasting effects. Information obtained through the monitoring of thermal parameters allows us to determine the effectiveness of the refurbishment. Periods of monitoring lasting for year gives additional insight into the tenant’s usage habits, ventilation and heating routines, and the interior conditions of the dwellings. Monitoring the energy of houses allows us to know the internal conditions and check their evolution over time. This information is very useful in determining the comfort that tenants enjoy in their dwellings at any given time, which can be studied on a seasonal or even weekly or daily basis. Refurbishment is the main factor in the heating load reduction of the refurbished building, assuming that the tenants and their routines do not vary during the refurbishment process. The heating load of the building prior to be refurbished, is calculated by official energy certification tools, and the data monitored after refurbishment, shows reductions in this heating load near to 80% in some cases. Finally, a key factor that influences the actual energy performance of a building is the user profile of the end user or tenant. This component is also shown as one of the main causes of discrepancy between the levels of predicted consumption by simulation and those actually measured. The monitoring allows us to study the tenant’s routines in detail.