- Author
- Burch, D. M. | Jacobsen, T. | Johns, W. L. | Walton, G. N. | Reeve, C. P.
- Title
- Effect of Thermal Mass on Night Temperature Setback Savings.
- Coporate
- National Bureau of Standards, Gaithersburg, MD Department of Energy, Washington, DC Electric Power Research Inst., Palo Alto, CA
- Journal
- ASHRAE Transactions, Vol. 90, No. Part 2A, 184-206, 1984
- Report
- No. 2838,
- Keywords
- energy conservation; walls; thermodynamic properties; masonry; wood; buildings; computer simulation; temperature measurement; thermal insulation; reprints
- Identifiers
- thermal mass; temperature setback
- Abstract
- A series of field experiments were carried out using four test buildings to investigate the effect of wall mass on the heating energy savings achieved by night temperature setback. The test buildings were identical with the exception of the wall construction which was as follows: insulated wood frame, insulated masonry (exterior) mass, log, and insulated masonry (interior mass). When weekly heating loads were plotted with respect to average outdoor temperature, the only effect caused by night setback was a reduction in the balance-point temperature. Variability in measured test results precluded determining whether differences in wall construction caused statistically significant set back savings. However, computer simulations using the TARP program indicated that the heavyweight test buildings had smaller setback savings than the lightweight test buildings.