two buidings

anna rivolta · Posts: 27

if i have two buidings in the same site, how does d.b consider the links beetween there?
to design two buildings contiguous, both heating, must i design one as a adiabatic block and one as building?
must i put the adiabatic block in another buiding?

Andy Tindale · Posts: 1205 Location: Stroud

DesignBuilder buildings are completely independent of each other and there are no adjacencies. If 2 buildings appear to touch in the model this does not mean that the 'touching' walls have internal adjacency. They will have external adjacency.

There is an option in the solar calculation options to allow other buildings on the site to shade the current building, but there is no heat conduction between buildings.

Yes, you should use adiabatic blocks the model adjacent buildings.

Andy

julie · Posts: 3

But heat is conducted between the buildings, ... and heat loss is slowed by the presents of other buildings - this is a real parameter and one that I am looking to measure…

Andy Tindale · Posts: 1205 Location: Stroud

In this case you could include part of the other building in your model and heat/cool it to the correct temperature using different fuels to differentiate between the energy consumption in the 2 buildings.

Andy

julie · Posts: 3

Sorry I’m just starting and I don’t understand what you mean about the different fuels – if you want to measure the energy exchanges between buildings? ... lets say if you where to find the annual load (grid electric) for an office building in isolation for example standing in a field in the uk then you place this building in an urban environment next to and surrounded by identical buildings in every way except orientation as to a normal street layout running N/S, again in the uk – then run the simulation again for the same identical year … the office buildings in that canyon would influence each other the energy demand would be lower - the most obvious effect would be the effects of overshadowing in the west facing offices in the afternoon.. as you say the effects of solar shading can be calculated… but can DB measure you difference in rate of heat loss from the building in the field that is giving its heat up to the sky and the building in the street canyon which is giving its heat up to the surround buildings and the sky? Can you measure the surface temperatures throughout the night ? can you measure the external air temps too?

Andy Tindale · Posts: 1205 Location: Stroud

To model the difference between a building 'standing in a field' and in an urban environment you could first simulate the building in isolation and then again with adiabatic blocks touching it to represent the other buildings. The adiabatic blocks will act like other buildings at identical conditions to the actual building.

Andy

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