A preliminary study of lighting energy performance in houses with various window systems

This paper presents a preliminary study on the impact of windows on energy performance in a detached house in Sweden. The parameters studied include window sizes, thermal and visual transmittances, solar gains, as well as one shading device. The energy consumption of electrical lighting system was the main factor to be first investigated. Furthermore, the heating and cooling demands were also assessed to demonstrate an entire profile of energy performance with the occurrence of various window systems and lighting conditions. Based on typical climate zones in Sweden, three locations (Umeå, Stockholm and Malmö) have been selected as the representatives. DesignBuilder (+EnergyPlus), a state-of-the-art package, was used to dynamically simulate environmental effect and energy performance. A clear relationship between window use and lighting energy performance has been achieved. The final results could be used for supporting earlier stage house design in northern Europe.