[Bldg-sim] Activity Areas Allocation in eQuest

[Christina A. Snyder]

My understanding is that Equest decides where the division between
perimeter & core is - it is not determined by the placement of your
interior walls. I believe this is done because the perimeter & core
zones are used for assessing the amount of daylighting penetration as
well as differences in heat loss to the exterior of the envelope. There
is a maximum depth to the perimeter zone, and if the depth of your
apartments exceeds that depth then part of the apartments will be
assumed to be part of the core zone, meaning they'll have higher
lighting needs (barring the use of skylights), and lower heating needs
in winter but higher cooling needs in summer. Irregardless of where you
place your interior walls, there is little you can do to increase the
depth of daylighting penetration into a building (solatubes get modeled
as skylights, but fiber optic sunlight distribution & mirror
lightshelves aren't easily modeled yet), so Equest's perimeter
assumptions make sense. Don't worry, it is modeling your project
correctly.
-- 
  Christina A. Snyder
  casnyder at ic.org
  voice: 734-428-9249