[Equest-users] Benefit to modeling duct losses in cold climates?

[Jones, Christopher]

Chris,
I suggest you go back and read the DOE22Vol2-Dictionary manual.  If you are talking about the DUCT-AIR-LOSS, then yes, the duct zone must be a plenum or unconditioned zone.

If you are talking about  the heat/cool energy lost (DUCT-DT or DUCT-UA) then the duct zone can be a plenum if one exists or any zone on the system, you specify the DUCT-ZONE.  Only 1 zone is specified.

Christopher Jones, P.Eng.
Tel: 416.644.4226 * Toll Free: 1.888.425.7255 x 527

From: Equest-users [mailto:equest-users-bounces at lists.onebuilding.org] On Behalf Of Chris Baker
Sent: Tuesday, March 24, 2015 7:33 PM
To: equest-users at lists.onebuilding.org
Subject: [Equest-users] Benefit to modeling duct losses in cold climates?

So I haven't yet modeled my current project with duct losses.  This is a 13,000 sf building in Alaska (Climate zone 8).

Equest only models duct losses in terms of how it affects unconditioned zones (it does not model duct losses to conditioned areas).
But over the course of an Alaskan winter (October thru March) any duct losses would act to somewhat heat the plenum space.

So would there be a benefit in thermal performance over that period?
Has anyone experimented with this?

This would obviously add an additional load requirement to the air-side systems and the pumps/air systems would obviously use slightly more power
(especially for PSZ systems) to make up for any duct losses.

I think the only potential benefit would be thermal performance but I'm not sure if equest takes into account thermal energy in a plenum (unconditioned space)
when it models the thermal performance of a conditioned space beneath it during the course of 1 model year.

If it does, I think the only potential benefits during winter months would be in extremely cold climates like Alaska.
Otherwise you are just adding more heating and power loads on the pumps, fans, etc...  Which over the course of 1 year would have an impact.

HOWEVER...
If you model proposed duct losses the same as baseline might there be a greater overall cost savings in proposed model while keeping the baseline ashrae compliant?
ASHRAE (at least the 2013 version) has equations for determining duct losses in the baseline model.

The proposed building would obviously retain the thermal energy more efficiently than the baseline and it might be an overall benefit in cost savings in terms of heating costs
Regardless of how much additional energy is used to make up for the duct losses on the system.

Both models would act to contain the heat expelled by the duct losses but the proposed model would do a better job, basically, than baseline even though the duct losses are the same.

Chris Baker
CCI CAD Drafter


________________________________

CCI-Alliance Confidentiality notice: This message is intended only for the person to whom addressed in the text above and may contain privileged or confidential information. If you are not that person, any use of this message is prohibited. We request that you notify us by reply to this message, and then delete all copies of this message including any contained in your reply. Thank you.

______________________________________________________________________
NOTICE: This communication and any attachments ("this message") may contain confidential information for the sole use of the intended recipient(s). Any unauthorized use, disclosure, viewing, copying, alteration, dissemination or distribution of, or reliance on this message is strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, or you are not an authorized recipient, please notify the sender immediately by replying to this message, delete this message and all copies from your e-mail system and destroy any printed copies.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.onebuilding.org/pipermail/equest-users-onebuilding.org/attachments/20150325/300dfe1c/attachment.htm>