AT-90-03-3 -- Estimating Water Heating and Aggregate Electricity Loads in Multifamily Buildings PDF

In support of an effort to develop a consistent set of energy requirements for multifamily prototypes, methods were developed to calculate the non-space- conditioning loads for water heating and aggregate electricity (i.e., appliances and lighting). Standard engineering procedures were followed for the apartment-level water heating loads that were then apportioned by month and by hour using profiles taken from several measured data sources. To estimate aggregate electricity consumption in these multifamily building types, two methods were used. First, the electricity consumption of typical appliances was estimated for each prototype and the lighting contribution was scaled according to the floor area of the apartments. In the other method, recent RECS data tapes were analysed to determine median patterns of use from a large sample of multifamily buildings. The non-space-conditioning loads estimated in this study were also used to validate the internal load assumptions for the DOE-2 modelling of heating and cooling requirements. The calculated water heating loads are compared to measured data from multifamily buildings in the Northwest.

KEYWORDS: water heating, communal residences, flats, electricity, load, lighting, electric heating, calculating, electricity consumption, appliances.