Building Efficiency Guide

The Building Efficiency Guide is a first draft for a demonstration tool to support the development of sustainable building solutions in housing under a wide range of detailed aspects. The target is to sensitize the user for technical issues as well as for economical under different conditions worldwide.

In the first version it is possible to calculate heat demand, construction costs and costs per saved energy during the optimization process. Cooling demand, warm water consumption and the influence of technical systems on final and primary energy demand will follow in future.

Step by step different construction systems and building uses will be offered. Later it is possible to calculate more in detail all energy, economy and sustainability related questions with a long term perspective. Information about sustainable products will be added, also example solutions for construction details.

The idea is to develop a common tool on demand for everyone who wants to take part in. With a small impact of many partners a complex guide will grow to support various activities in sustainable construction.

The calculator tries to demonstrate the relationship between different ways of optimizing a building, at first in terms of energy and costs. The purpose is to develop a feeling for dimensions, not for numbers. In future it will be possible to get more detailed results.

LUWOGE consult

LUWOGE consult is the building efficiency consultancy of LUWOGE, the housing company of BASF. It was founded in 2006 to market the comprehensive knowhow of its mother-company in efficient refurbishment and new construction of large housing portfolios.

About 20 colleagues with various professions work interdisciplinary together in research, planning, construction and marketing of sustainable building solutions. Half of them are architects, others are several kind of engineers with technical and economical background. Additionally many employees are consultants educated in terms of energy, labeling and Passive House planning.

The business of LUWOGE consult is based on three strategic columns:

1. the internal market inside of BASF and LUWOGE to test new construction concepts
2. the external local market to implement the results of experience in a larger scale and
3. the global market to adapt proved solutions under different conditions in foreign countries together with BASF marketing activities.

Configuration

1. Location
Choose your location.

2. Conditions
Choose the size for area of use.
Adjust the number of dwellings, not more than 100 m² per dwelling in average.

3. Building
Choose the number of levels.
Choose the floor layout. Important: The depth (d) of building, shown in summary, should not be more than you are used to have (usually under 12 m).
Choose the floor height (including construction).
Choose the roof style.

4. Building Envelope
Choose the glazing percentage, 15% is really a little and 25% quite luxury.
Choose the thermal bridge coefficient. Important: It should be less than 0.05, to reach 0.00 you have to be an experienced planner.

5. Technical
Choose the heat recovery coefficient of your ventilation system. Important: Up to 80% you can use an economic central ventilation, from 85% on it has to be individual.
Choose the airtightness coefficient. Important: In certified Passive Houses you have to achieve maximum 0.6, to reach 0.3 you have to be an experienced planner.
Choose the room temperature. Important: In Passive Houses you can reduce it up to 20°C.

Components

Roof should be better than wall, ground can be worse.

Roof
Choose λ-value and thickness of insulation. Important: In Passive Houses you need minimum 20 cm.

Wall
Choose λ-value and thickness of insulation. Important: In Passive Houses you need minimum 20 cm.

Socle
Choose λ-value and thickness of insulation. Important: In Passive Houses you need minimum 20 cm.

Ground
Choose λ-value and thickness of insulation. Important: In Passive Houses you need minimum 20 cm, if you want to reduce the thermal bridge coefficient up to 0.00 you have to choose Styrodur®.

Window
Choose a window. Important: In Passive Houses you need an U-value of minimum 0.8 W/m²K.

Results

Check the heat demand. Important: In Passive Houses it has to be 15 KWh/m²a or less – you will get a confirmation.
Check the construction costs, they are given +/- 20% depending on the quality of comfort and architecture.
Check the costs for saved energy, as lower they are as easier it will be to finance the Passive House.

More details

Print your result as PDF-file and send them back to us. We are interested in knowing how efficient you were able to design your first Passive House.