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Mahoney Tables 2
Mahoney Tables 2
A write up
Presented by
IZEVBEKHAI B.O.
ARC/05/5615
Submitted to
The department of architecture in partial fulfillment for
Lecturer in charge
Prof. Olu Ogunsote
The Mahoney tables is a climatic table designed to utilize climatic data of a particular
location in this instance Abuja to make design decisions that would make the building not just
user friendly but also climate friendly thus reducing the amount spent on mechanical installations
to rectify uncomfortable situations.
For this write – up, I have used the climatic data for Abuja as provided for by the web site
sited in my references. Using the data along with the various tables I was able to come up with
design recommendations for Abuja.
Mahoney tables
The Mahoney tables are a set of reference tables used in architecture, used as a guide to climate-
appropriate design. They are named after architect Carl Mahoney. They were first published in
1971 by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. The concept developed
by Mahoney (1968) in Nigeria provided the basis of the Mahoney Tables, later developed by
Koenigsberger, Mahoney and Evans (1970), published by the United Nations in English, French
and Spanish, with large sections included in the widely distributed publication by Koenigsberger
et al. (1978). The Mahoney Tables (Evans, 1999; Evans, 2001) proposed a climate analysis
sequence that starts with the basic and widely available monthly climatic data of temperature,
humidity and rainfall, such as that found in HMSO (1958) and Pearce and Smith (1990), or data
Uses
The Mahoney tables also specify the thermal performance of recommended walls and roofs in
Light walls should have maximum U-value, maximum solar heat factor and time
lags or heavy walls as required and decided based on the design consideration.
Also solar heat factors can be decided from the design actions gotten from the
seasonal requirements may be contradictory. For simple passive buildings, not assisted by
mechanical means of heating or cooling, Mahoney worked out a weighing system to assess the
relative importance of conflicting requirements. The system takes into account the duration and
severity of the various climatic factors. The Mahoney tables classify precisely the nocturnal and
diurnal thermal stress in centigrade scale of temperature. The comfortable hot and cold periods
Remedial Actions
The thermal stress gives an indication of the remedial actions of the architect should be
taken to make the design comfortable for the users, and determine the period that there is need
for ventilation, rain protection and thermal storage and this thermal stress and decision are based
When the climatic pattern emerging from the data clearly corresponds to warm humid or
hot dry types, it is relatively easy to arrive at performance specifications. In composite climates,
the seasonal requirements may be contradictory. For simple passive buildings, not assisted by
mechanical means of heating or cooling, Mahoney worked out a weighing system to assess the
relative importance of conflicting requirements. The system takes into account the duration and
severity of the various climatic factors. The Mahoney tables classify precisely the nocturnal and
diurnal thermal stress in centigrade scale of temperature. The comfortable hot and cold periods
25 25 25 25 24 24 23 21 23 24 25 25
Thermal Stress Day Ο Ο ┼ ┼ ┼ ┼ ┼ ┼ ┼ ┼ ┼ ┼
Night
─ Ο Ο Ο ┼ Ο ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─
Air movement essential H1 1 Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο │ Ο Ο Ο Ο
Air movement desirable H2 0 Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο
Rain Protection H3 0 Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο
Indicators
Thermal storage A1 11 │ │ │ │ │ │ │ Ο │ │ │ │
Outdoor Sleeping A2 5 │ │ │ │ │ │ Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο
Cold season problems A3 0 Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο Ο
Table 1.0:
0-30 1
30-50 2
50-70 3
70-100 4
Table2.0:
Humidity Groups
1 26-34 17-25
2 25-31 17-24
3 23-29 17-23
4 22-27 17-21
Table 3.0:
Table 3.0:
Air movement H1(3-12) or H1(1-2) +A1 (0-5) c1 Single – banking, Permanent ventilation
Position of openings H1(3-12) or H1(1-2) + A1(0-5) e1 In North and South walls at body height
H1(1-2) + A1(6-12) or H1(0) + e2● In North and South walls at body height, also in internal walls
H2(2-12)
Arid Indicators A1 = 11 A2 = 5 A3 = 0
Table 4.0
Design Recommendation
The tables use readily-available climate data and simple calculations to give design guidelines, in
a manner similar to a spreadsheet, as opposed to detailed thermal analysis or simulation. There
are six tables; four are used for entering climatic data, for comparison with the requirements for
thermal comfort; and two for reading off appropriate design criteria. A rough outline of the table
usage is:
1. Air Temperatures. The max, min, and mean temperatures for each month are
entered into this table.
2. Humidity, Precipitation, and Wind. The max, min, and mean figures for each
month are entered into this table, and the conditions for each month classified into
a humidity group.
4. Indicators (of humid or arid conditions). Rules are provided for combining the
stress (table 3) and humidity groups (table 2) to check a box classifying the
humidity and aridity for each month. For each of six possible indicators, the
number of months where that indicator was checked are added up, giving a yearly
total.
The Design recommendations are made on the basis of the remedial actions needed to be taken to
alleviate thermal distress.
Air Movement: The use of double - banking to assist ventilation and thermal storage.
Walls and Floor: Abuja should have designs that utilize heavy materials with high time lags to
be effective in thermal storage and help to make the day time discomfort bearable.
Roofs: is to be heavy.
Outdoor Sleeping: It is needed to make provisions for outdoor sleeping for certain months of the
year.
Rain Protection and Drainage: is not necessary as there is no heavy downpour of rain.
Reference