Cooling Load Example
The facing page contains a completed form show-
ing the calculations for the required capacity of a
central air conditioner for a small house in Boston,
Massachusetts, shown at right.
The house is deliberately kept simple in order
to clarify the calculations. Many homes will have
more than one type of exterior wall, foundation, or
window, and they will require multiple entries for
these line items.
Line 1. The ceiling measures 30 by 40 feet, so
its area is 1,200 square feet. The roof, however, is
pitched 30 degrees, so its area is 1,386 square feet.
(If you don't know how to do this calculation, see
the relationships between the sides of a triangle in
Chapter 24.) The unshaded roof has a shading fac-
tor of 1.00, from column 1 of Table 1. The insula-
tion factor is 0.8 times the nominal R-value of 38.
Line 3. The north and south walls are each 320
square feet, less the window area of 21 square feet,
or 299 square feet. The east and west walls measure
219 square feet by the same process. The west wall is
fully shaded, so its shading factor (Table 1) is 0.70.
The rest are unshaded, so their shading factors are
1.00. The nominal R-values of 19 are multiplied by
0.8 to get insulation factors of 15.2.
Line 4. The entire house is air-conditioned, so the
interior walls have no effect and are left blank.
Line 5. The house sits on a vented (open) crawl
space, so the floor factor is 1.0.
Line 6. The house is quite air-tight, so there are
estimated to be 0.50 air changes per hour.
Line 7. The glazing factor, from column 1 of Table
3, for double-glazed windows is 0.5.
Line 8. Both east and south windows are entered
on a single line. The shading factors are the same as
for the walls in line 3. The glazing factor of 0.8 is
found in column 2 of Table 3.
502 COOLING
Example House for Cooling Load
2 doors =
40 sq ft
8 windows =
84 sq ft
8'
40'
30'
Air exchange rate = 0.5 changes per hour
Ceiling R-38, walls R-19, floor R-19 over vented crawlspace
Windows 21 sq ft each facing N, S, E, and W
West wall fully shaded; other walls and roof unshaded
Spring and fall utility bills average 350 kwhr/month
Three occupants in summer months
Line 9. The sum of the results column for all of
the lines above is 13,921. Boston's cooling factor of
0.75 is found from the map on p. 499.
Line 10. The electric utility bills for the spring and
fall months show an average consumption of 350
kilowatt-hours per month.
Line 11. There are three occupants of the home
during the cooling season.
Line 12. The thermal mass factor for a light wood
frame house (1.00) is found in Table 4. The sum of
lines 9 through 11 is 13,906, so the peak cooling
load is 13,906 Btu per hour. This is a small cooling
load for a house and could be satisfied easily by two
7,000 Btu/hr room air conditioners.
Work Sheet for Sizing Air Conditioners
Source of Heat Gain Calculations Results

1. Roof over ventilated attic 1,386 sq ft x 44 x 1.00 shading factor / 30.4 insulation factor = 2,006

2. Cathedral ceiling or roof sq ft x 48 x shading factor / insulation factor =

over unventilated attic

3. Exterior wall facing:

North 299 sq ft x 18 x 1.00 shading factor / 15.2 insulation factor = 354

East 219 sq ft x 28 x 1.00 shading factor / 15.2 insulation factor = 403

South 299 sq ft x 24 x 1.00 shading factor / 15.2 insulation factor = 472

West 219 sq ft x 28 x 0.70 shading factor / 15.2 insulation factor = 282

4. Interior walls facing sq ft x 12 / insulation factor =

unconditioned rooms

5. Floors over unconditioned 1,200 sq ft x 20 x 1.0 floor factor / 15.2 insulation factor = 1,579
spaces

6. Infiltration: area of living space 1,200 sq ft x 0.5 air changes/hour x 1.6 = 960

7. Window conduction 84 sq ft x 16 x 0.5 glazing factor = 672

8. Window solar gain:

North 21 sq ft x 16 x 1.00 shading factor / 0.8 glazing factor = 420

East, South, Southeast 42 sq ft x 80 x 1.00 shading factor / 0.8 glazing factor = 4,200

West, Southwest, Northwest 21 sq ft x 140 x 0.70 shading factor / 0.8 glazing factor = 2,573

Northeast sq ft x 50 x shading factor / glazing factor =

9. Sum of lines 1 – 8 13,921 x 0.75 cooling factor from map on p. 499 = 10,440

10. Utility gain 350 x 1.4 = 490 watts being consumed in space x 3.4 = 1,666

11. People gain 3 number of people in space x 600 = 1,800

12. Peak cooling load, Btu/hour: sum of lines 9 – 11 x 1.00 thermal mass factor = 13,906

Air Conditioning 503

504
0 1 2 3 4 5

Passive
Solar 18
Since man constructed the first rudimentary shelter, he has always Passive Solar Possibilities   506
instinctively utilized free energy from the sun. What are our passive solar Determining Solar Access   508
possibilities today? First you have to determine whether, and to what Solar Path Charts   510
degree, your site has enough direct sun (solar access). To determine solar
Glazing Orientation and Tilt   514
access, we utilize solar path charts, or maps of the sun’s path at different
seasons and latitudes. Summer Shading   515

Next we look at the effects of glazing orientation and tilt. We find Heat Storage   516
that good passive solar performance requires placing a high percentage A Passive Solar Design
of glazing (windows) on the south wall and little or none on the north. Procedure  518
We also discover that ordinary vertical windows perform as well or better Thermal Mass Patterns   520
than tilted windows when the ground is covered with snow.
Of course windows which gather the sun’s heat in winter can also
gain heat in the summer, so we look at techniques for summer shading.
If we want to get a high percentage of our heat from the sun, we have
to take in as much radiation as possible while the sun is shining. In order
that the building not overheat and that we have heat to carry us through
the sunless night, we need some form of heat storage.
Utilizing all of the tricks above, we are able to predict the solar
performance of our design using a passive solar design procedure. Many
ordinary building materials have significant ability to store heat. We show
how to calculate the required surface areas of various heat-storing build-
ing materials in five different thermal mass patterns.

505
 Passive Solar Possibilities
What Is Passive Solar?
There are many techniques for reducing energy
consumption in buildings. Techniques such as
increasing insulation, caulking and weather-
stripping, and using high-performance windows and
doors have been described in previous chapters.
These energy conservation techniques are primarily
buffers against cold climates, reducing the rate of
escape of interior heat.
There are, however, techniques that capture free
energy from the sun, reducing, and in some cases
eliminating, the need for conventional central heat-
ing sources. These solar techniques can be roughly
divided into two categories: active and passive solar
heating. Passive techniques rely upon the interre-
lationship of solar radiation, mass of the building,
and siting; with these they capture, store, and release
solar energy. With little if any increased cost, and
with no noisy equipment to maintain, passive solar
has become the technique of choice.
During the past 25 years, designers have learned
a lot about the actual performance of passive solar
structures. This chapter contains a condensation of
that knowledge in the form of a design procedure
with simple graphs and tables that allow the design
of near-optimum residential passive solar buildings
anywhere in North America.
Passive solar, of course, is no substitute for stan-
dard energy conservation techniques. An underlying
assumption for all that follows is a very high level
of energy conservation. State and local energy stan-
dards should be considered the minimum for any
passive solar design.
Conservation Requirements
Guidelines for energy conservation in conjunction
with passive solar design include the following:
• Insulate walls, roofs, and floors one step
beyond the local norm; i.e., if the code calls for R-19
walls, make them R-25.
• Select triple-glazed, low-E, or Heat Mirror
windows, and insulated doors.
506 PASSIVE SOLAR
• Reduce air infiltration through the use of con-
tinuous air/vapor barriers and caulking and weather-
stripping of all openings.
• Reduce the area of windows and doors on the
north side of the building.
• Orient the building and openings to maximize
the effects of cooling summer breezes and minimize
the effects of winter winds.
• Utilize landscape elements to provide summer
shade and to block winter winds.
• If natural deciduous shading is not possible,
provide overhangs and projections to shade glazings
during the cooling season.
• Ventilate roofs and attics to avoid condensation
damage and summer overheating.
Direct Gain
Of all the passive solar types, direct gain is the easiest
to understand, because it is a simple variation from an
ordinary house with south-facing windows. A direct-
gain design is one in which the solar radiation directly
enters and heats the living spaces. The building itself
is the solar collector.
In the heating season during daylight hours,
sunlight enters through south-facing windows, patio
doors, clerestories, or skylights. The radiation strikes
and is absorbed by floors, walls, ceilings, and furnish-
ings. As anyone who has ever been in a south-facing
room in winter realizes, some of the heat is transferred
to the air immediately, warming the room. Some of
the heat is absorbed into the structure and objects
in the room, to be released slowly during the night,
filling some of the overnight heating requirement. In
extreme designs, increased surface absorptivities and
increased amounts of mass allow capture and storage
of a full day’s heat supply.
Although ceilings can be designed to store heat,
common direct-gain storage materials are most easily
incorporated into floors and walls, which frequently
serve a structural purpose as well. Two very simple
but effective storage masses that can be incorporated
into any home are a masonry, tile, or slate floor, and Direct Gain

Sum
walls with double layers of gypsum drywall.
Win
Open floor plans are recommended, to allow dis-

me
ter s
un

r su
tribution of the released heat throughout the house

n
by natural air circulation.

Sum
Win
Isolated Sun Space

me
ter s
un

r su
Attached sun spaces are frequently constructed as

Sum
n
extensions to homes. They are generally consid- Win

me
ter s
un

r su
ered secondary-use spaces, in which heat is either

n
collected and vented directly to the living space
or is stored for later use, The energy collected is
generally used to heat both the sun space and the
adjacent living space.
Sun spaces are designed for one of two basic Sum
modes of operation. In the first, the sun space is Isolated Sun Space
me
r su
isolated from the living space (illustration at middle
n

Win
right) by an insulated wall and doors which may be te
sun r
Sum

closed. As a result of this isolation, the sun space is

me

not treated as part of the conditioned space, and its

r su

temperature is allowed to fluctuate beyond the range

Sum
n

Win
of human comfort. te
sun r
me
r su

Integrated Sun Space

n

Win
te
sun r
In the second case, the sun space is integrated with
the living space (illustration at bottom right), and its
temperature is controlled with auxiliary heat or heat
from the main living areas.
Integration is desirable when the space is primar-
ily a living space. Isolation is desirable when the sun
space is used primarily as a greenhouse, generating Integrated Sun Space
more water vapor than the house can safely absorb
without causing condensation and mildew.
Sum

Sun-space glazings are often tilted for maximum

me

light penetration and collection, but this exposes

r su

the glazings to increased summer heat gain. Two

n

solutions are deciduous shade trees to block direct

Sum

summer sun and ventilating windows and doors left

me

open during the summer.

r su

Win
ter s
Sum

un
n

In northern areas sun-space glazings should

me

either be of a high-performance type (double-glazed

r su

with high-solar-gain low-E coating) or covered at

n

night with a form of movable window insulation. Win

ter s
un

Win
Passive Solar Possibilities
ter s
un
507
 Determining Solar Access
The amount of solar heat that reaches glazing is Measuring the Sun’s Altitude
affected by its orientation to the sun and the frac-
tion of the sky blocked by permanent objects such as
trees and buildings. Optimum solar access permits
no shading between the hours of 8 AM and 4 PM
from September 21 through March 21. These hours
and seasons are represented by the darker yellow
area in the charts on the facing page. Horizon
Horizon
In planning glazing, you can plot solar access on
a sun chart, a map of the sky viewed from the loca-
tion of the glazing. In the pages that follow, you'll

60 70 80
60 70 80
find sun charts for latitudes in the United States and

50
50
southern Canada.

40
40

30
30

20
20
0 0
1

Measuring Altitude and Azimuth

1
0 0

10 10

80
80
20 20 70
60 50 740
0 6030

On the charts, the height scale, from 0 to Read

Read altitude
altitude angle
angle
50 40 30

Eye Eye
90 degrees represents altitude, the angle of the sun
Weight
Weight on aon a string
string
above the horizon; the horizontal scale represents
azimuth, the number of degrees east or west of true
south. To plot obstructions on your sun chart, you
need to determine their azimuths and altitudes.
Measuring the Sun’s Azimuth
To find altitude, sight the top of an object along
the straight edge of a protractor, as shown in the
illustration at top right, and read altitude where the
string crosses the outside of the scale.
To find azimuth, first find true north–south as
described on p. 38. Then, simply use a protractor
and a piece of string as shown in the illustration at South
South
bottom right. Standing at the proposed location of
zihmuth
AzimAut
the glazing, point the zero on the protractor to true
south and the string toward the object. The string
will lie on the azimuth reading.
Take as many readings as you need to plot the Read
Read azimuth
azimuth angle
angle 20 3010 20
0 10 10 0 20 10
30
20
30
30 40 40 40
40
outlines of all obstructing objects on the sun chart,
50

50
50

50
60

60
60

60
0

70

as shown in the “Good Solar Access” and “Poor

80 7
0

70
80 7

80
80

Solar Access” examples on the facing page.

Eye Eye

508 PASSIVE SOLAR

 An Example of Good Solar Access

90∞

NOON
75∞ June 21
11 AM May 21 July 21 1 PM
Altitude above Horizon

10 AM Apr 21 Aug 21 2 PM
60∞

9 AM Mar 21 Sept 21
3 PM
45∞
Feb 21 Oct 21
8 AM 4 PM

30∞ Jan 21 Nov 21

7 AM Dec 21 5 PM

6 AM 6 PM
15∞

0∞
120∞ 105∞ 90∞ 75∞ 60∞ 45∞ 30∞ 15∞ 0∞ 15∞ 30∞ 45∞ 60∞ 75∞ 90∞ 105∞ 120∞
East South West
Direction from True South

An Example of Poor Solar Access

90∞

NOON
75∞ June 21
11 AM May 21 July 21 1 PM

Apr 21 Aug 21 2 PM
60∞ 10 AM
Altitude above Horizon

Mar 21 Sept 21
9 AM 3 PM
45∞
Feb 21 Oct 21
8 AM 4 PM

Jan 21 Nov 21
30∞ Dec 21
7 AM 5 PM

6 AM 6 PM
15∞

0∞
120∞ 105∞ 90∞ 75∞ 60∞ 45∞ 30∞ 15∞ 0∞ 15∞ 30∞ 45∞ 60∞ 75∞ 90∞ 105∞ 120∞
East South West
Direction from True South

Determining Solar Access 509

 Solar Path Charts
Sun Chart for 24° N Latitude

90∞ June 21
May 21 July 21
11 AM 1 PM
Apr 21 Aug 21
75∞

10 AM 2 PM
Mar 21 Sept 21
Altitude above Horizon

60∞
Feb 21 Oct 21 3 PM
9 AM

Jan 21 Nov 21
45∞
Dec 21
8 AM 4 PM

30∞
7 AM 5 PM

15∞

0∞
120∞ 105∞ 90∞ 75∞ 60∞ 45∞ 30∞ 15∞ 0∞ 15∞ 30∞ 45∞ 60∞ 75∞ 90∞ 105∞ 120∞
East South West
Direction from True South

Sun Chart for 28° N Latitude

90∞
June 21
May 21 July 21

75∞ 11 AM Apr 21 Aug 21 1 PM

10 AM Mar 21 Sept 21 2 PM
60∞
Altitude above Horizon

Feb 21 Oct 21
9 AM 3 PM
45∞
Jan 21 Nov 21
Dec 21
8 AM 4 PM

30∞

7 AM 5 PM

15∞

0∞
120∞ 105∞ 90∞ 75∞ 60∞ 45∞ 30∞ 15∞ 0∞ 15∞ 30∞ 45∞ 60∞ 75∞ 90∞ 105∞ 120∞
East South West
Direction from True South

510 PASSIVE SOLAR

 Sun Chart for 32° N Latitude

90∞
June 21
May 21 July 21
75∞ 11 AM 1 PM
Apr 21 Aug 21

10 AM 2 PM
60∞
Altitude above Horizon

Mar 21 Sept 21

9 AM 3 PM
Feb 21 Oct 21
45∞
Jan 21 Nov 21
8 AM 4 PM
Dec 21
30∞
7 AM 5 PM

15∞

0∞
120∞ 105∞ 90∞ 75∞ 60∞ 45∞ 30∞ 15∞ 0∞ 15∞ 30∞ 45∞ 60∞ 75∞ 90∞ 105∞ 120∞
East South West
Direction from True South

Sun Chart for 36° N Latitude

90∞

June 21
75∞ May 21 July 21
11 AM 1 PM

Apr 21 Aug 21

60∞ 10 AM 2 PM
Altitude above Horizon

Mar 21 Sept 21

9 AM 3 PM
45∞ Feb 21 Oct 21

8 AM 4 PM
Jan 21 Nov 21
30∞ Dec 21

7 AM 5 PM

15∞

0∞
120∞ 105∞ 90∞ 75∞ 60∞ 45∞ 30∞ 15∞ 0∞ 15∞ 30∞ 45∞ 60∞ 75∞ 90∞ 105∞ 120∞
East South West
Direction from True South

Solar Path Charts 511