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A Study the Effectiveness of Passive Climate Control in Naturally Ventilated

Residential Buildings in times of Covid 19 Pandemic in the Philippines

Gian Lauryn G. Ramos

College of Engineering and Architecture

Purposive Communication

Veata Monina C. Santos

Instructor

Don Honorio Ventura State University

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Covid 19 is a world pandemic that the whole world is experiencing.Our study focuses
on quality of life in residential building. This housing typology presents unique
challenges relating to connection to nature, daylight and fresh air.We identify new
social and environmental design priorities in the form of evidence-based design
principles to inform and promote healthy and restorative living environments for
residents in residential buildings.The pandemic situation has spread as a global
disease which is creating fear, stress, minimizing social networks, etc. The pandemic
has acted as a catalyst for discussions concerning the health-promoting qualities of
our homes, shining light on a topic of great importance that must be addressed.
Philippines have two seasons the dry season and rainy season through out the year.
The dry season from December to May and the rainy season is from June to
November.The passive climate control process are approved by many countries same
as the Philippines because of the climate in the Philippines are to hot or to cold. So
that many techniques was implemented like how to consider the building orientation,
what facade construction, special roof system and window shading device on indoor
thermal environment and cooling load was implemented in the Philippines.Almost
architects apply a green design or green building when they are designing or planning
a residential and buildings.Green design are well known in the Philippines not only in
the Philippines also in other Tropical countries too.Considering passive design
methods such as building’s orientation, massing and facade that optimize the use of
free energy such as sun for heating, wind for cooling and daylight for natural
lighting can have a big impact on reducing the operational costs of a building. And
this time covid 19 pandemic is occurring. Corona virus disease (COVID-19) is an
infectious disease caused by a newly discovered corona virus. Most people infected
with the COVID-19 virus will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and
recover without requiring special treatment.(World’s Health Organization, 2020).Due
to COVID-19 city shutdowns and quarantines which began in many countries in early
2020, people have been spending far more time than usual in their homes.In this study
we want to know if the passive climate control is effective in time of covid - 19 in the
residential building.The aim of this study is to test the usefulness of applying selected
passive cooling techniques to improve thermal performance and to reduce energy
consumption of residential buildings and this paper deals both the primary and
secondary impact of the stay at home protocols. Like social distancing and social
isolation as it impacts on the psychological and physical health of residents and the
changing and multiple use and time of homes under such provisions.Passive design
responds to local climate and site conditions in order to maximize the comfort and
health of building users while minimizing energy use.  People will value their homes
more than before, and aim to make spaces more functional and fluid in their
purposes. This paper also address the healthy and safety of the residential building in
times of Covid 19 happening now. The current pandemic is not the first pandemic that
occur in the Philippines. In 1918-1919 the influenza pandemic or the Spanish flu
claimed 80,000 lives in the Philippines (Gealogo ,June 2009). This current pandemic
is not the first time that the architecture has had to respond to disease through design
innovations, and it will not be the last. Many of the methods for human health and
well-being make use of passive design strategies like operable windows for natural
ventilation that result in low-environmental impact thereby also promoting
environmental sustainability (Peters, 2017). The application of biophilic design
principles that connect people with nature also play a role in restorative environments
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(Kellert et al., 2008).The surface temperature of external wall and indoor thermal
environment was measured to analyze the facade thermal performance. The cooling
load was simulated to evaluate the effectiveness of various passive climate methods.
Using the special roof system as thermal buffer is the most efficient method to reduce
the room cooling load.  And the implications of green design or green building in the
Philippines. The green building help to fights against Covid - 19 and have become
one of the most important methods of fighting against the epidemic.  The architects
reconsidering the design of windows, views and access to nature within the
home.Windows in dwellings are necessary for inhabitant comfort and health, perhaps
even more so during a pandemic.(Basu et al., 2019; Kaplan, 1995)said that the
environments which support soft fascination, enabling the mind to reflect on
unresolved thoughts that have the ability to deprive more critical intentional
resources, offer a source of relief and restoration .(Kaplan, 2001) stated that the
studies have found that looking outside throughout a day provides micro-restorative
experiences, which have the capability to provide restorative qualities of nature to
occupants within their home .There is evidence that the spread of COVID-19
accelerated in areas where high temperature and humidity levels were ideal for
airborne transfer (Bate, 2020).where the Philippines have this temperature so the
Philippines have the one of biggest covid 19 infections.Knowing this, poor thermal
comfort in housing that places individuals at high risk must be addressed for health
and also for comfort and well-being.The availability of natural ventilation and
operable windows could be simple passive strategies to make indoor spaces more
comfortable and healthier. Residential design must promote passive perseverance by
utilizing passive design strategies to maintain life-supporting conditions.COVID-19
has created a sense of doubt in building ventilation and mechanical systems. The
current pandemic poses opportunities for change in the design world as existing social
and political issues in contemporary architecture and housing have been brought to
attention. It is crucial that resident quality of life be a focus in housing design.

Reference
Bate, L. (2020), “How will we approach the health of our communities and our
planet after covid-19?”, Canadian Architect,
https://www.canadianarchitect.com/how-will-approach-thehealth-of-our-
communities-and-our-planet-after-covid-19/.
Basu, A., Duvall, J. and Kaplan, R. (2019), “Attention restoration theory: exploring
the role of soft fascination and mental bandwidth”, Environment and Behavior,
SAGE Publications, Vol. 51 Nos 9–10, pp. 1055-1081.
Gealogo, F.A.(June 2009) “The Philippines in the World of Influenza Pandemic of
1918-1919”
Kaplan, R. (2001), “The nature of the view from home psychological benefits”,
Environment and Behavior, Vol. 33 No. 4, pp. 507-542.
Kellert, S., Heerwagen, J. and Mador, M. (2008), Biophilic Design: The Theory,
Science and Practice of Bringing Buildings to Life, John Wiley & Sons, Hoboken, NJ,
pp. 3-19.
Peters, T. (2017), “Superarchitecture: building for better health”, Architectural
Design, No. 2, pp. 24-31.
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World health organization (2020),Coronavirus https://www.who.int/health-

topics/coronavirus#tab=tab_1